Modelos bíblicos para reyes visigodos: un estudio a partir de las Sentencias de Isidoro de Sevilla

This article focuses on one of the main functions of the Biblical text in the Middle Ages, by analysing the use of biblical models in Isidore of Seville’s Sententiae (c. 633). A study of the explicit references to the Hebrew kings Saul, David and Solomon will allow us to observe how Isidore, an expert in the Sacred Scriptures, uses these biblical figures to teach and communicate to the Visigothic elites his own definition of monarchy. In a context defined by the recent memory of the rebellion that concluded in Sisenand’s rise to the throne in 631 and the Fourth Council of Toledo convened two years later, the Bishop underlines the human condition of every king by discussing the required virtues as well as the vices that a king must confront in order to be considered a true king.Este artículo aborda una de las principales funciones del texto bíblico en la Edad Media, al analizar el uso de modelos bíblicos en las Sentencias (c. 633) de Isidoro de Sevilla. En rigor, un estudio de las referencias explícitas a los reyes hebreos Saúl, David y Salomón permitirán advertir cómo Isidoro, gran conocedor de las Sagradas Escrituras, apela a las personalidades bíblicas para enseñar y transmitir a las elites visigodas su propia definición de monarquía. En un contexto signado por el recuerdo de la rebelión que convirtió a Sisenando en el nuevo rey de los visigodos en 631 y la reunión, dos años más tarde, del IV concilio de Toledo, el obispo de Sevilla acentuaba a través de los ejemplos bíblicos la condición humana de todo rey, al indicar las virtudes necesarias pero también los vicios a los que debía hacer frente, con éxito, un verdadero rey.This article focuses on one of the main functions of the Biblical text in the Middle Ages, by analysing the use of biblical models in Isidore of Seville’s Sententiae (c. 633). A study of the explicit references to the Hebrew kings Saul, David and Solomon will allow us to observe how Isidore, an expert in the Sacred Scriptures, uses these biblical figures to teach and communicate to the Visigothic elites his own definition of monarchy. In a context defined by the recent memory of the rebellion that concluded in Sisenand’s rise to the throne in 631 and the Fourth Council of Toledo convened two years later, the Bishop underlines the human condition of every king by discussing the required virtues as well as the vices that a king must confront in order to be considered a true king