Dawud, known in English as David (peace be upon him), was a prophet and a king. Allah (﷾) gave him the Zabur, the Psalms. He is the man the Qur'an calls “the man of strength”, and the reason it gives is that he always turned back to Allah (﷾).
This guide follows what the Qur'an says, with a few authentic sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). It is the story as Islam tells it.
At a glance
- By Allah's (﷾) will, a small army beat a big one, and Dawud slew Jalut (Goliath).
- Allah (﷾) gave him power, wisdom and the Zabur (the Psalms).
- The mountains and the birds praised Allah (﷾) with him.
- Allah (﷾) made iron soft for him, and taught him to make coats of mail.
- He ate from the work of his own hands.
- When he was tested, he asked forgiveness, and Allah (﷾) forgave him.
- Talut's army
Allah (﷾) appoints Talut as king and tests his army at a stream. Only a few stay with him. Qur’an 2:247Qur’an 2:249
- Jalut
The small army prays for patience, and by Allah's (﷾) will beats Jalut's. Dawud slays Jalut. Qur’an 2:250Qur’an 2:251
- Gifts
Allah (﷾) strengthens his kingdom, gives him wisdom, and gives him the Zabur. Qur’an 38:20Qur’an 17:55
- The two men
Two men climb over the wall of his private room and ask him to judge between them. Qur’an 38:21–24
- Forgiven
He realises that he has been tried, asks forgiveness and bows down. Allah (﷾) forgives him. Qur’an 38:24Qur’an 38:25
- Vicegerent
Allah (﷾) makes him a vicegerent on earth and tells him to judge between people with truth. Qur’an 38:26
The Qur'an gives no dates for Dawud's life, so these are the stages of his story.
Talut, Jalut and the stream
After the time of Musa, the chiefs of the Children of Israel asked their prophet to appoint a king for them. They wanted to fight in Allah's (﷾) cause. Allah (﷾) appointed Talut. Some of them doubted that he was fit to rule. Their prophet answered that Allah (﷾) had chosen him, and had given him knowledge and strength of body. Qur’an 2:246–247
Talut set out with the army and told them that Allah (﷾) would test them at a stream. Whoever drank from it would not go with him. Only a sip from the hand was allowed. All of them drank, except a few. Those few crossed the river with Talut. Then they saw how great the enemy was, and said they could not face Jalut (Goliath) and his forces. But those who were sure that they would meet Allah (﷾) answered: Qur’an 2:249
How oft, by Allah's will, Hath a small force vanquished a big one? Allah is with those who steadfastly persevere.
As they advanced to meet Jalut, they prayed:
Our Lord! Pour out constancy on us and make our steps firm: Help us against those that reject faith.
Their prayer was answered:
By Allah's will they routed them; and David slew Goliath; and Allah gave him power and wisdom and taught him whatever (else) He willed.
The victory was Allah's (﷾), not the army's. The Qur'an adds that Allah (﷾) checks one set of people by means of another, or the earth would be full of mischief. Qur’an 2:251
A king with gifts from Allah (﷾)
Allah (﷾) gave Dawud a strong kingdom. He also gave him wisdom and sound judgment in speech and in deciding between people. Dawud and his son Sulayman (Solomon) both received knowledge, and both gave thanks: Qur’an 38:20Qur’an 27:15Sulayman
Praise be to Allah, Who has favoured us above many of his servants who believe!
The Zabur
Allah (﷾) also gave Dawud a book, the Zabur, which is translated as the Psalms. The Qur'an lists Dawud among the messengers to whom Allah (﷾) sent inspiration, and in another place it says: Qur’an 4:163
We did bestow on some prophets more (and other) gifts than on others: and We gave to David (the gift of) the Psalms.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said that reciting the Zabur was made easy for Dawud. He would order his riding animals to be saddled, and finish reciting it before they were ready. Sahih al-Bukhari 3417
The mountains, the birds and the iron
The Qur'an tells of more gifts. Allah (﷾) made the hills and the birds join Dawud in glorifying Him, in the evening and at sunrise: Qur’an 38:18–19Qur’an 21:79
O ye Mountains! Sing ye back the Praises of Allah with him! and ye birds (also)!
Allah (﷾) also made iron soft for him, and taught him to make coats of mail, and to measure the rings of the chain mail well: Qur’an 34:10–11
It was We Who taught him the making of coats of mail for your benefit, to guard you from each other's violence: will ye then be grateful?
Dawud was a king, and he still worked with his hands. The Prophet (ﷺ) said that no one has ever eaten better food than what he earns by his own labour. He said that the Prophet of Allah (﷾), Dawud, ate from the earnings of his own work. Sahih al-Bukhari 2072Sahih al-Bukhari 3417
A man of strength who always turned back
Allah (﷾) told the Prophet (ﷺ) to be patient with what people said, and to remember Dawud: Qur’an 38:17
remember our servant David, the man of strength: for he ever turned (to Allah).
Dawud's strength was not only in his arm. It showed in how he worshipped. The Prophet (ﷺ) told Abdullah ibn Amr that the prayer most beloved to Allah (﷾) is Dawud's, and the fasting most beloved to Allah (﷾) is Dawud's. Dawud used to sleep for half the night, pray for a third of it, and sleep again for a sixth. He fasted every other day. Sahih al-Bukhari 1131Sahih al-Bukhari 3420
He was also a judge. The Qur'an tells of a case that Dawud and Sulayman judged together, about sheep that had strayed into a field by night. Allah (﷾) says He witnessed their judgment. He gave Sulayman the right understanding of the matter, and to each of them He gave judgment and knowledge. Qur’an 21:78–79
The two who climbed the wall
Then the Qur'an tells of one day when Dawud was tried. Two men climbed over the wall of his private room. He was frightened, but they told him not to fear: they had come with a dispute, and one had wronged the other. They asked him to judge between them with truth. One of them said that his brother had ninety-nine ewes (female sheep), and he had only one. Yet his brother had asked him to hand her over. Qur’an 38:21–23
Dawud gave his judgment. Then he understood that Allah (﷾) had been testing him: Qur’an 38:24
and David gathered that We had tried him: he asked forgiveness of his Lord, fell down, bowing (in prostration), and turned (to Allah in repentance).
He did not delay or argue. He asked forgiveness, bowed down, and turned back to Allah (﷾). And Allah (﷾) forgave him:
So We forgave him this (lapse): he enjoyed, indeed, a Near Approach to Us, and a beautiful place of (Final) Return.
The Qur'an does not say more about the test, and this guide does not add to it. What it tells us is what matters. He turned back, and Allah (﷾) forgave him and brought him near. Then Allah (﷾) spoke to him again:
O David! We did indeed make thee a vicegerent on earth: so judge thou between men in truth (and justice)
Here a vicegerent (khalifah) means one given authority on earth, to rule over people. Allah (﷾) told Dawud to judge with truth and justice, and not to follow his own desires, which would lead him away from Allah's (﷾) path. Qur’an 38:26
How the Bible tells it differently
The Bible tells David's story at length, in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, in 1 Kings and in the Psalms. The Qur'an and the Bible agree that he defeated Goliath and became a king. But the details differ. Muslims believe that Allah (﷾) revealed the Torah to Musa, and the Injil to Isa: the Gospel Jesus himself preached in his lifetime. The Injil is not the New Testament. The four New Testament Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, were written by others, decades after Jesus was raised up. None of them names its author: the names were attached later. And the Torah we have today is not exactly as it was revealed. So where the Bible tells a story just as the Qur'an does, we believe it. Where it differs from the Qur'an or contradicts it, we do not. Where the Qur'an says nothing, we neither believe it nor deny it, as the Prophet (ﷺ) taught. Here are the main differences, with the verses. 1 Samuel 17:50 (KJV)Qur’an 5:48Qur’an 5:46Which of the four Gospels did Jesus preach from?Who wrote the Gospels?Sahih al-Bukhari 4485How should a Muslim read the Bible?
Goliath. In 1 Samuel, Saul tells David he is only a youth, and David kills Goliath with a sling and a stone. The Qur'an tells it in a single line: by Allah's (﷾) will, Dawud slew Jalut. It says nothing of his age, or of a sling. 1 Samuel 17:33 (KJV)1 Samuel 17:50 (KJV)Qur’an 2:251
The Psalms. The Qur'an speaks of the Zabur as a book that Allah (﷾) gave to Dawud, and counts him among those who received inspiration. In the Bible, the Book of Psalms is a collection of songs and prayers. Many are headed with David's name, and some with other names, such as Asaph or Moses. So today's Book of Psalms is not simply the book Allah (﷾) gave to Dawud. This site looks at how the two relate on its own page. Qur’an 4:163Qur’an 17:55Psalm 3:1 (KJV)Psalm 50:1 (KJV)Psalm 90:1 (KJV)Do Muslims believe in the books God gave Moses and Jesus?
Bathsheba and Uriah. 2 Samuel 11 says that David took Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite. It says he had Uriah placed at the front of the battle, where he died. The Qur'an does not tell this story, and Muslims reject it. Islam teaches that once Allah (﷾) made a man a prophet, He kept him from major sin. The Qur'an tells of a test, without saying what the test was. After it, Dawud asked forgiveness and Allah (﷾) forgave him. The Qur'an calls him a man of strength who always turned to Allah (﷾). 2 Samuel 11:2–4 (KJV)2 Samuel 11:14–17 (KJV)Qur’an 38:17Qur’an 38:24–25Were the prophets sinless?
What we can learn
Dawud's story is for everyone who has power, and for everyone who has made a mistake.
- Victory comes by Allah's (﷾) will. A small army, with patience and prayer, beat a big one. The believers asked Allah (﷾) to pour out constancy on them and make their steps firm. Qur’an 2:249–250
- Give thanks for what you have been given. Dawud and Sulayman received knowledge and said: “Praise be to Allah”. Allah (﷾) asks all of us whether we will be grateful. Qur’an 27:15Qur’an 21:80
- There is honour in working with your hands. A king, and still he ate from the earnings of his own work. Sahih al-Bukhari 2072
- Steady worship is the most beloved. The Prophet (ﷺ) said Allah (﷾) loves the prayer and the fast of Dawud. He prayed through part of the night, slept, and fasted on alternate days. Sahih al-Bukhari 1131
- Turn back, and the door is open. When Dawud knew he had been tried, he asked forgiveness at once. Allah (﷾) forgave him, and brought him near. Qur’an 38:24–25
The Qur'an remembers Dawud as a man of strength who always turned to Allah (﷾). That is open to everyone: turn to your Lord, ask forgiveness, and you will find Him forgiving. Qur’an 38:17