And that’s why there’s an emphasis in John’s gospel on Jesus being, yep, the Good Shepherd.
In other words, when religious and political leaders drop the ball, God himself takes up the slack. Hence the other famous passage about shepherds alluded to in Tarantino’s speech, Psalm 23 (“ The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing…even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil…“). That’s the problem with Jackson’s speech – the people meant to be shepherds have been dropping the ball, leaving one person to take over, God himself. Flick forward nine chapters in the actual Bible, and you’ll see that Ezekiel 34 is an extended attack on the bad shepherds – leaders of Israel who are leading their people astray. Now that’s interesting, because shepherds, good and bad, are a theme in Ezekiel. He confesses that, in the context of the pseudo-passage, he’s been “the tyranny of evil men”, but he’s now trying to be the shepherd. See, towards the end of the film, Jackson’s character, who’s had something of an epiphany, explains why he quotes the Bible. Straight forward enough, but as this blog only really exists to poke around in the Bible, I thought it was worth looking at a little closer. The reason for the discrepancy is obvious – Tarantino wanted Jackson to say something awesome and biblical and wrote something that sounded right but that also helped advance the plot of the film. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I take vengeance on them.’” “I will carry out great vengeance on them and punish them in my wrath. And you will know My name is the Lord when I lay My vengeance upon thee.” And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy My brothers. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. “The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Oh, he says he’s reading Ezekiel 25:17, and in context I doubt anyone’s about to argue with him. And then you run away, because he’s probably gonna shoot you.Īt the risk of calling down his vengeance though, I should point out that he’s not quoting the Bible. Jackson, who is possibly the coolest man on Earth, and therefore if he comes after you quoting the Bible you listen carefully. Of course, the main reason it’s dramatic is because it’s quoted by Samuel L. One of the most dramatic uses of a Bible quote in Hollywood is in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, where a passage from Ezekiel is used as both a hitman’s signature and a possible path for his redemption. After all, it keeps cropping up in unlikely places, like metal albums and horror films. The Bible is one of the foundational documents of western civilisation, and even though it’s not as widely read as it once was, you can still see its influence in culture. Okay, this is something new I wanted to try out on the blog.
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