Friday, April 21, 2023

David's Polygamy in Damascus Document V:1-5

In the Damascus Document V:1-5, we read the following which is similar to what one finds in D&C 132 concerning David's polygamy:

 

  1      and those who went into the ark ‘two by two they went into the ark.’ <And concerning the prince, it is written:

  2      ‘He shall not multiply wives for himself’; but David had not read the sealed book of the law which

  3      was in the ark (of the covenant), for it had not been opened in Israel since the deaths of Eleazar,

  4      Joshua and the Elders, because (during this time) they were worshipping Ashtoreth; so it was hidden

  5      (and not) revealed until Zadok arose. Hence the deeds of David were overlooked, except the blood of Uriah

 

The above translation was taken from:

 

Philip R. Davies, The Damascus Covenant: An Interpretation of the “Damascus Document” (Translation) (Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series 25; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1982), 245

 

As John Tvedntes noted, the text above is also evidence of “hidden books” in antiquity.