The phrase “kingdom of Israel” in the Bible may refer either to the “united” kingdom under Saul, David, and Solomon, which incorporated some or all of the later kingdoms of Israel and Judah, or the breakaway northern kingdom of Israel that Jeroboam established after Solomon’s death. The Mesha Stela, a monumental inscribed stone written in the Moabite language and dating to around 840 B.C.E., describes how King Omri of Israel subjugated Moab, and it attributes this oppression to the Moabite deity Kemosh, who was angry with his people.Although 2Kgs 17:5-23 states that the inhabitants of the northern kingdom of Israel were exiled to Assyria when that kingdom fell in 722 B.C.E., archaeological evidence of rapid growth in Jerusalem around the same time suggests that many inhabitants of the northern kingdom sought refuge in Judah rather than being deported to Assyria.
Jeroboam’s act of setting up golden calves at Dan and Bethel in 1Kgs 12:25-33 is foreshadowed in the episode of the Israelites’ creation of a golden calf at Sinai in Exod 32. The term “kingdom of Israel” can refer either to the united monarchy under Kings Saul, David, and Solomon or to the northern kingdom of Israel, which, after the end of the united monarchy, existed alongside the southern kingdom of Judah. David's story, writes McKenzie, "e reads like a modern soap opera, with plenty of sex, violence, and struggles for power."e Carefully researched and vividly written, King David: An Unauthorized Biography offers a provocative reappraisal of the life of one of the Bible's most compelling figures. Throughout his scandalous reign, important figures who stood in his way died at convenient times, under questionable circumstances. While instituting a full-blown Middle Eastern monarchy, David was an aggressive leader, a devious politician, and a ruthless war chief. Similarly, McKenzie reveals how David's ascent to power, traditionally attributed to popularity and divine blessing, in fact resulted from a campaign of terror and assassination. McKenzie shows that the story of humble beginnings is utterly misleading: "e shepherd"e is a metaphor for "e king,"e and David came from a wealthy, upper-class background. This David, however, was no hero but a usurper, adulterer, and murderer-a Middle Eastern despot of a familiar type. McKenzie concludes that David was indeed a real person. But was David a real person-and if so what kind of person was he?Through a close and critical reading of biblical texts, ancient history, and recent archeological discoveries, Steven L. Michaelangelo's magnificent sculpture of him is perhaps the single best known work of art in the world, and the story of the humble shepherd who slew Goliath and became king has assumed a powerful mythological status. 
One of the most important and complex characters in the Bible, King David has been the subject of innumerable portraits, both artistic and literary.
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