Did Jerry Falwell Jr. Really Just Compare Donald Trump to King David?

In a recent interview, Jerry Falwell Jr, who has wholeheartedly endorsed Donald Trump, recently compared him to King David … in a way.

He spoke with the Liberty Champion, Liberty University’s student-run newspaper. Have a look below.

“In the past, (evangelicals) would vote for somebody who claimed to share their views on social issues, but promises were almost never kept,” Falwell said. “Evangelicals and conservatives were betrayed repeatedly by politicians who had claimed to be conservative socially and fiscally as candidates but went a different direction once they took office. Now I think conservatives have reached a point where they want somebody who has succeeded in the private sector, not just someone who makes the right promises in speeches. Many of them see Donald Trump as the tough guy who will protect and defend us in perilous times.”

“He’s perfectly suited to serve as the political leader, and I think that gives evangelicals comfort,” Falwell said. “That’s why a large majority of them are supporting him, and I think maybe after the country is saved and restored, perhaps evangelicals will start voting in traditional patterns again.”

He said saving the country from terrorist attacks, runaway debt and open borders has to be the first priority.

“All the other issues will be moot if we don’t save the country,” Falwell said.

“When we step into our role as citizens, we need to elect the most experienced and capable leaders,” Falwell said on Facebook Jan. 27. “As I said, Jimmy Carter is a great Sunday school teacher, but the divorced and re-married Hollywood actor Ronald Reagan saved this nation when it was in nearly the same condition that it is today. Jesus said judge not, lest ye be judged. Let’s stop trying to choose the political leaders who we believe are the most godly because, in reality, only God knows people’s hearts. You and I don’t, and we are all sinners.”

Despite disapproval by some Liberty alumni and others in the community, Falwell believes Trump gives America the best chance to be great again.

“It is sad to see Christians attacking other Christians because they don’t support the same candidate or the candidate who they believe is the most righteous,” Falwell said.

“God called King David a man after God’s own heart even though he was an adulterer and a murderer,” Falwell said. “You have to choose the leader that would make the best king or president and not necessarily someone who would be a good pastor. We’re not voting for pastor-in-chief. It means sometimes we have to choose a person who has the qualities to lead and who can protect our country and bring us back to economic vitality, and it might not be the person we call when we need somebody to give us spiritual counsel.”

This is pretty much the argument in a nutshell. Notable conservative Christians who are backing him (Ben Carson, Falwell Jr., Pastor Robert Jeffress, Phyllis Schlafly and Sarah Palin) see Trump as a strong leader who will shake things up and cut through the GOP Establishment games.

They realize he’s not the poster boy for Christianity, but they’re able to put that part in a box and just accept the whole package, praying that the good will outweigh some of the warts.