Lost contains numerous references to the Bible. "The Bible" refers to the Holy Books of both Judaism and Christianity. There were many references to Biblical people and events made throughout the storyline.
Explicit references[]
Physical appearances[]
- Boone found a Bible in the Beechcraft (which must have belonged to Yemi or was a prop used by the fake priest drug smugglers). ("Deus Ex Machina")
- Desmond had a Bible in the Swan station, seen on the bed next to the book "The Third Policeman". ("Man of Science, Man of Faith")
- A hollowed-out Bible was found in the Arrow station. ("The Other 48 Days") It contained a missing piece of the Swan orientation film. ("What Kate Did") Eko then made reference to an Old Testament story about Josiah and the book found during Josiah's rule (2 Kings 22).
- There was a Bible displayed on Jack's office bookshelf. ("A Tale of Two Cities")
- Eko found Yemi's King James Bible in the church. The picture of young Eko and Yemi was placed in between Isaiah chapters 4 and 5 (about God's judgement) and was apparently the last thing Yemi read before going to the airstrip. ("The Cost of Living")
- Cassidy "sold" Bibles at Kate's mom's home. ("Left Behind")
- Richard was seen reading Luke chapter 4 in his jail cell. The chapter describes Satan's temptation of Christ. ("Ab Aeterno") The specific verse that is shown onscreen, Luke 4:24 says, "And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country." [Luke 4:23 says, "And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country." Jack is a physician and his number is 23.]
Episode titles[]
- "Numbers" (Book 4 of the Old Testament--the name comes from two censuses taken during the 40 years the Israelites wandered the desert before entering the promised land in Canaan)
- "Exodus, Part 1" & "Exodus, Part 2" The second book of the Bible, Exodus, where Moses leads his people away from the slavery and oppression of the Egyptians.
- "The 23rd Psalm"
- "Fire + Water" "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire" (Matt 3:11) John the Baptist re- Jesus. This is the episode about Baptism.
- "Stranger in a Strange Land" Gershom was the firstborn son of Moses and Zipporah (Exodus 2:22: And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land. Gershom's name may be literary translated as "a stranger there" (גר שם ger sham), referring to Moses' flight from Egypt.
- "316" A reference to a Biblical verse from the Book of John: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16).
Bible verses quoted[]
- Eko recited Psalm 23 in the episode "The 23rd Psalm" and began to recite it in "The Cost of Living" immediately before the "Monster" killed him.
- In the Ajira Airways website, the source code included the verse John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
Eko's stick[]
Eko's stick quoted several additional biblical verses, including those from Genesis, Psalms, and the Gospels.
Biblical figures[]
Jesus Christ[]
- Locke told Walt that backgammon was a game older than Jesus Christ. ("Tabula Rasa")
- Ben told Jack about Thomas the Apostle, who doubted Jesus' resurrection and wanted to feel his wounds for proof that he resurrected. (John 20:24-31)
Moses[]
Several characters referenced Moses explicitly, and other events seemed to allude to the story of Moses and Aaron.
Religious art[]
- The Season 6 cast photo "The Lost Supper" was modeled after the painting The Last Supper.
- The Incredulity of Saint Thomas was referenced by Ben while at the church that The Lamp Post was located underneath.("316") According to St John's Gospel, Thomas missed one of Christ's appearances to the Apostles after His resurrection. He therefore announced that, unless he could thrust his hand into Christ's side, he would not believe what he had been told. A week later Christ appeared, asked Thomas to reach out his hands to touch Him and said, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
Biblical allusions[]
Biblical names[]
Old Testament[]
- Adam and Eve are the first people created in the Bible.
- Seth is the son of Adam. Jacob is a direct descendant of Adam and Seth.
- Jacob buys his brother Esau's birth right for a bowl of soup. He is the grandson of Abraham (from which the name Bram is derived), and the father of Benjamin and Dan and the great-great-grandfather of Aaron.
- Aaron is the brother of Moses.
- Naomi is the mother-in-law of Ruth.
- Sarah is the mother of Isaac.
- Isaac is the father of Jacob.
- Rachel is the wife of Jacob and the mother of Benjamin.
- David was a King of Israel. He also is credited with writing many of the Psalms.
- Daniel is a significant Hebrew prophet, exiled in Babylon where he is drawn out of retirement to interpret signs. Gabriel is an archangel who appears to both Daniel (Daniel 8:15–26, 9:21–27) and to Zechariah and the Virgin Mary, foretelling the births of John the Baptist and Jesus, respectively (Luke 1:11–38).
- Michael is the only archangel designated in the Bible.
- Ethan is a cymbal-player in King David's court.
- Nathan was a prophet of King David.
New Testament[]
- John the Baptist was Jesus' second cousin. John is also the name of one of Jesus' closest disciples, generally believed to be "the disciple whom Jesus loved".
- James is the "brother" of Jesus. Two of Jesus' disciples are also named James (one of which became a prominent leader in the Jerusalem church and authored the book of James).
- Thomas (Tom) is the disciple of Jesus Christ popularly referred to as "Doubting Thomas".
- Abaddon is a Hebrew word for destruction, or place of the abyss, according to Revelation 9:11. Abaddon is often believed by biblical scholars to be Satan, the antichrist or a dark angel.
- Christian Shephard's given name is an adjective used to refer to the religion founded by Jesus Christ or its followers.
- Desmond's sailboat was named Elizabeth, who was the cousin of Mary and the mother of John the Baptist, who as mentioned above was the second cousin of Jesus.
- Matthew was a tax collector who became a Disciple of Christ.
- Simon was a disciple of Jesus. Simon was later renamed Peter after he became closer to Jesus and by then he is referred to as an apostle.
Christ figures[]
- Eloise Hawking sent her son Daniel Faraday to the island with foreknowledge of his death. This corresponds roughly with the Christian concept of God intentionally sending his son Jesus Christ to die as an atoning sacrifice. Ajira Flight 316's flight number alluded to the biblical passage that stated this concept. ("The Variable") ("316")
- Locke's mother claimed that Locke had no human father, misusing the term "immaculately conceived". ("Deus Ex Machina") Had Locke taken his father's surname, he'd have shared initials with Jesus Christ. Locke sacrificed himself for his friends, assuming a crucifixion pose as he prepared to hang himself, and he returned to the island aboard a plane whose flight number referenced Jesus's sacrifice. He then appeared to resurrect. In promotional art, ABC even explicitly portrayed him as Jesus from da Vinci's Last Supper.
- When the fuselage survivors put Benjamin Linus into the Swan's armory, he assumed a crucifixion pose. ("Dave")
- Dave urged Hurley to over-eat and to throw himself off of the cliff, two temptations Satan issued Jesus during his 40 days in the desert. ("Dave")
- When Sayid, who physically resembles popular depictions of Jesus, was lifted from the waters of The Temple, his body assumed the form of the Crucified Christ. He died but later resurrected. His second death was a sacrifice to save his friends. ("LA X, Part 2") ("The Candidate")
- Young Jacob appeared to the Man in Black and Sawyer with bloody arms outstretched, much as Jesus presented himself to the doubting Apostle Thomas. Jacob was otherwise often treated as a deity, and he briefly resurrected after his death. ("The Substitute") ("What They Died For")
- Jack sacrificed himself shortly after assuming a protective, quasi-religious role. Soon before dying, like Jesus, he suffered an incidental wound to his side. ("The End")
Jacob and Esau[]
There are many Biblical similarities between Jacob and Esau from the Bible and the battle between Jacob and The Man in Black on the Island. In the Room 23 video and the Orchid Orientation outtakes, the phrase "God loves you as He loved Jacob" is seen. ("Not in Portland") (Orchid Orientation outtakes) The Bible says that Esau was a hunter and loved to be outdoors, while Jacob was more quiet and liked to stay at home. "The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents." -Genesis 25:27.
Jacob, son of Isaac, was the twin brother of Esau, who was born just minutes before him. As the oldest son, Esau was given a certain birthright that Jacob didn't get. When they were 15 years old, Jacob tricked Esau out of his birthright. But Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. So Esau gave an oath, trading away his inheritance and his rights as the firstborn son. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and stew. Esau ate and drank and went on his way – not realizing that he had just given up his inheritance. Esau vowed to kill Jacob as a result, which was prevented when Rebekah heard of it and sent Jacob away to live with her brother Laban. [1] Jacob had 12 children, the youngest of which was named Benjamin. Benjamin’s mother, Rachel, died at childbirth. [2]
Much like on the Island, the Man in Black couldn't kill Jacob directly. He tried to find a loophole, and used Ben to kill Jacob. ("The Variable")
Several other verses connect to Lost and the battle between Jacob and the Man in Black.
- Genesis 1:3-4: "And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness."
- Genesis 33:3-4: "He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother. But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept."
- Obadiah 1:6: "But how Esau will be ransacked, his hidden treasures pillaged!"
- Obadiah 1:18: "'The house of Jacob will be a fire and the house of Joseph a flame; the house of Esau will be stubble, and they will set it on fire and consume it. There will be no survivors from the house of Esau.' The LORD has spoken."
- Malachi 1:2-3: ""I have loved you," says the LORD. "But you ask, 'How have you loved us?'" "Was not Esau Jacob's brother?" the LORD says. "Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.""
- Hebrews 11:20: "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future."
Jacob's Ladder[]
Jacob's Ladder refers to the story told in Genesis 28:11-19, during which the Biblical patriarch Jacob has a dream or vision of a ladder to heaven ascended and descended by angels. In this Biblical story, God reassures Jacob of the Covenant, promising him land and numerous descendants. In the New Testament, Jesus alludes to Jacob's ladder saying "I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." (John 1:51)
Job[]
The beginning of "The Incident, Part 1" with Jacob and the Man in Black strongly paralleled the story from the Book of Job, in which God and Satan disagree on the nature of Job's faithfulness. The disagreement is allowed to play out in Job's own life, just as the disagreement between Jacob and his enemy plays out in the Island's history. ("The Incident, Part 1")
Infertility[]
- In the ancient world barrenness was associated with disfavor from God. The LORD often chose barren women or women far past the age of childbearing and allows them to have children. This almost always shows that the miraculous child will be significant.
- Sarai/Sarah, Abraham's wife, is infertile but God tells Abraham that Sarah will have a son, which she does and calls him Isaac. (Genesis 21:1-3)
- Rebekkah, Isaac's wife, is barren, but Isaac prays to the Lord on her behalf, and she becomes pregnant. (Genesis 21)
- Rachel, Jacob's wife, is barren but is cured of her infertility. (Genesis 30:22)
- Hannah is infertile, but then has seven sons. (1 Samuel 2:20-21)
- Samson's mother Anonymous, but miraculously gives birth to the Judge Samson. (Judges 13:1-5)
- Elizabeth is beyond child-bearing years, but she conceives and gives birth to John the Baptist. (Luke 1:57-58)
See also[]
External links[]
Bible Online - read all 66 books of the Bible and search for specific passages
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