David is a central figure in much of early Christian literature. He is the youthful shepherd, destroyer of the evil Goliath, singer of songs, prototypical king, prophet, and ancestor of Jesus. Both the New Testament Gospels and Epistles proclaimed Jesus to be descended from the line of David, specifically through the line of Mary or Joseph (e.g. Rom 1:3; 2 Tim 2:8; Matt 1:1; Mark 10:47; Luke 1:27; John 7:42; Rev 22:16). This lineage continued to be emphasized by the next generation of Christian teachers (e.g. Ign. Eph. 18.2). Based upon thi…