Prophet Dawud (David)
When Dawud (Alaih Assalaam)was young, he was a shepherd boy. He was also very strong and courageous. Once, a troop of fierce warriors came to attack his people. Among them was Jalut. Everybody had a great fear of Jalut, and no-one was willing to fight against him except for Dawud(Alaih Assalaam). Dawud(Alaih Assalaam) challenged Jalut to a combat and killed him. This so frightened the enemies of Dawud(Alaih Assalaam)’s people that they fled as fast as they could. Dawud was very brave, of course, but Allah had helped him triumph over the mighty Jalut. Allah also gave Dawud(Alaih Assalaam) wisdom, power and skills. Dawud (Alaih Assalaam) was a very clever smith and made wonderful things out of iron, like weapons and armour.
Dawud (Alaih Assalaam)could also sing very well. He sang to praise and honour Allah. These songs, which Dawud(Alaih Assalaam) had learned from the angels, were written down in a book called Zabur. Allah had revealed this book, Zabur, to Dawud(Alaih Assalaam), just as He had revealed to Musa(Alaih Assalaam) the book which is called Taurat.
Allah made Dawud(Alaih Assalaam) His prophet and the ruler over his people. He was a very just ruler and his people always came to him when they had quarrels with each other. Once, some sheep had wandered off during the night into somebody else’s field and ate up all the crops. Dawud(Alaih Assalaam) decided that as punishment, the sheep must be given to the owner of the field who had lost all his crops.
When Sulaiman, the son of Dawud(Alaih Assalaam), heard that, he protested: But the field is still there. It is only this year’s harvest that is gone. So surely the sheep should not be completely taken away from their owner. The owner should have them back as soon as the loss of harvest is recovered.
Dawud (Alaih Assalaam)agreed with the good advice of his son Sulaiman(Alaih Assalaam), and decided to settle the problem as Sulaiman(Alaih Assalaam) had suggested.
In the next story, you will hear about Sulaiman(Alaih Assalaam), who was also chosen by Allah to be His prophet. Dawud(Alaih Assalaam), who was Allah’s prophet, always said to his people: You should believe in Allah and worship Him alone and do good.