The consensus around the historicity of the United Monarchy is long gone, as already noted in the previous chapter’s conclusion. This chapter first expands on the old consensus, describing its decline and even “death” as it unfolded in the 1990s. It then describes the concomitant rise and development of the minimalist school, which, while failing to make many converts, had a major impact on scholarship. The chapter then looks at changes in the way the archaeology of the period is perceived by many biblical scholars, many of whom have become skeptical or even dismissive of the possibility of a large Israelite polity in the tenth century, and the word “empire” has all but disappeared from the discourse. The chapter pushes back against this excess of caution, examining how the supposed archaeological and historical reasons for it have not stood the test of time. Indeed, discoveries made over the past twenty years or so challenge this new skepticism and instead reinforce a more sophisticated version of the older views, which worked with the idea of a United Monarchy in this period.

Toward the end of the Iron I, the vast majority of the many rural villages excavated in the highlands were abandoned. At the same time, a handful of settlements began to grow into fortified towns. Why did these dramatic changes take place at this time, and what is the relationship between these two phenomena? The chapter reviews the evidence and evaluates the various possible explanations for such widespread abandonments, including climate change, nomadization, incentives to move to other regions, forced resettlement, death, and security (external threats), and concludes that the first phase of this abandonment could have only been a result of an external threat (the second phase of the abandonment will be discussed in subsequent chapters, and especially Excursus 12.1). The chapter then identifies the threat with the Philistines, analyzes the nature of Philistine–Israelite interaction, and assesses the impact of the Philistine pressure on social complexity in the highlands and the emergence of leaders there. This is also the phase in which the first Iron Age fortifications appear in the highlands. Taken together, these changes signify the emergence of the Israelite monarchy toward the end of the Iron Age I and the transition into the Iron II.

Before beginning the critical, scientific inquiry into the history of Saul, David, and Solomon in the rest of the book, this chapter offers a simple run-through of the main elements of the biblical story itself. It begins with the biblical depiction of the time of the Judges, before there were kings in Israel, and then tells the story of Saul, leading to the rise of the monarchy. It outlines the biblical depiction of his reign as Israel’s first king, along with his later interactions with David, who became his successor. It briefly lays out how David took the throne and expanded the kingdom, and the troubles he experienced within the royal family, including the battles of succession first with Absalom then between Solomon and Adonijah. Finally, the chapter lays out the story of Solomon’s glorious rule, and then his death and the division of his kingdom in the time of his son Rehoboam.