In 1903, Benjamin Purnell, a long-haired, bearded itinerant preacher, arrived in Benton Harbor. He and his wife, Mary, stepped out of their covered preacher's wagon, and gazing across a thriving summer resort, they saw their long-awaited paradise. Acquiring this paradise, they established a religious colony called the House of David, which grew to over 1,000 members from around the world, with phenomenal talents in music, sports, entertainment, and architecture. A pre-Disneyland-type amusement park was constructed, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors annually. As the colony's leader, the very charismatic and convincing Purnell called himself a brother to Jesus, and members flocked in, handing over their homes, wealth, and worldly possessions for the promise of everlasting life, creating huge wealth. Soon they built exquisite mansions, hotels, restaurants, cruise ships, factories, and miniature railroads. Holdings included diamond and gold mines, an island in Lake Michigan, thousands of acres of farmland, an Australian resort, an art studio, orchestras, vaudeville acts, a famous bearded baseball team, and more. This book will take readers on the fascinating journey of the House of David.

The Israelite House of David was founded in 1903, as a religious colony in Benton Harbor, Michigan. An entrepreneurial group of worshippers, the colony contributed much to the community, including a traveling baseball team that toured the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The almost 200 images collected here by authors Joel Hawkins and Terry Bertolino document the history of this bearded, barnstorming group of baseball players throughout their careers. The colony accomplished much within the community, credited with inventing the automatic pinsetter used in bowling and the first cold storage facility in the county. However, it was the House of David baseball players that caught the nation's attention, with their long hair and beards, which was forbidden to be cut or shaved as a code of their faith. As news of their prowess spread, the team received more and more press throughout the country. Much like the Negro Leagues of the same period, the House of David baseball players would criss-cross the country, playing with such greats as the Kansas City Monarchs, Pittsburg Crawfords, and Satchel Paige and his All Stars.

Current scholarly debate over the historical character of David’s rule generally considers the biblical portrait to represent David as king of Judah first, and subsequently over “all Israel.” The ninth-century Tel Dan inscription, which refers to the “House of David” (byt dwd), is often taken as evidence for the dynasty of Judah. Mahri Leonard-Fleckman argues, however, that references to Judah in the story of David as king do not suffice to constitute a coherent stratum of material about Judah as a political entity. Comparing the “house of . . .” terminology in the ninth-century Tel Dan inscription with early first-millennium Assyrian usage, then giving close examination to the “house of David” materials in 2 Samuel and 1 Kings, she understands the “house of David” as a small body politic connected to David, but distinct from any Judean dynastic context. One implication is that the identification of Judah as a later southern kingdom may have less to do with an Israelite secession from Jerusalem than with an Israelite rejection of David’s lineage and the subsequent redactional creation of Judah-centric language on the part of a Davidic coterie. Leonard-Fleckman’s arguments suggest a rethinking of the rise of monarchy in Israel.

This book investigates the nature of the hope for the house of David in the final form of the book of Zechariah. It focuses particularly on the following themes: the roles of Joshua and Zerubbabel; the nature and identity of the Shoot; the coming King; the Shepherd; and the Pierced One. It challenges the scholarly consensus, going back to the thesis of Julius Wellhausen, that the high priest took over the role and prerogatives of the pre-exilic monarch in the early post-exilic period. Instead, Zechariah merely envisages Joshua the high priest being reinstated to the temple duties that were undertaken before the exile. Furthermore, Zechariah does not identify Zerubbabel as the promised future Davidic king ("Shoot"). Rather, Zechariah demonstrates a hope for the restoration of a Davidic king who will have a key role in temple building after the time of Zerubbabel. The belief that Zechariah 9-11 and 12-14 are oracles that seek to reinterpret prophecies that have become problematic is also challenged. There is no strong evidence that the hope for the house of David in Zechariah 9-14 contradicts the presentation of Zechariah 1-8. This thesis shows how these later chapters continue and develop many of the themes related to the Davidic hope in Zechariah 1-8. The picture of the Davidic hope that emerges from the book of Zechariah is consistent with the expectations of earlier prophets and confirms that the book, when read as a whole, provides a strong impetus for later messianism in the post-exilic period.