Nara is a young Philistine woman who has given up hope of ever finding a husband. No man will take a wife who towers head and shoulders above him. She lives in isolation with her father, until she is discovered by the Philistine priests. They betroth her to Goliath, to give him warrior sons. What happens when Nara’s fate collides with that of David, who is destined to face Goliath in combat, will forever transform how you experience this pivotal moment in the Bible... Boorstin reimagines David’s dangerous path from shepherd to charismatic leader, interweaving his life not only with Nara’s, but with key Biblical characters including King Saul, and Saul’s daughter Michal, who will later become David’s wife. While faithful to the spirit of the Bible, Boorstin reads between the lines of the ancient narrative to bring immediacy, relevance and even greater meaning to the life of the young Israelite who would become the most beloved character in the Old Testament. David and the Philistine Woman combines exciting storytelling and rich characters to fashion an unforgettable epic.

Analyzes the works of a variety of modern artists including Edward Hopper, Louise Nevelson, Chuck Close, and Julian Schnabel.

"A masterpiece of contemporary Bible translation and commentary."—Los Angeles Times Book Review, Best Books of 1999 Acclaimed for its masterful new translation and insightful commentary, The David Story is a fresh, vivid rendition of one of the great works in Western literature. Robert Alter's brilliant translation gives us David, the beautiful, musical hero who slays Goliath and, through his struggles with Saul, advances to the kingship of Israel. But this David is also fully human: an ambitious, calculating man who navigates his life's course with a flawed moral vision. The consequences for him, his family, and his nation are tragic and bloody. Historical personage and full-blooded imagining, David is the creation of a literary artist comparable to the Shakespeare of the history plays.

The series Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft (BZAW) covers all areas of research into the Old Testament, focusing on the Hebrew Bible, its early and later forms in Ancient Judaism, as well as its branching into many neighboring cultures of the Ancient Near East and the Greco-Roman world.

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