ASIAN AND AFRICAN STUDIES, 19, 2010, 1, 1-25 KING DAVID (ca. 1037-ca. 967 B.C.) AND DUKE WEN OF JIN (ca. 697-628 B.C.): TWO PARADIGMATIC RULERS FROM THE HEBREW DEUTER0N0MISTIC AND EARLY CHINESE CONFUCIAN HISTORIOGRAPHY Marián GÁLIK Institute of Oriental Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovakia
[email protected] Thc aim of this study is to compare the lives and works of two great rulers: King David Irom the Hebrew Bible and Duke Wen of Jin from the early Confucian historical work Zuo zhuan (The Commentary qfZuo) and point out the similarities and differences of these two examples of the oldest "narrative histories" in the world. Key words: King David, Dukc Wcn of Jin, narrative history, sacred perspective, Dcuteronomistic historiography, early Chinese Confucian historiography King David is one of the most famous personalities in world history and therefore it is not necessary to present hitrt to the Western readers in detail. He is known in China, too. Duke Wen of Jin efY3T was probably the most distinguished statesman of the Chunqiu #f9c Spring and Autumn Period (ca. 77CF481 B.C.). Where this period is concerned, the traditional Chinese historians mostly devoted more attention to another great personality of this period Duke Huan of Qi 7 fJa'S (r. 685-644). He was one of the five hegemons wu ba (S M ), or wu bo ($f[3), who were the most powerful men in China between 685 and 591, who after “the decline of the royal power (of the kings of the Zhou Juj Dynasty after 770 B.C., 1 M.