Simpsons Bible Stories - Cultural References

Cultural References

"Simpsons Bible Stories" contains several references to the Christian prophets, holy book and the religion as a whole, as well as films based on the Bible. Each segment is based on a biblical story, mostly from the Old Testament. The first segment is based on the story of Adam and Eve, who, according to the Book of Genesis were the first man and woman created by YHWH, the God of the Hebrew Bible. Ned Flanders has the role of God, while the serpent that lures Marge into eating an apple from the forbidden tree resembles Snake Jailbird. The Garden of Eden was the place where Adam and Eve lived after they were created by God, according to the Book of Genesis.

The second segment parodies Moses who, according to the Book of Exodus, freed the Israelites from the Egyptian Pharaoh. Milhouse has the role of Moses while Skinner has the role of the Pharaoh. When the Pharaoh asked who vandalized his sarcophagus, the burning bush tells him that Bart did it. When Bart is seized by the Pharaoh's guards, he exclaims "No, the bush set me up!" Bart's line refers to the 1990 arrest of Marion Barry who, while being arrested by the FBI for smoking crack cocaine, exclaimed "No, the bitch set me up!" In a scene in the segment, Milhouse and Lisa can be seen pouring frogs into Skinner's tent. The scene refers to the second of ten Biblical plagues that were imposed on Egypt by Yahweh, in chapters 7-12 of the Book of Exodus. While they are inside the torture chamber, Milhouse and Lisa walk past an orb. The orb is called "Orb of Isis" and played a big part in the season 9 episode "Lost Our Lisa". In another scene, Milhouse parts the Red Sea so that his fellow slaves can escape. The execution of the scene is based on the one seen in the 1956 American epic film The Ten Commandments, in which Moses parts the Red Sea. The shot in which Pharaoh and his guards are drowning is also taken from the movie.

In Homer's dream, Homer has the role of King Solomon who, according to the Books of Kings and Book of Chronicles was a King of Israel, as well as one of the 48 prophets according to the Talmud. Bart's dream shows Bart as King David and, rather than telling the story of David and Goliath, Bart's dream is a "sequel" to the story. The segment is inspired by and contains references to several films by Jerry Bruckheimer, including Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, and borrows elements from other action films. At one point in the segment, Bart's dog Santa's Little Helper starts talking to him. The dog's voice is similar to that of Goliath in the Christian stop-motion animated television series Davey and Goliath. Inside the whale skeleton in the episode, Bart finds the remains of Jonah. Jonah was a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel, according to the Hebrew Bible. Nelson lives in the Tower of Babel which, according to the Book of Genesis, was an enormous tower that the humans built in order to reach heaven. After being defeated by Bart, Nelson reappears while a variation of Modest Mussorgsky's composition St. John's Night on the Bare Mountain plays in the background. At the end of the segment, Bart is arrested and Chief Wiggum says "Where's your messiah now?" Wiggum's line was also taken from The Ten Commandments, from a character played by Edward G. Robinson, on whom Wiggum's voice is based.