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Ruth and the David—Bathsheba Story: Allusions and Contrasts

Hunter College of the CUNY, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10065, USA

Numerous scholars maintain that the book of Ruth alludes to the Judah—Tamar narrative in order to provide a contrasting, wholesome portrait of the ancestry of David. This study argues that the book also alludes to the related narrative of David and Bathsheba, casting David's conduct in that episode as a departure from the favorable qualities of the bloodline modeled by Ruth and Boaz. The latter half of the book of Ruth contains three subtle features, each of which bears a unique resemblance to a feature of the Bathsheba tale; and in all three instances, it is proposed that the author of Ruth seeks to underscore a contrast between the characters in the two respective stories.

Key Words: Inner-biblical allusion • intertextuality • Ruth • Samuel • David • Bathsheba • kingship.

Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, Vol. 33, No. 4, 433-452 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/0309089209105688


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