Bathsheba is holding a letter in her right hand and is gazing downwards, but not looking at the old woman. Her body is positioned facing the intended audience; meanwhile her head is tilted and is facing the ground. The older woman is preparing her for something and she seems deeply saddened about it. Her melancholic expression foreshadows a tragedy is expected in her near future. The letter in her hands did not deliver good news for Bathsheba, for she appears to be deep in thought. The lighting of the piece is mostly dark with deep reds, while her nude body is radiantly gleaming in the sun. The dark shadows around her make the audience center on her physique and body movements. There is no action happening in this painting, except for the woman in the corner who is scrubbing her feet. .
Bathsheba's beauty and nudity is very seductive, which is the central theme of this painting. "Bathsheba is traditionally painted as welcoming David's attention. The biblical verses are taken as an opportunity to depict a bathing beauty worthy of being seen and desired by a king." This adaptation of the story conveys the same essential meaning to the piece, but in a very different manner. Both the painting and the biblical story demonstrate the superiority rule the King has over his people. "So David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her." Bathsheba had no choice in the matter, the King wanted her, and therefore she had to go to him. In the painting, she sits still, upset over the letter she is holding in her hand. She is getting ready to visit King David, and by the miserable expression on her face, she does not want to run into his arms. .
The major variation between the two is the absence of David's physical character watching her bathe in the painting. His existence is present in the form of a letter, but this is much more difficult for the viewer to sense the lust he undergoes for Bathsheba.
