Ahoti: A Story of Tamar With Miriam Feinberg Vamosh and Eva Marie Everson

Ahoti is a biblical fiction account of the story of Tamar told by Miriam Feinberg Vamosh and Eva Marie Everson.

Ahoti: A Story of Tamar

As much as I love women in the Bible, I have mixed feelings about biblical fiction. I tend towards truism and am hesitant to accept creative liberties authors or filmmakers take when telling stories based on biblical accounts.

With that said, I was intrigued when Eva Marie Everson told me about Ahoti: A Story of Tamar. Tamar’s story in the Bible is a tragic one of her being seduced and attacked by her half brother then living as a desolate woman in her other brother’s house. But Miriam Feinberg Vamosh learned of another ancient manuscript that continued on with Tamar’s story. I love when other historians shared the stories of men and women mentioned in the Bible.

Ahoti combines the biblical account with stories from The Words of Gad the Seer, throwing in a certain amount of creative license. The result is a story not necessarily what was, but what could have been.

Ahoti: A Story of Tamar Book Revew

It took me a bit to get into the book. I had a hard time following along, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about the creative liberties. But I stuck with it, and I’m so glad I did. Once I allowed myself to get caught up in the world of the story, I found it fascinating, looking at familiar aspects of the story in new ways. I got drawn in and had a hard time putting it down.

I loved the descriptions of the travel and the different towns and the people in them. Perhaps the most unexpected was the part about the Wise Woman of Abel. Could she have been the same woman? We’ll never know, but it was interesting learning about what a wise woman was (and it’s not what you’d expect).

Ahoti is a gripping story of the injustices so often inflicted on women by men in power, but also shows the compassion and protection that can come from unexpected sources.

Miriam is an expert in archeology as well as a Holy Land educator, and Eva Marie is a master storyteller with a degree in biblical studies. Together, the women weave a fascinating story of what life was like for the wives and daughters of kings. They capture the everyday life of palace life and all the political upheaval and drama.

I’m excited to be able to interview them so we can get a behind the scenes look at how this novel came to be.

Interview with Miriam Feinberg Vamosh and Eva Marie Everson

Miriam, what inspired you to write about Tamar?

Miriam: I first encountered the story of David’s daughter, Tamar, in my Bible studies as an adult, and as almost a footnote in the narrative of David’s reign. But over the years, as my interest in the women of the Bible deepened, I became curious, even frustrated, over the abrupt ending to the biblical narrative of Tamar’s rape by her half-brother, without her finding either justice or closure as a survivor of sexual assault.

I was eventually introduced to the ancient manuscript called The Words of Gad the Seer whose anonymous writer, centuries ago, imagined a continuation of Tamar’s story in which she receives closure, justice, and resolution, and goes on to live a full life. That’s the story Eva Marie and I delved into and enriched with our own interpretations and research.

Eva Marie, what led to you teaming up with Miriam Feinberg Vamosh to write Ahoti?

Eva Marie: Miriam came to me with this story—first about the document discovered in India in the 1700s, about Professor Bar-Ilan work on the document, and about the resolution of Tamar’s story found within it. I was so fascinated that when she asked me if I would work with her on it—turning it into a novel—I jumped at the chance. As a scholar of what, as a Christian, I call the Old Testament stories—and as a woman—I knew I didn’t want to let the opportunity pass me by.

Tell us about the ancient manuscript you discovered?

Miriam: I didn’t discover the manuscript The Words of Gad the Seer, although I believe Eva Marie and I are the first to turn one of its ancient tales into a contemporary novel with a resonant message for men and women today. I was introduced to the manuscript by my content advisor on my book Tell it to Your Children: How Kids Lived in Bible Days – the eminent Jewish scholar Prof. Meir Bar-Ilan.

At the launch dinner to celebrate the publication of that book, he leaned over and whispered: “I have a story that needs telling, and I think you’re the one to do it.” He then told me about the manuscript, and I learned that he had been the first to research it comprehensively and publish a book about it. The book contains a chapter about Tamar’s life, starting where scripture leaves off.

The story of its discovery is just the kind of Jewish-Christian collaboration that Eva Marie and I have made the keystone of our own unique partnership. The Jews of Cochin, India believed that the ancient book was brought to them by Jews of Yemen, a community consisting of early exiles from the Holy Land. Its existence was brought to the Western world by the German Protestant theologian Gottfried Eichhorn (1789) and translated and later published by the German Jewish Hebraist Naftali Wesseley a few years later.

When the Scottish theologian Claudius Buchanan (1766–1815) became head of the Anglican Church in India, he visited Cochin to learn more about the history of the Jewish community, believed to be descendants of the ten lost tribes of Israel. The community gave him several manuscripts, among them The Words of Gad the Seer. When Buchanan went back to England in 1809, he brought the manuscripts with him. In 1894, the renowned scholar Solomon Shechter found it in the Cambridge Library, where it is to this day, and wrote about it.

Eva Marie: I find the history of the document quite interesting. Some people believe we shouldn’t “add to” the words and stories in the Bible, but we most definitely know that there are other documents which were not canonized. For example, we read about the annals of the kings of Israel and the annals of the kings of Judah in 1 Kings. We read about The Book of Jashar in Joshua, 2 Samuel and Paul references it in 2 Timothy.

We read about a book called The Book of the Wars of the Lord in Numbers. And, important for Miriam and me, we read about a book in 1 Chronicles 29:29, which says:As for the events of King David’s reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records of Samuel the seer, the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer.

Furthermore, we most certainly know that the door didn’t close on Tamar in Absalom’s house and that she ceased to exist. I believe that when we look closely enough at any story, we’ll see a glimmer of hope and a glimpse of redemption. Ahoti: A Story of Tamar helps prove that fact.

How did you go about researching this story?

Miriam: Prof. Bar-Ilan was very helpful in starting me off. He gave me an assignment, the same one he gave his university students when they studied the story: To compare and contrast, line by line, word by Hebrew word, the story of Tamar as the Bible tells it, with the “Gad the Seer” manuscript. I handed it in like any other student and he commented on my work.

With that as my basis, I then began to research contemporary expert analyses of the Tamar story in the Bible. I realized that according to current scholarship, the rape of Tamar and Absalom’s eventual revenge on their half-brother Amnon are brimming with political intrigue, which Eva Marie and I then wove into the story. To learn more about each biblical character, I sought out the words of the ancient Jewish sages of the Talmud, who had their own take on the story.

Eva Marie’s extensive knowledge of the Bible stories was a tremendous asset – like the ancient sages, Eva Marie knew how to show the impact of seemingly unrelated Bible stories to our story. I also studied and entwined every aspect I could of daily life, architecture, inter-ethnic relations between Israel and the surrounding kingdoms and other fields. And, as we made Tamar a healer (based on a biblical reference), I studied the relevant botany and ancient (and modern) healing herbs. I also interviewed the archaeologist who is excavating the ancient city of Abel Beit Maacah, where an important part of the story takes place.

Eva Marie: Miriam is the expert in all this, really . . . but as a novelist, I helped by crawling into the skin of Tamar (and the other characters). Miriam planted such imagery with her word pictures, I simply brought a little more of the human experience into it. Both Miriam and I have endured tragedy, we have both endured betrayal in one form or another, we have both questioned the way of life and, in all honesty, the ways of God. I don’t think God stomps His mighty feet at that. I believe He not only can handle our questions, He also welcomes them. Especially when we don’t understand.

This surely would have been true with Tamar. She was a woman, yes, but still—in many ways—a child.

As you researched Tamar, what impressed you the most about her?

Miriam: I loved the fact that from hints in the biblical text we can draw the conclusion that Tamar was a healer as well as a princess, and although she faced challenges in the life we created for her that would have made many people turn inward in despair, she was able to help people by listening, laying on of hands, and herbal remedies. I also appreciated that her achievements, especially in the continuation of the story as Eva Marie and I picture them, show that she made the most of her life despite the limitations of her time and surroundings.

Eva Marie: For me, what impresses me as well is that her story takes up only a few verses—a chapter—in the biblical text and yet her story alters so much of David’s story. We learn even more about him—this man after God’s heart—as we study her.

How are you like/unlike Tamar?

Miriam: Unlike Tamar, I did not have to fight conventional mores and strictures to gain my education. Unlike Tamar, my father was and my brother is, at every turn, my champion, my protector and my cheerleader. My brother is 10 years older, and I remember when I must have been no more than 5 or 6 years old, I reported to him that older kids had been bullying me. He said: “Let’s go find them.” Somehow, we did, and he verbally castigated them and warned them never to bother me again.

Sadly, Tamar’s brother Absalom was not there for her, and the revenge he later took on their half-brother Amnon was more for himself than for her.

When the women of my generation began to publicly fight back against the horrors of sexual harassment and assault, I contributed to this in every way I could. Like Tamar, I struggled on many fronts in my life and fought back against the adversities I experienced until I defeated them to reach my goals.

Eva Marie: Unlike Tamar (and like Miriam) my father and my brother were my champions. But like Tamar, I am the victor of a sexual assault (I won’t say victim) . . . and like Tamar, I thought I had no voice. Like Tamar in our story, I looked to the survival instincts God gave me and carried on until redemption and resolution were clear.

What do you hope readers will get out of Ahoti?

Miriam: I hope that readers of the book, especially victims of sexual assault, will realize that the pain, humiliation and ostracizing that Tamar experienced—the lot of too many of the victims of this crime—does not have to be the end of the story. I also hope that readers will realize that the story of Tamar, and so many other biblical women, is their story, because human nature has changed so little over thousands of years. And yet, we have at our disposal tools that the ancients could not have dreamed of to deal with the adversities of life and can turn corners they could not have even seen were there.

Eva Marie: What she said . . . and I also hope and pray that our readers—whether men or women—will realize the strength that lies within each of us. Truly, it is a gift from God, we just have to grab hold of it. In Ahoti, Tamar makes critical decisions along her post-rape journey that ultimately lead to her survival . . . and her redemption. It’s just so powerful!

What other women in the Bible do you connect with?

Miriam: There are so many that I identify with, including of course, the woman whose namesake I am. But I’m going to choose the daughters of Zelophehad. I came to know this story better when it came up as the Bible portion to be read on the Sabbath of my daughter Maya’s Bat Mitzvah ceremony many years ago.

The story I refer to is in Numbers 27:1-23. It’s a story of the courage and assertiveness these five women showed in coming to Moses and all the leaders of the Israelites before the Tent of Meeting and demanding their part in the inheritance of the Holy Land. Moses, no doubt confounded by their demand, took it to God who answered him: “The daughters of Zelophehad are right You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them” (Num 27:7).

God then commanded Moses to change the law to take this situation into consideration. The extraordinary courage of these women in confronting the leadership inspires me. And their unwavering love for the land they were destined to inherit – sight unseen – prompted them to defy tradition. That determination speaks volumes about their deep-rooted connection to their heritage.

Eva Marie: Oh my goodness, Miriam, I love that story! I think a woman I identify with often is Mary Magdelene. When she met Jesus, she was a mess. So was I. After she met Jesus, she became one of the most important women to His story. And to history (little play on words there). I don’t ever expect I’ll play such a role, but I like knowing she walked before me.

What is your favorite scripture?

Miriam: “You have been told, O mortal, what is good,
And what GOD requires of you:
Only to do justice
And to love goodness,
And to walk modestly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

Eva Marie: I have four (sorry, but I’ve never been able to narrow it down to one), two from the Jewish scriptures (OT) and two from the Christian (NT). The first is from Exodus 33: And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.” Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory” (17,18).

The second one is from Ezekiel. “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them into a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand” (37:19).

The first one from the New Testament is from the Book of John, Chapter 6: ^“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God” (67-69)

And finally, from Paul’s great declaration to the Church in Philippi, which reads, I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead (3: 10, 11).

Anything else?

Miriam: I am profoundly grateful for the enriching presence of Eva Marie Everson in my life. Despite our differing religious beliefs, soon after we met, she said these “magic” words: “Let’s focus on what unites us, not what divides us.” This ethos fostered a unique and enduring friendship that has nurtured us not only in our literary collaborations but in our personal lives as well.

Eva Marie: (wipes tear from her eyes) . . . todah rabah, Miriam. Thank you very much. You are ahoti is a million different ways. And to everyone else, I simply cannot wait for you to read this story of Tamar. May her story and may the God of Israel—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—give you strength to endure whatever hardship life may throw your way. I pray for you Isaiah 61:3, that He give you:

a crown of beauty instead of ashes,the oil of joy instead of mourning,and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord

for the display of his splendor.