City of David Palace illustration 2

When Saul died, David was made king of Judea. He ruled for seven years and six months in Hebron (2 Samuel 5:5). When he had an opportunity to rule a united kingdom, he moved to Jerusalem, which was closer to the border separating Judah from the northern tribes. Later, the kingdom would split, with the northern tribes taking the name Israel. Jerusalem’s walls have changed their shape many times over the centuries. David’s Jerusalem was built next to and over the Gihon Spring, on the steep hill between the Kidron and “Central” valleys. The Central Valley, also called the Tyropoeon Valley, is no longer visible. Herod the Great filled it in during his reconstruction of Jerusalem just before Jesus lived.