Watch Out Hollywood!

Part two of the Kebra Negast was certainly more cinematic than part one. David the King of Ethiopia receives the Ark of the Covenant by the Will of God, and is whisked away magically, hovering across deserts and seas to reach by the power of heaven, in some sort of sci fi fantasy setting. But beyond the spectacular imagery, God has chosen Ethiopia as the protectors of his divine word. This could certainly be Ethiopia carving their own role in the history of the religion that they have chosen.

Another meaning in the transfer of the Ark, is, in the them of my Iconography post, the ban against the worship of object idols. King Solomon greatly values the Ark itself, mourning on and on for excruciating pages its loss, and preparing to kill for its retrieval, forgetting its power, that delivered Jerusalem many times from enemies. If the Ark is of such power, how could it ever be stolen by unworthy. Contrastingly, David does not seek possession of the Ark, but only something to think of it by, a symbol to prevent his people from returning to idol worship, and ends up possessing the Ark itself. The Ark (or metaphorically, the power which the Ark represents) is held only by those people who recognize it as a symbol.

This again represents a transfer of ownership to the people of Ethiopia. In recognizing the symbolism of the Ark, they are the inheritors of the wisdom of Solomon and Jerusalem. This is another identification with religion by Ethiopia.