Israelite and
Judahite history of Jerusalem begins with the conquest of David of the Jebusite
stronghold or "Fortress of Zion." The biblical account of this event
(2. Sam. 5) seemed confirmed by the discovery of "Warren's
Shaft" but recent excavations have cast doubt on whether this feature
of the ancient water system was the way by which David's men entered the city.
The successor to King David is his son by Batsheba, Yedidyah ("Beloved of Yah"), who is better known by his Jerusalemite throne name, Sh'lomo which can either be rendered as an homage to the ancient Canaanite deity of Shalem or as a Hebrew name referring to the word shalom, peace. The name suggests a union of the Bethlehemite David and the Jerusalemite Batsheba and represents a merger of Judahite and Canaanite traditions in the new king whom the Bible describes as blessed by prowess and wisdom. Salomon is particularly remembered as the one who built a house for the Ark of the Covenant, the ancient Israelite symbol of YHWH Tseva'ot, the "Lord of hosts." The tribal, semi-nomadic religion of the Hebrews becomes sedentary, urban, and monumental.
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