This song originally appeared on Leonard Cohen’s 1984 album Various Positions. It has appeared in numerous television shows and films as the soundtrack to celebrations and funerals alike. You can listen to the full song here.

Suggested Activity: After listening to the entire song as a class, have students read the excerpt of the Biblical story of David and Bathsheba presented in resource #2 of this kit. Then focus on this excerpt of the song. How does Cohen use and transform the Biblical characters? In what ways is the power relationship between David and Bathsheba different in the Biblical excerpt and the song excerpt? Is the meaning of either excerpt clear to you? Muddled? Mysterious?