The Bronze Bow

by

Elizabeth George Speare

Malthace (Thacia) Character Analysis

Malthace is Joel bar Hezron’s twin sister. She is called Thace or Thacia for short. Thacia is a spirited, loyal, kindhearted girl with a gift for seeing the potential in others; she even becomes Leah’s first friend. Thacia puts others at ease and seems at home in any environment, whether it’s her father Hezron’s splendid house or Daniel’s humble shop. She is also spiritually discerning, seeming to understand Jesus’s message before the boys do. After helping Joel nurse Daniel back to health, Thacia eagerly pledges along with the boys to fight for God’s Victory. When Rosh sends Joel on a job, she even disguises herself as Joel in order to distract attention from his spy work. Daniel is attracted to Thacia early in their friendship and admits his feelings at the Day of Atonement festival, but he believes that his vow to fight the Romans prohibits him from marriage. After Daniel decides to follow Jesus, however, Daniel and Thacia make an unspoken vow to one another, implicitly agreeing to marry after all.

Malthace (Thacia) Quotes in The Bronze Bow

The The Bronze Bow quotes below are all either spoken by Malthace (Thacia) or refer to Malthace (Thacia). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Love vs. Vengeance Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

“God is my strong refuge,
and has made my way safe.
He made my feet like hinds’ feet,
and set me secure on the heights.
He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.”

“It couldn't really be bronze,” said Daniel, puzzled. “The strongest man could not bend a bow of bronze.”

“No,” Thacia spoke. “I think it was really bronze. I think David meant a bow that a man couldn't bend—that when God strengthens us we can do something that seems impossible.”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Joel bar Hezron (speaker), Malthace (Thacia) (speaker)
Related Symbols: Bronze Bow
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8 Quotes

For Daniel nothing could ever be the same. He had never admitted to himself that he was lonely here on the mountain. He had worshiped and feared Rosh. He had fought and eaten and slept side by side with the hard-eyed men who made up Rosh’s band. But the few days in Joel’s passageway had shown him a new world. He had found someone to talk to, someone who had shared his own thoughts, and who had instantly taken Daniel’s burden as his own.

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin, Joel bar Hezron, Malthace (Thacia), Rosh
Page Number: 91
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

“Daniel, what makes you and Joel so sure that Jesus means to make war?”

“He says that the kingdom is at hand. What else can he mean?”

“Did you ever think he might mean that the kingdom will come some other way? Without any fighting? […] You see, Jesus has made me see that we don’t need to wait for God to care for us. He does that now. […] If everyone understood that—every man and woman […] Suppose—the Romans too could understand?”

He stopped in the road and stared at her. “Romans? You think God loves the Romans?”

Thacia sighed. “That’s impossible, I suppose.”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Malthace (Thacia) (speaker), Jesus
Page Number: 178
Explanation and Analysis:

With a snap of his finger he indicated the two packs. […]

Black anger rose in Daniel. He knew well enough the law that allowed a Roman to command that a Jew carry his burden for one mile. But the man didn’t live who could make him shoulder a Roman pack! He looked squarely at the soldier. Then he spat, deliberately. The blow across his mouth came instantly and staggeringly, but he did not lower his head. […]

There was a stifled gasp. Then Thacia very quietly stepped forward and lifted one of the packs.

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin, Malthace (Thacia)
Page Number: 179
Explanation and Analysis:

“Haven’t you ever wondered,” he attempted, “what good it is for them to be healed, those people that Jesus cures? They’re happy at first. But what happens to them after that? What does a blind man think, when he has wanted for years to see, and then looks at his wife in rags and his children covered with sores? That lame man you saw—is he grateful now? Is it worth it to get on his feet and spend the rest of his life dragging burdens like a mule?”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Jesus, Malthace (Thacia)
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis:
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Malthace (Thacia) Quotes in The Bronze Bow

The The Bronze Bow quotes below are all either spoken by Malthace (Thacia) or refer to Malthace (Thacia). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Love vs. Vengeance Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

“God is my strong refuge,
and has made my way safe.
He made my feet like hinds’ feet,
and set me secure on the heights.
He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.”

“It couldn't really be bronze,” said Daniel, puzzled. “The strongest man could not bend a bow of bronze.”

“No,” Thacia spoke. “I think it was really bronze. I think David meant a bow that a man couldn't bend—that when God strengthens us we can do something that seems impossible.”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Joel bar Hezron (speaker), Malthace (Thacia) (speaker)
Related Symbols: Bronze Bow
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8 Quotes

For Daniel nothing could ever be the same. He had never admitted to himself that he was lonely here on the mountain. He had worshiped and feared Rosh. He had fought and eaten and slept side by side with the hard-eyed men who made up Rosh’s band. But the few days in Joel’s passageway had shown him a new world. He had found someone to talk to, someone who had shared his own thoughts, and who had instantly taken Daniel’s burden as his own.

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin, Joel bar Hezron, Malthace (Thacia), Rosh
Page Number: 91
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

“Daniel, what makes you and Joel so sure that Jesus means to make war?”

“He says that the kingdom is at hand. What else can he mean?”

“Did you ever think he might mean that the kingdom will come some other way? Without any fighting? […] You see, Jesus has made me see that we don’t need to wait for God to care for us. He does that now. […] If everyone understood that—every man and woman […] Suppose—the Romans too could understand?”

He stopped in the road and stared at her. “Romans? You think God loves the Romans?”

Thacia sighed. “That’s impossible, I suppose.”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Malthace (Thacia) (speaker), Jesus
Page Number: 178
Explanation and Analysis:

With a snap of his finger he indicated the two packs. […]

Black anger rose in Daniel. He knew well enough the law that allowed a Roman to command that a Jew carry his burden for one mile. But the man didn’t live who could make him shoulder a Roman pack! He looked squarely at the soldier. Then he spat, deliberately. The blow across his mouth came instantly and staggeringly, but he did not lower his head. […]

There was a stifled gasp. Then Thacia very quietly stepped forward and lifted one of the packs.

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin, Malthace (Thacia)
Page Number: 179
Explanation and Analysis:

“Haven’t you ever wondered,” he attempted, “what good it is for them to be healed, those people that Jesus cures? They’re happy at first. But what happens to them after that? What does a blind man think, when he has wanted for years to see, and then looks at his wife in rags and his children covered with sores? That lame man you saw—is he grateful now? Is it worth it to get on his feet and spend the rest of his life dragging burdens like a mule?”

Related Characters: Daniel bar Jamin (speaker), Jesus, Malthace (Thacia)
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis: