Pulp Fiction
I watched Pulp Fiction last night for the first time ever, and it sent me running for my bible. I couldn’t help but look up the passage (Ezekiel 25:17) that Samuel Jackson’s character (Jules Winnfeld) quotes just before he “pops a cap in their ass.” He says:
“The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you.”
Looks like we have different versions of the bible. My King James version Ezekiel 25:17 says:
“And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.”
Oh well! I can’t really blame Quentin Tarantino for taking poetic license. Btw, whatever happened to him? I haven’t heard from him since I saw Jackie Brown six years ago. Oh wait, it looks like he has a new movie called Kill Bill coming out later this year.
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November 3, 2003 at 11:14 am
byron
ursula,
thanks for that tidbit of information. it was only last night that i couldn’t remember what passage from Ezekiel that SL Jackson quoted, or misquoted, or reinterpreted. it ruined my pleasant air last night. but no longer i have been saved by the grace of you and your internet, all-important, posting.
byron
October 23, 2003 at 7:27 pm
Brian Davis
I am familiar with the Christian versions of the old testament that have the shortened version of Ezekiel.
I also have read a Jewish bible containing Ezekiel and the relevant Halfteuchs (spelling?), and that version has the Pulp Fiction version almost word for word, except he is the “finder of lost souls” and not the “finder of lost children” which I’m sure is minor enough to be considered lost in translation.
All over the web I see people calling the quote false because it is not in their New Testament/Old Testament Bible, however if you find the right version of just the Old Testament you will see the quote in the book of Ezekiel somewhere.
July 7, 2003 at 2:20 am
Marcus
jules replies,” look at the brain on Brad” to show that Brett’s name isn’t important because he is about to be dead. Nice try at sounding smart Peter.
March 5, 2003 at 6:00 pm
Peter
(Continuity) When Jules and Vincent enter the apartment with the flock of seaguls guy on the couch and the preppy guy “Brett” sitting and eating a burger for breakfast he takes a bite of Brett’s burger. He the asks Brett if he knows why they call a quarter pounder a royal with cheese in France. Brett answers “because of the metric system” to which Jules replies”Look at the brain on Brad” not Brett. – Dego
February 24, 2003 at 10:21 am
JCS/TK :)
Pulp Fiction trivia (I was a total tarantino geek for awhile):
The Ezekiel quote is actually almost word for word from a kung fu film called “The Bodyguard”, which also attributed it to the bible.
Also, early in the movie, when Jules gives his Ezekiel speech jhe finishes with: “And you will know My name is the Lord when I lay My vengeance upon thee!” At the end, when giving the same speech in the coffee shop he finishes with: “And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you.” In both instances Jules prefaces the speech by saying this was a “passage I got memorized.” At the end he says, “I been sayin’ that shit for years.” So why are there discrepancies in how he says it? There’s all sorts of theories on this…altered reality, changed perception, etc.
Also Honey Bunny’s warning is different from the beginning of the movie compared to the end of the movie. But, this is probably QT showing the difference in perception when the scene is witnessed by different characters.
February 23, 2003 at 2:47 pm
Leigh Hanlon
Is there a director’s cut in which Bruce Willis gets to be “mo” instead of “miney”?