New docudrama on King David offers insights into faith, hope

Distribution Service: Fox Nation
FCC Rating: TV-PG
Reel Rating: 3 out of 5 reels

King David has been experiencing a renaissance. Last year, Angel Studios released a successful animated adaptation of his story, while Amazon continues a multi-season streaming series.

And now there is David: King of Israel, a docudrama produced by Fox Nation, highlighting both David’s spiritual and political prowess. It is a decent, competent production with plenty of good insights, and, given current events, offers hope to its target audience.

The series begins with King Saul (Langley Kirkwood), still trying to honor God’s commands but frequently giving into the whims of the crowd and his own desires. The prophet Samuel (Peter Butler) is frustrated and soon told by God that the kingdom will pass to another who has “a heart for God.” Samuel is led to the house of Jesse, where he secretly anoints his youngest son, David (Nahum Hughes), as future king.

The spirit of the Lord comes upon this boy, and he soon experiences a meteoric rise. After defeating the giant Goliath in battle, he becomes the most celebrated warrior in Saul’s army and a talented musician as well. He is so popular so quickly that Saul feels threatened and soon seeks his death, causing David and his followers to flee Jerusalem and become wandering mercenaries for several years.

The story is presented alternating between a dramatization and several talking heads giving commentary, mostly Protestant pastors and Orthodox rabbis.

The reflections are decent but rarely rise above the level of a Sunday school presentation. The acting is passable but not as good as other recent productions on the same subject. The one standout aspect of the production is the art direction. Saul and David don’t live in giant palaces or wear fine-colored clothes, but reside in moveable tents or even straw huts. Everything is dirty, covered in mud and sweat. Theirs was an existence and society rooted in dust, sweat, as well as blood and tears. Clothes are made by hand. Food comes directly from the ground. It reminds the audience, mostly removed from these realities, of the importance of the “toil” given to Adam.

Unlike the aforementioned Angel Studios production, David: King of Israel is quite violent. There are many scenes of warfare, pulling the camera away at just the right moment to avoid a TV-MA rating but keeping the imaginative “blood splatter” noises. When Saul asks for “a hundred Philistine foreskins,” the audience does not see the actual process but is shown the bloody sack and knows exactly what it contains.

While unnerving, it is true to the story. People forget that the pre-Christian world had no concept of universal human rights, and paganism was the dominant religious philosophy of the day. While God called the Israelites to something greater, they were often influenced by their neighbors. Violence was common, even rampant. While David wasn’t perfect in that regard, he did demonstrate restraint, only killing when necessary for warfare or God’s justice, frequently sparing the lives of others when it would not be advantageous for himself.

What comes across most clearly in the miniseries is David’s radical trust in God, even when things were very bleak. His early life was a spiritual roller coaster. The youngest of his brothers, he was nonetheless anointed to be king and then slew Goliath, earning great praise and rising station. It would be easy to perceive this as God’s obvious path to glory.

But, suddenly, he loses favor with Saul and is hunted like an animal. He is a fugitive: hungry, tired, and confused. In those moments, he composes some of his greatest Psalms, pleading to God for help but firm in his belief that somehow God’s purposes were working.

As the episodes of this series have rolled out in February and March 2026, the land of David is once again in turmoil. This cycle of drone strikes, broken ceasefires, and regime changes can seem endless. Yet, like David, we can trust that God is working through these events to bring about his Kingdom. Evil may reign for a time and even do great damage, but it never has the last word.

The series encourages leaders to act like David, using their skills and strengths but ultimately trusting God to win the day. Hopefully, they will listen.

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