Upamanyu Biswas
The fourth episode of ‘House of David,’ titled ‘The Song of Moses,’ continues the unleashing of steady chaos under King Saul’s reign as the favor of God firmly leaves his court. As explored in the events from the previous episodes, Israel has a new anointed king – David, who finds his everyday life wholly upended in the immediate aftermath of Samuel’s proclamation. In episode 4, the young shepherd boy’s dreams of striking out into the world by himself comes close to fruition as an unforeseen summons compels him to leave the familiar lands of Bethlehem behind. Meanwhile, Saul’s close circle faces a disruption, mainly owing to the exploits of his younger son, Eshbaal, who becomes involved in a reputationally damaging incident with repercussions for everyone attached, mainly himself. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Eliab Urges Secrecy as Jesse’s Family is Put Under Threat
After the holy anointment in episode 3, the fourth episode begins with David and Samuel discussing the former’s destiny and the journey he must take to realize it. Samuel tells David that he must leave for the moment, but he will return soon with more answers. David is happy to know that the high seer has taken such a personal and professional interest in him. However, at home, the opposite is true. Eliab convinces Jesse and his brothers that Samuel’s words cannot be trusted and that his premonition that David is the next king should be treated as the ravings of a man whose powers are dwindling. The others are not as convinced by Eliab’s words as Samuel has always been right in the past. Still, Eliab’s reasons for dissuading any credence for Samuel’s words are rooted in good intentions.
Eliab fears that if King Saul hears any rumors of Samuel’s visit to the sheep farm and David’s anointment, then all of Jesse’s kin will be captured and executed for treason. As the oldest sibling in the family, Eliab tries to keep Jesse and the others grounded in reality and the dangers surrounding them. He also shares this news with David, asking him to lay low to keep himself and their family safe. He is unwilling to entertain even the slightest notion that Samuel’s words could be valid. At the moment, his main concern lies with Saul and how he might react to the news that a successor had been chosen for his post. However, Eliab’s concerns and fears almost become a reality when a cohort of the king’s soldiers, led by Joab, arrives at Jesse’s doorstep.
The family greets Joab at their entrance. They learn from the military officer that King Saul has summoned Jesse’s family to the royal court in Gibeah. Understandably, Jesse and Eliab are worried that this may be a direct consequence of Samuel’s visit. However, Joab clarifies that the invitation is only for David and not for anyone else in the house. Subsequently, David packs his belongings and gets on the cart. Eliab decides to accompany him, and Jesse urges him to keep David safe by using whatever means possible. Meanwhile, Avva runs out of the shack and hands David the claw he got from the lion. The symbolic gift signifies their parting and also David’s new journey into the heart of danger, where he must learn the true meaning of his purpose and destiny.
Eshbaal Faces the Consequences of His Choices
Episode 4 also gives us a glimpse into Saul’s inner family, especially through the eyes of Eshbaal. In the previous episodes, we learned that Eshbaal is seen as a bit of a black sheep within the family and someone who runs away from responsibility. He is constantly trying to make it seem as if the same laws that apply to others don’t apply to him. However, this same mindset gets him in trouble in the fourth episode. After trying to cajole his father into turning Gibeah into a prime destination for its people, Eshbaal is disappointed to hear his father mock his leadership abilities even after he praises his idea to revamp the city’s image. Moments later, Yahir, an elder from the Tribe of Dan, enters the royal court in a state of hysteria, demanding compensation for betraying his family.
The entire royal court and Saul ask Yahir what his qualm is with the king’s family. Yahir reveals that Eshbaal slept with one of his daughters, thereby “defiling” her honor. As such, he demands that Eshbaal marry his daughter and that their two families be joined in matrimony to stop the dishonor to his kin. As Saul is still sickly from Samuel’s curse, he leaves the chamber quite unceremoniously, which angers Yahir even further. Eshbaal is enraged by Yahir’s request and gets involved in a verbal battle with the elder. Jonathan tries to calm Eshbaal and make him more reasonable. However, it has no effect. Eventually, the situation gets so untenable that Yahir invokes the Law of Moses and demands that Eshbaal marry his daughter or be stoned to death. The law holds true regardless of one’s position in life, even for a king.
Queen Ahinoam enters the court and defuses the matter quite swiftly by stating that the Law of Moses is equal for both sides. If her son is stoned to death, then the same will happen to Yahir’s daughter, a detail that the tribe elder is not privy to. Ahinoam urges Yahir to return the following day to settle the matter. That night, Eshbaal has another verbal altercation with his entire family during dinner, with Saul even calling him a “curse.” The next day, Queen Ahinoam calls Yahir in and makes her judgment. She invokes the Law of Moses and has Eshbaal banished to the City of Endor, a place for criminals, as compensation for Eshbaal defiling Yahir’s daughter. Yahir is satisfied with this turn of events, and his animosity towards Saul’s family stops. Meanwhile, Eshbaal rages at his family for abandoning him and is carted away to Endor.
David’s Life in Court Takes an Intriguing Turn Due to the Presence of Princess Mychal
David arrives in Gibeah just as Eshbaal is carted away from the palace in disgrace. The two momentarily lock eyes on the road before the city’s walls swallow David. He is taken straight into the royal palace and brought in front of Queen Ahinoam. Eliab stays beside David, fearing that the purpose of their summons is simply to kill David for his anointment as the future King of Israel. However, the real purpose proves to be a lot more innocent. It seems that Saul’s restless mind can only be soothed by good music. Unfortunately, an array of musicians had been fired from the palace recently because Saul had been unhappy with all of them. As such, David has been summoned to play in front of the king and show his talents to the royal court.
He is taken straight to the throne room, where an angry Saul throws out another musician for not living up to the expectations. David loses his confidence and starts panicking. However, Princess Mychal notices his anxiety and consoles him, stating that she is the one who chose him for the palace musician’s role. She really enjoyed his music when she traveled to Bethlehem for the wedding in the earlier episodes. Intriguingly, the two characters also showed signs of a romantic connection. That underlying spark remains alive as David performs in front of the king. He can focus after Mychal tells him to just sing to her and ignore the others to calm his nerves. He finds this soothing and manages to win over everyone’s attention.
David is subsequently made a palace staff member and given a room on one of the wings. Eliab reminds him that he should keep a low profile as his life may still be in danger due to Samuel’s prophecy. However, David’s free-spirited nature quickly takes over, and he regularly finds himself in the presence of Princess Mychal. The two begin meeting in the palace’s library, where Mychal learns that David cannot read. She subsequently promises to teach him how to read, even sharing her worries about her family’s future with him. It is evident that she finds his presence comforting and vice versa. Meanwhile, Eliab grows even more concerned about David’s fate when he hears Abnor say that Saul’s forces have discovered a plot to usurp the king’s throne and hand it over to a “pretender.”
Elsewhere, Samuel returns to Silas’ campsite and discovers his charred remains with the words “Traitor” plastered on a rock. Samuel is devastated by the discovery and quickly travels back to his home. He urges his wife to gather some belongings and leave with him as soon as possible, as Saul will likely send people to kill them both. At the same time, Eshbaal’s trip to Endor is cut short when a mysterious stranger slays the cohort of guards escorting him. Eshbaal exits his palanquin, where the assassin greets him and tells him to follow. Although it is unknown who might be saving him, it is likely that Queen Ahinoam double-crossed Yahir and had a contingency plan to keep her son safe. She may have sold the notion that Eshbaal is being exiled to Endor, but secretly, he was meant to be rescued. It will be interesting to see what the plan is here and what David does next.
Read More: House of David Episode 1, 2, and 3 Recap: The Beginnings of David
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