Digital Biblical Studies
“Window in the Skies” is a song about spiritual freedom and divine love, saturated with biblical allusions. The liberation conveyed by “The shackles are undone” reflects the biblical theme of being freed from sin’s grip, as expressed for example in Romans 6:22: “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in “Window in the Skies” (U218, 2006)”
Bono’s own words about “Heartland” reveal a connection with the American landscape, both in its beauty and complexity. “America both fascinates and frightens me,” Bono said. “I can’t get it out of my system. Wim Wenders has said that America has colonised our unconscious. He’s right. You don’t have to go there – it comes …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “Heartland” (Rattle and Hum, 1988)”
The lyrics of “When Love Comes to Town” by U2 are a mosaic of biblical references. The Edge recalls the song’s genesis: “Bono came up with ‘When Love Comes To Town’. Bono thought the song was too traditional for us” (McCormick, 247). Yet the song’s traditional blues structure became the perfect vessel for B.B. King’s …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “When Love Comes to Town” (Rattle and Hum, 1988)”
The song “October” presents contrasting images of impermanence and eternity. The lyrics, “October and the trees are stripped bare / Of all they wear. What do I care?” reflect the biblical notion of life’s fleeting nature, as seen in Ecclesiastes, which posits “a time for everything under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 3) and the “ungraspable” (Hebrew …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “October” (October, 1981)”
“The Wanderer,” sung by Johnny Cash on U2’s Zooropa album (1993), explores a journey steeped in biblical allusions and existential questioning. According to Bono, the lyrics were inspired by the themes explored in Ecclesiastes: I wrote the lyric based on the book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament, which in some translation is called The …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “The Wanderer” (Zooropa, 1993)”
I sent the same obscure Greek text to various AI chatbots to translate, with my own translation as reference. I present here a side-by-side comparison of the results. The columns are sorted by cost from cheapest (free) to most costly on Poe. The numbers out of 17 after the model’s name indicates the number of …
Continue reading “Which is the most capable AI/LLM/GPT model for translating ancient Greek?”
“Beautiful Day” by U2 is permeated with biblical allusions, spiritual and existential themes. The lyric “The heart is a bloom, shoots up through stony ground” alludes to the Parable of the Sower, conveying growth amidst adversity (Mark 4:5-6). This imagery is deepened by the allusion to scarcity in “there’s no room,” reminiscent of the Nativity …
“Tomorrow” by Bono in the anguish of his mother’s untimely demise, incorporates biblical imagery with his personal narrative of loss and longing for divine reassurance. It’s a plea for the presence and return of a loved one, against the backdrop of biblical promises of hope and restoration. The tearing of the temple curtain, as described …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “Tomorrow” (October, 1981)”
The song “Fire” by Bono weaves biblical imagery into its lyrics, echoing the apocalyptic themes found in the New Testament. The references to the sun burning black, the moon running red, and stars falling from the sky resemble Jesus’ apocalyptic statements in Mark 13, derived from Joel 2:30, but Bono’s lyrics come directly from the …
Continue reading “Biblical Allusions in U2’s “Fire” (October, 1981)”