Difference between revisions of "Common Idioms that Originate from the Bible"
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== Expressions and passages == | == Expressions and passages == | ||
| + | <div class="mom-table-scroll" role="region" aria-label="Common Idioms that Originate from the Bible: Expressions and passages (table 1)" tabindex="0" style="max-width:100%;overflow-x:auto;"> | ||
{| class="wikitable" | {| class="wikitable" | ||
| − | ! Expression or familiar wording !! Biblical reference !! Usage or distinction | + | ! scope="col" | Expression or familiar wording !! scope="col" | Biblical reference !! scope="col" | Usage or distinction |
|- | |- | ||
| The writing on the wall || Daniel 5:5, 25-28 || A warning of approaching judgement or disaster. | | The writing on the wall || Daniel 5:5, 25-28 || A warning of approaching judgement or disaster. | ||
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| Pearls before swine || Matthew 7:6 || Offering something valuable where it will not be valued. | | Pearls before swine || Matthew 7:6 || Offering something valuable where it will not be valued. | ||
|} | |} | ||
| + | </div> | ||
== Resemblance is not the same as origin == | == Resemblance is not the same as origin == | ||
Latest revision as of 11:55, 7 October 2026
English contains many expressions associated with biblical texts and their translations. The table gives passages connected with familiar wording. It does not establish the first recorded English use of each expression, and the modern expression is not always an exact quotation.
The references can be checked in the King James Version of the Bible. Wording differs between translations. Meanings in ordinary conversation may also differ from the meaning of a passage in its religious context.
Expressions and passages
| Expression or familiar wording | Biblical reference | Usage or distinction |
|---|---|---|
| The writing on the wall | Daniel 5:5, 25-28 | A warning of approaching judgement or disaster. |
| Salt of the earth | Matthew 5:13 | A description of people valued for honesty and dependability. |
| A drop in the bucket | Isaiah 40:15 | A very small quantity in relation to the whole. |
| A house divided | Mark 3:25 | Internal conflict that threatens a group. |
| A labour of love | 1 Thessalonians 1:3; Hebrews 6:10 | Work undertaken from care or devotion. |
| A leopard changing its spots | Jeremiah 13:23 | An image used to question a change of character. |
| A person after one's own heart | Acts 13:22 | Someone whose outlook or conduct one approves. |
| A wolf in sheep's clothing | Matthew 7:15 | Danger concealed by a harmless appearance. |
| An eye for an eye | Exodus 21:23-25 | A principle of proportionate retribution. |
| The apple of one's eye | Deuteronomy 32:10; Zechariah 2:8 | Something or someone especially cherished. |
| As old as Methuselah | Genesis 5:27 | A comparison with the age attributed to Methuselah. |
| Eat, drink and be merry | Ecclesiastes 8:15; Luke 12:19 | Enjoyment, with different implications in the two passages. |
| By the skin of one's teeth | Job 19:20 | A narrow escape. |
| Fall from grace | Galatians 5:4 | A loss of favour or standing in wider English usage. |
| Fight the good fight | 1 Timothy 6:12 | Persevering in a worthy struggle. |
| For everything a season | Ecclesiastes 3:1 | The idea of an appropriate time for an activity. |
| Out of the mouths of babes | Psalm 8:2; Matthew 21:16 | An unexpected insight from a child or inexperienced speaker. |
| The blind leading the blind | Matthew 15:14 | Guidance offered by someone who also lacks knowledge. |
| The powers that be | Romans 13:1 | Those in authority. |
| Cast the first stone | John 8:7 | Taking the lead in condemning someone. |
| The straight and narrow | Matthew 7:14 | A conventional phrase associated with the narrow way; the KJV adjective is "strait". |
| Turn the other cheek | Matthew 5:39 | Responding without retaliating in kind. |
| Woe is me | Isaiah 6:5 | An expression of distress. |
| Scapegoat | Leviticus 16:10, 20-22 | In wider use, someone made to carry blame for others. |
| The love of money as a root of evil | 1 Timothy 6:10 | The subject is love of money, rather than money itself. |
| A thorn in the flesh | 2 Corinthians 12:7 | A persistent difficulty or affliction. |
| A voice in the wilderness | Isaiah 40:3 | A call that may be ignored or isolated in wider usage. |
| Go the extra mile | Matthew 5:41 | Do more than is required. |
| Love your neighbour as yourself | Leviticus 19:18 | A statement about care for others. |
| Reap what you sow | Galatians 6:7 | Experience consequences associated with one's actions. |
| Give up the ghost | Luke 23:46 | Die, or cease functioning when used of an object. |
| Put words in someone's mouth | Exodus 4:15 | The passage concerns supplying words to a spokesman; modern usage often means misrepresenting what someone said. |
| Pearls before swine | Matthew 7:6 | Offering something valuable where it will not be valued. |
Resemblance is not the same as origin
Psalm 72:9 describes enemies licking dust. This is not the wording "bite the dust", and Job 1:12 does not support that expression at all. Similar imagery is insufficient to establish an English idiom's origin.
Likewise, a narrative about overturned tables does not, without evidence from the history of the expression, establish the origin of "turn the tables". A biblical echo and an etymological claim are different things.