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What's New
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July 2026
New article: “The Book of Revelation” (Revelation).
New article: “The Letters to the Seven Churches” (Revelation).
New article: “The Liturgy of Heaven” (Revelation).
New article: “The Woman, the Dragon, and the Lamb” (Revelation).
New article: “Babylon and the Judgment” (Revelation).
New article: “The New Jerusalem” (Revelation).
New article: “The Catholic Letters” (Catholic Letters).
New article: “The Letter of James” (Catholic Letters).
New article: “The Letters of Peter” (Catholic Letters).
New article: “The Letters of John” (Catholic Letters).
New article: “The Letter of Jude” (Catholic Letters).
New article: “The Book of Acts” (Acts).
New article: “Pentecost” (Acts).
New article: “The Church of the First Days” (Acts).
New article: “The Gospel to the Nations” (Acts).
New article: “To the Ends of the Earth” (Acts).
New article: “The Book of Hosea” (Hosea).
New article: “The Book of Micah” (Micah).
New article: “The Book of Jonah” (Jonah).
New article: “The Book of Habakkuk” (Habakkuk).
New article: “The Book of Zephaniah” (Zephaniah).
New article: “The Book of Malachi” (Malachi).
New article: “The Book of Daniel” (Daniel).
New article: “Faith in the Trial” (Daniel).
New article: “The Kingdoms That Pass” (Daniel).
New article: “The Son of Man and the Resurrection” (Daniel).
New article: “Susanna and the Wisdom of God” (Daniel).
New article: “The Book of Jeremiah” (Jeremiah).
New article: “Jeremiah, the Tested Prophet” (Jeremiah).
New article: “The New Covenant” (Jeremiah).
New article: “The Fall of Jerusalem and the Lamentations” (Jeremiah).
New article: “Baruch and the Hope of Exile” (Jeremiah).
New article: “The Song of Songs” (Song of Songs).
New article: “The Movement of Love” (Song of Songs).
New article: “The Garden of Symbols” (Song of Songs).
New article: “Love Strong as Death” (Song of Songs).
New article: “The Senses of the Song” (Song of Songs).
New article: “The Book of Job” (Job).
New article: “The Prologue and the Trial” (Job).
New article: “Job and His Friends” (Job).
New article: “God’s Answer” (Job).
New article: “My Eyes Have Seen You” (Job).
New article: “The Book of Ecclesiastes” (Ecclesiastes).
New article: “The Quest for Happiness” (Ecclesiastes).
New article: “A Time for Everything” (Ecclesiastes).
New article: “The Joy That Is God’s Gift” (Ecclesiastes).
New article: “Remember Your Creator” (Ecclesiastes).
New article: “The Book of Wisdom” (Wisdom).
New article: “The Righteous, the Wicked, and Immortality” (Wisdom).
New article: “Wisdom, the Breath of God” (Wisdom).
New article: “Wisdom, Guide of History” (Wisdom).
New article: “Knowing God and the Folly of Idols” (Wisdom).
New article: “The Book of Sirach” (Sirach).
New article: “The Fear of the Lord, Source of Wisdom” (Sirach).
New article: “Wisdom and the Law” (Sirach).
New article: “The Choice of Life and Everyday Wisdom” (Sirach).
New article: “The Praise of the Ancestors” (Sirach).
New article: “The Book of Proverbs” (Proverbs).
New article: “The Fear of the Lord and the Two Ways” (Proverbs).
New article: “Personified Wisdom” (Proverbs).
New article: “Wisdom for Daily Life” (Proverbs).
New article: “The Valiant Woman” (Proverbs).
New article: “The Psalter, Prayer of Israel” (Psalms).
New article: “The Psalms of Praise and Thanksgiving” (Psalms).
New article: “The Psalms of Supplication and Trust” (Psalms).
New article: “The Royal and Messianic Psalms” (Psalms).
New article: “The Psalms of Ascents and Wisdom” (Psalms).
New article: “The Psalms on the Lips of Christ” (Psalms).
New article: “The Crisis and the Profanation of the Temple” (1 Maccabees).
New article: “Eleazar and the Seven Brothers” (2 Maccabees).
New article: “Judas Maccabeus and the Dedication of the Temple” (1-2 Maccabees).
New article: “Jewish Independence” (1 Maccabees).
New article: “Tobit” (Tobit).
New article: “Judith” (Judith).
New article: “Esther” (Esther).
New article: “The Return and the House of God” (Ezra).
New article: “Ezra and the Return to the Law” (Ezra, Nehemiah).
New article: “Nehemiah and the Rebuilt City” (Nehemiah).
New article: “Samuel and the Rise of Kingship” (1-2 Samuel).
New article: “Saul and the Rise of David” (1 Samuel).
New article: “David, the Covenant, and the Promise” (2 Samuel).
New article: “Solomon and the Temple” (1 Kings).
New article: “The Schism and the Northern Kingdom” (1-2 Kings).
New article: “Judah until the Exile” (2 Kings, 2 Chronicles).
New article: “The Entry into the Promised Land” (Joshua).
New article: “The Division of the Land and the Covenant at Shechem” (Joshua).
New article: “The Time of the Judges” (Judges).
New article: “In Those Days There Was No King” (Judges).
New article: “Ruth the Moabite” (Ruth).
New article: “Abraham, Father of Believers” (Genesis).
New article: “Isaac and Jacob” (Genesis).
New article: “Joseph” (Genesis).
New article: “The Creation and the Rest” (Genesis).
New article: “The Garden and the Fall” (Genesis).
New article: “From Cain to Babel” (Genesis).
New article: “Personal Responsibility” (Ezekiel).
New article: “The Ministry of the New Covenant” (2 Corinthians).
New article: “The Collection for the Saints” (2 Corinthians).
New article: “Strength in Weakness” (2 Corinthians).
New article: “The Decalogue.”
New article: “The Law of the Neighbor.”
New article: “The Law of Worship and Holiness.”
New article: “The Law and Christ.”
New article: “The Law, Gift of the Covenant.”
New article: “Freedom and idols” (1 Corinthians 8-10).
New article: “The charisms and the assembly” (1 Corinthians 12 and 14).
New article: “The Cardinal Virtues”.
New article: “Prudence”.
New article: “Temperance”.
The French Bible of the site is now the Chérubin translation, with section headings in the reader.
New article: “Resentment and Forgiveness”.
New article: “Judging One’s Neighbour”.
New article: “The New Temple and the River of Life” (Ezekiel).
New article: “The Restoration of Israel” (Ezekiel).
New article: “The Oracles Against the Nations” (Ezekiel).
New article: “The Symbolic Actions and the Judgment of Jerusalem”.
New article: “Ezekiel, the Prophet of the Exile”.
New article: “Anger and Meekness”.
New article: “Love”.
New article: “The Desire to Feel the Spirit”.
New article: “The Dark Night of the Soul”.
June 2026
New article: “Consolation and Desolation”.
New article: “Discerning the Movements of the Heart”.
New article: “The Fall of Nineveh”.
New article: “The God Who Judges and Who Saves”.
New article: “Nahum and the Assyrian Empire”.
New article: “Justice, the Day of the Lord, and Hope”.
New article: “The Visions and the Rejected Worship”.
New article: “The Judgment of the Nations and of Israel”.
New article: “Amos, the Shepherd Prophet”.
New article: “The Glory of the Second Temple”.
New article: “The Four Oracles”.
New article: “Haggai and the Rebuilding of the Temple”.
New article: “The Expansion of Christianity”.
New article: “All Under Sin”.
New article: “The Epistle to the Romans”.
New article: “Sinai and the covenant”.
New article: “The deliverance”.
New article: “The bondage and the call”.
New article: “The oracles against the nations”.
New article: “Sadness”.
New article: “Fear”.
New article: “The finger of God”.
New article: “The baptism of Christ”.
New article: “The Resurrection and the Glorification”.
New article: “Holy Week”.
New article: “The third year: the opposition”.
New article: “The second year: popularity”.
New article: “The first year: the inauguration”.
New article: “The preparation for the ministry”.
New article: “The prologues and the coming of Christ”.
New: the “Memorise” tool.
New article: “The Real Presence.”
New article: “The four Servant Songs”.
New article: “Trito-Isaiah”.
New article: “Deutero-Isaiah”.
New article: “Proto-Isaiah”.
New article: “Predestination”.
New article: “The Angel of the Lord”.
New article: “Wars of Extermination in the Bible”.
New article: “Slavery in the Bible”.
New article: “The Nature of God”.
New article: “The Age of the Martyrs”.
New article: “The Abode of the Dead”.
New article: “The Canon and the Deuterocanonical Books”.
New article: “The Deacon”.
New article: “The Priest”.
New article: “Sola Scriptura”.
New article: “The Angels”.
New article: “Sola Fide”.
New article: “Once Saved, Always Saved”.
New article: “Elijah at Horeb”.
New article: “Turning the Other Cheek”.
New article: “Buy a Sword”.
New article: “Let the Dead Bury Their Dead”.
New article: “Jesus before Pilate”.
New article: “Jesus and Nicodemus”.
New article: “Invincible Ignorance”.
New article: “The Prophet and His Time”.
New article: “The Eight Night Visions”.
New article: “Joshua, the Branch and the Crown”.
New article: “Fasting and Restoration”.
New article: “First Oracle: The King Who Comes”.
New article: “The Book of Obadiah”.
New article: “Second Oracle: The Pierced One”.
New article: “The Day of the Lord”.
New article: “The Plague and the Day of the Lord”.
New article: “Conversion and the Spirit Poured Out”.
New article: “The Judgment of the Nations and the Salvation of Zion”.
New article: “The Three Ways of the Interior Life”.
New article: “Freedom and Responsibility”.
New article: “The Moral Conscience”.
New article: “Doubt and the Moral Systems”.
New article: “Doing Evil for a Good”.
New article: “Adoration and Praise”.
New article: “Why God Asks for Adoration”.
New article: “Faith and Science”.
New article: “The Theory of Evolution”.
New article: “The Woes of Isaiah”.
New article: “The Dwelling, the Priesthood and the Sacrifices”.
New article: “The Forty Years in the Desert”.
New article: "The Discourses of Moses".
New article: "The Death of Moses".
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David, the Covenant, and the Promise

David becomes king, takes Jerusalem as his capital, brings the ark up to it, and receives from God a promise that runs through the whole Bible: a dynasty without end. This is the heart of the books of Samuel, and the root of the messianic hope. The same David, great and a sinner, also shows that no king of flesh alone fills this promise.

David, King of All Israel

After Saul’s death, David is made king of Judah at Hebron, while a son of Saul reigns for a time over the North; then, that rival murdered, the tribes come of themselves to offer the crown to David, who at last reigns over all Israel. His first act is to take from the Jebusites the stronghold of Zion, reputed impregnable, which becomes Jerusalem, the city of David: a new capital, belonging to no tribe and gathering them all. He brings up the ark of the covenant there. A first attempt turns to tragedy, a man struck for having touched it, and David understands that one does not approach God lightly; he then brings it back with fear and joy, dancing before it with all his strength, careless of his royal dignity, even to drawing the scorn of his wife Michal. The royal city thus becomes the center of worship as much as of power. The Chronicles, which reread this whole history with the eyes of the Temple, dwell at length on this David: the one who institutes the service of the Levites and the singers, orders the praise, composes psalms, and gathers the gold, the materials, and the plans of the sanctuary his son will build. For the Chronicler, David is above all the king who founds the liturgy of Israel.

The Davidic Covenant

David, settled in a palace of cedar, finds it unjust to dwell better than the ark, still under the tent, and wishes to build a house for God. Through the prophet Nathan, God reverses the plan: it is not David who will build a house for God, it is God who will build a house for David, a dynasty. He reminds him that he took him from behind the flock to make him a prince, promises him a son who will build the Temple, and above all a reign that will not end. "I will be a father to him, and he will be a son to me." 2 Samuel 7:14 "Your house and your kingship will stand firm forever before me; your throne will be established forever." 2 Samuel 7:16 Overwhelmed, David enters the sanctuary and prays, asking who he is that God should raise him so. This promise goes beyond Solomon, whose reign will end, and beyond the whole line of kings: it aims at a descendant of David whose throne will have no end. It is this promise the angel will take up for Mary, announcing a son to whom God will give "the throne of David his father" and whose reign will be without term; it is this promise the Epistle to the Hebrews applies to Christ, the Son above all. The kingship of Israel here takes its true meaning: it is the cradle of an expectation, that of the Messiah, the Son of David.

The Sin and the Repentance

David’s greatness does not rest on his innocence, for he falls gravely. One evening he covets Bathsheba, the wife of one of his officers, Uriah; he takes her, and when she is found to be with child, he recalls Uriah from the front to make him believe the child his own. But the officer, faithful, refuses to go home while the ark and the army camp in the field; so David has him placed at the fiercest point of the battle, where he dies. The prophet Nathan comes to the king and tells him the story of a rich man who stole and killed the one ewe of a poor man; when David is indignant and condemns the rich man to death, Nathan answers him: this man is you. And David, instead of excusing himself like Saul, confesses in a word. "I have sinned against the Lord." 2 Samuel 12:13 The prophet declares to him that God, for his part, has forgiven his sin, without yet lifting all its consequences, for evil begets evil: the child of the fault dies, and the sword will never leave his house. Tradition places on David’s lips, on that day, the great psalm of repentance, where the broken soul asks God not only to blot out the fault, but to remake him within. "Create in me a pure heart, O God; renew within me a steadfast spirit." Psalms 51:12 What separates David from Saul is not never having sinned, but turning back to God when he has sinned.

The Shadow over the House

The forgiveness received does not suspend the bitter fruits of the fault. Violence enters the house of David: one son rapes his half-sister, another, Absalom, avenges her by killing him, then revolts against his father, seizes Jerusalem, and drives him out. David flees barefoot, weeping, insulted along the road; when Absalom, caught in the branches of an oak, is killed despite the order to spare him, the king sobs over the son who had betrayed him. Returned to Jerusalem, he faces still other revolts, and toward the end a proud census draws a plague upon the people; to stop it, David buys the threshing floor of a Jebusite, Ornan, and raises an altar there. The Chronicles note that this threshing floor, where the punishment halted, is the very place where Solomon will build the Temple: the mercy received by David becomes the ground of the house of God. Despite these rendings, the promise holds: God’s fidelity to David outlasts David’s faults. The Chronicles, later, will pass over these shadows and paint an idealized David, wholly turned toward worship, not to hide the truth, but to show, through him, the figure of the perfect king that the Messiah alone will realize.

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