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Joel bar Hezron
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:
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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.”
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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.
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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.”
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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.
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“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?”
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Malthace (Thacia) Character Timeline in The Bronze Bow
The timeline below shows where the character Malthace (Thacia) appears in The Bronze Bow. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...Joel bar Hezron, with whom Daniel once attended the synagogue school, and Joel’s twin sister, Malthace.
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...Ketzah below. He’d stopped thinking about them for a long time, but seeing Joel and Malthace has reminded him. Though self-conscious about his ragged tunic, Daniel emerges from the rocks and...
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Daniel asks for news of his grandmother and sister. Malthace knows of them, but she tells Daniel that Leah never comes out of the house,...
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When Daniel tries to walk away, Joel and Malthace invite him to share their lunch. Wary but hungry, Daniel agrees. He’s surprised when Malthace...
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...studying to become a rabbi, although he’s learned the sandal-making trade, too. Today, he and Malthace snuck up here to explore while they have the chance—soon, they’re moving from Ketzah to...
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...spits contemptuously. His eyes meet Joel’s, and he sees that Joel hates the Romans, too. Malthace feels left out of the conversation. She looks down at the valley and wants to...
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Joel and Malthace talk about their childhood longing for the Messiah. Joel imagined that he would be the...
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As Daniel leads Joel and Malthace back down to the main road, he regrets talking with them—they’ve stirred up unwanted memories....
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Chapter 2
...wants them to seize one slave. Ebol tells Daniel to get rid of Joel and Malthace. When Joel balks at the order, Daniel can’t help admiring Joel’s defiance and eagerness to...
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...the trail with the man’s chain in his hand. As he goes, Daniel also notices Malthace’s confident beauty. As night falls, Daniel regrets volunteering to lead the enslaved man to the...
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Chapter 5
...the sunny courtyard filled with trees, marble, and a splashing fountain. Soon, he’s greeted by Malthace, who seems dismayed by his appearance. But Joel welcomes him exuberantly. When Daniel starts to...
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Chapter 6
At first, when she sees Daniel, Malthace tries to get him to leave again. Her father will get angry, and she can’t...
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Chapter 7
Daniel and Malthace listen breathlessly as Joel reads from a papyrus scroll. The passage is from the Book...
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...who commands men’s obedience. It doesn’t matter to him if Rosh is an outlaw, as Malthace protests. If Rosh can get rid of the Romans, Daniel is sure that God’s kingdom...
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...that he wants Roman blood—it’s all he’s wanted ever since the Romans killed his parents. Malthace gently encourages Daniel to tell them the story. Hesitantly, Daniel begins to tell the story...
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After hearing the story, Malthace is in tears. Joel solemnly vows to join Daniel in avenging his father; he says...
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Though Malthace is stunned and afraid, she steadies herself. Her expression becomes passionate like her twin brother’s....
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Chapter 8
...longer the same. He loves Rosh; he has fought alongside Rosh’s men. But Joel and Thacia (which is Malthace’s nickname) are the first friends he’s ever had who’ve actually talked with...
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Daniel also thinks about Thacia. He’s puzzled by her; he doesn’t understand girls very well in general. Thacia is unpredictable...
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Chapter 9
...know how much Daniel worries about Leah and his grandmother—or how much he thinks about Thacia. He tries to pound the weakness out of himself as he works. Yet he also...
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Chapter 13
...working at her loom, even earning money for her fine work. One day Joel and Malthace come to visit. Joel and Daniel step out for a while to meet with a...
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When the boys get back to the smithy, Daniel is surprised to find Thacia and Leah sitting together in the back garden. Leah happily tells Daniel that Thacia has...
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When Leah spots Joel, she shrinks behind her headscarf again. But Thacia gently places a gift in Leah’s lap—an embroidered girdle. Daniel watches as Leah traces the...
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Chapter 14
...feels content at first. But soon he’s tossing and turning, thinking about Leah, Joel, and Thacia. He also thinks of Simon and the leader Simon has found in Jesus. Among Jesus’s...
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Chapter 15
Daniel feels hopeful about Leah these days. Thacia’s visits have opened up her world. One day, he even caught Leah staring wistfully into...
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Chapter 16
...time of the banquet. Joel eagerly speculates about the best way to do the job. Thacia suggests that he pose as a fish merchant. He can get some fish from Jesus’s...
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Suddenly Thacia has an idea. She suggests that she dress in some of Joel’s clothes, as they...
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As Joel heads off with his basket of fish, Daniel and Thacia start heading out of Capernaum. Daniel wants to stay to hear Jesus, but Thacia declines,...
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Thacia goes on to say that Jesus’s teaching has helped her understand something—that people don’t have...
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As Daniel and Thacia leave Capernaum, Daniel sees two Roman soldiers resting by the road. Before they can turn...
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After they reach the milestone and are relieved of their burdens, Thacia scolds Daniel for almost getting them in trouble. As they make their way toward Ketzah,...
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...Daniel angrily slams the shop door. As the visit draws to an end, Daniel takes Thacia aside. Because she has given Leah so many gifts, he explains, he’d like to offer...
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As Daniel and Thacia head back toward Capernaum, Thacia once again disguised as Joel, she tells him that Leah...
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...see his ragged and sickly children, for example? Neither of them knows the answer. But Thacia thinks that Jesus should come to Daniel’s house someday to see Leah—she knows he’d be...
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Chapter 18
One day, Thacia, disguised in Joel’s turban, bursts into Daniel’s shop, pale with fear. She gasps that the...
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Chapter 20
...the well, delivers goods, and generally relishes village life. But Daniel hasn’t seen Joel and Thacia for more than a week, and he worries.
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Joel has brought a gift for Leah from Thacia. Daniel is skeptical that Leah will receive it from Joel’s hands, but he opens the...
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Joel also says that Hezron wants to arrange a marriage for Thacia with a family friend, but Thacia is refusing. Daniel says that Thacia must make a...
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Chapter 22
...youths dancing, with a line of wreathed, singing girls drawing near them. When Daniel spots Thacia among the dancers, he loses his breath. Thacia moves with a natural grace, neither bold...
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Thacia runs after him, her veil floating behind her. She asks Daniel why he left. Does...
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Chapter 24
Finally, it occurs to Daniel to send Joktan to Thacia with the message that Leah is dying. While he’s waiting, he sees the Roman soldier...
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...at one point, and when he wakes up, he sees Jesus standing in the doorway. Thacia is with him. Jesus goes to Leah’s side. Thacia whispers that she has been with...
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After a while, Daniel feels Thacia taking his hand. She tells him to look at Leah. As Daniel watches, Leah’s eyes...
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When Daniel looks at Thacia, he sees the love in her eyes and realizes that he’s finally free to give...
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