Prophet Dawood (A)

Prophet Dawood (A)

The Bani Israa'il, who had been brought out of Egypt by Prophet Musa
(A), had settled in the land of Palestine. However, they were
constantly engaged in war against the Philistines who finally managed
to banish them from their homes.

In the last battle, the Sacred Casket containing the original Tablets
of the Tawrat was lost, and this greatly demoralized the Bani
Israa'il. They spent many gloomy years in exile before they approached
Prophet Samuel (A) and asked him to appoint a strong king for them so
that they could regain their land.

On the command of Allah, Prophet Samuel (A) appointed Taalut (Saul) as
their king. The Bani Israa'il protested at this choice, saying that
Taalut was a poor and unknown man. However, Prophet Samuel (A)
informed them that Taalut had been chosen because of his knowledge,
wisdom and strength, and he would undoubtedly lead them to victory.

It took Taalut 20 years to relocate the Sacred Casket and once it was
restored to the people, they marched to Palestine. The Philistines
were led by a fearsome commander, a huge man by the name of Jaalut
(Goliath). The sight of Jaalut filled the Bani Israa'il with dread and
none dared to fight him.

Prophet Dawood (A) was present in the army of Taalut. He was only a
young man at the time, and had not come to fight. His job was to
attend to his three older brothers who were soldiers, and to bring
news of the war back to their father.

When Taalut saw that Jaalut had terrified his army, he tried to
encourage his men by promising them great rewards if they faced
Jaalut. He promised that he would marry his daughter to the man who
killed Jaalut.

Drawn by the commotion at the battlefront, Prophet Dawood (A) left his
post and came to find out what was going on. He had never fought a
duel before, but when he saw the scene, he approached Taalut and said,
"I am fit to fight this devil because I have killed a tiger and a bear
who attacked my father's sheep."

The brave words of Prophet Dawood (A) touched Taalut, who dressed him
in a coat of armor and warned him to be careful.

Before Prophet Dawood (A) approached Jaalut, he removed the heavy
armor which was restricting his movement. He stood before the enemy,
armed only with a catapult and the staff with which he used to guide
his sheep.

Before Jaalut could react to this challenge, Prophet Dawood (A) had
shot a stone from his catapult. The stone struck Jaalut's forehead
with terrible force and brought him to the ground in a daze. Prophet
Dawood (A) then drew Jaalut's heavy sword and cut off his head. The
sight of their champion dead crushed the Philistines, who deserted the
battlefield in panic. In appreciation of the extraordinary courage of
Prophet Dawood (A), Taalut married him to his daughter Mikaal.

The Holy Qur'an says:

Through Allah's Will, they defeated their enemy. Dawood slew
Jaalut and Allah granted him the kingdom and wisdom... (Quran 2:251)

Prophet Dawood (A) was made commander-in- chief of Taalut's army and
his close friendship to Taalut's son Yunathaan, made him very powerful
and popular in the land. After Taalut's death Prophet Dawood (A)
became the king. Allah gave him wisdom and the Divine Book, Zaboor
(Psalms), which he used to recite in a melodious voice to attract the
people to the words of Allah.

Prophet Dawood (A) was given many blessings by Allah. When he used to
praise Allah, the mountains and the birds would also joined him. Iron
was like wax in his hands, and he used to design and mould special,
lightweight battle armor made of iron ringlets joined together.

By selling these to the army, he earned his livelihood. The Holy
Qur'an says:

Indeed We granted Dawood a favor, saying, "O Mountains! sing the
praise of Allah along with him, and O Birds!, you too." And We made
iron soft for him. (Quran 34:10)

Prophet Dawood (A) used to allocate different duties for each day. He
set aside one day for the worship of Allah, one day for hearing
people's complaints, one day for giving sermons, one day for rest and
so on. On the day set for his rest, Prophet Dawood's (A) guards did
not allow anybody to enter his house. On one such day, two angels in
human form entered his house from the roof, startling Prophet Dawood (A).

The Holy Qur'an says:

When they climbed into the prayer room and entered upon Dawood he
was frightened of them. They said, "Do not be frightened, the two of
us are disputing a wrong that one has done the other. So decide
between us with justice and do not act unjustly; and guide us on the
straight path. This is my brother. He has 99 ewes and I have but a
single ewe, but he says, `Make me the owner of that one also', and he
has overcome me in arguing." (Quran 38:22,23)

Prophet Dawood (A) heard the complaint and at once he said that the
man demanding the only sheep his brother possessed was being unjust.
At that moment Prophet Dawood (A) realized that this was a test of
Allah and he regretted his hasty decision without demanding proof from
the complainant and hearing both sides of the story. He realized that
in his position as judge amongst the people, he could not make rash
decisions and he turned to Allah, begging His forgiveness for this
mistake.

The Holy Qur'an says:

We forgave him that (lapse) and indeed for him with Us is a
closeness and an excellent reward. (Quran 38:25)

Prophet Dawood (A) ruled wisely for many years and was succeeded by
his youngest son, Prophet Sulayman (A).