George R.R. Martin might have invented many different religions for HBO hit Game of Thrones, but many of them are actually inspired by real-life religions. For example, the Faith of the Seven, is loosely based on seven aspects of one god and is derived from the Christian Holy Trinity.
However, much of his astoundingly popular series might actually be inspired from the holy book itself. Here are 10 ideas and themes Game of Thrones took from the world’s best-selling book (according to the Guinness Book of World Records), The Bible.
1. Resurrection
It goes without saying that death and resurrection is a popular theme in The Bible and Game of Thrones. And while that might be an easy deduction to make, the focus on this theme seems especially important to both. Like Game of Thrones, the good book is scattered with miraculous stories of men and woman who died and returned from the grave.
In 1 Kings, Elijah resurrected the son of Zarephath’s widow. In 2 Kings, Elisha resurrected the son of the great Shunammite woman. Also in Kings, a dead man comes back to life when he touches Elisha’s bones. And that’s without mentioning the many people Christ resurrected in the Gospels.
2. Jon Snow And Jesus
Speaking of resurrection, the main heroes of both books, Jesus and Jon Snow, are characters who are wrongfully murdered at the hands of their people but return from death after a number of days. Having a character that closely resembles Jesus Christ is a common literary allegory; however, Jon Snow seems a little more on the nose than most.
You only need to consider the fact that both had a mysterious birth, both have incredible leadership abilities (both have/had many followers), both were betrayed (Snow even died underneath a cross) and both are destined for greatness (the Prince that was Promised). To some extent, Jon Snow even looks similar to traditional depictions of the Christian saviour.
3. Prophecy, Dreams And Visions
Just like The Bible has many books dedicated to prophesy, visions and dreams, George R.R. Martin’s books also place a special focus on the power of prophecy and destiny. One only has to look to popular Bible characters such as Joseph, who had the ability to interpret dreams, Isaiah, who had the gift of seeing the future, and John, who had seen visions of the end of the world to see parallels between the two. The Three-Eyed Raven has similar abilities.
“The Lord let you come back for a reason. Stannis was not the Prince Who Was Promised, but someone has to be,” says Melisandre to Jon Snow.
4. Mystical Creatures
Believe it or not, but the scriptures also speak of strange mythical creatures, including beasts, giants, dragons, unicorns, behemoth and even Pegasus. While some descriptions are symbolic and are simply meant to represent certain nations or ideas in prophetic visions, others are described as real. This certainly fits in with the wonderful and weird universe Martin has created.
5. Themes Of Good And Evil
Themes of good and evil are present in most stories. However, good and evil are depicted slightly different in both books. When you think about it, nobody is truly 100% good or 100% evil in Game of Thrones and The Bible, with the exception of Jon Snow (who struggles to tell lies) and Jesus. Everyone else strives to be either good or bad. There are no absolute evil people – which is a lot more like real life. The Book of Books has its fair share of characters like Littlefinger.
6. The Night King And Satan
When you consider the two, both the Night King and Satan seem awfully similar. They are both figures that were created at or before the birth of humanity. They are both hell bent on killing off the human race. They both rule an army of evil demons. They both possess supernatural abilities. They are both incredibly smart. They are both depicted with horns on their heads. And they both are the epitome of evil.
7. Forbidden Relationships
You think that Game of Thrones has scandalous stories? Well, believe it or not, The Bible’s stories might be even crazier. Lot’s daughters got their father drunk and had sex with him in order to have children. King David sent Bathsheba’s husband to the forefront of the war after he watched her bathing naked from his roof and slept with her. King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Abram had a child with the maid. The Lannisters have nothing on some of these characters.
8. Stories of War
If you enjoy epic battles, both books have their fair share of war and disaster. While The Hound, The Mountain, Jaime Lannister, Nedd Stark are all great war heroes, they don’t have anything on the crazy Bible heroes. David was a shepherd boy who killed a lion with his bare hands before taking on a giant.
He eventually went on to lead armies in different wars. Samson killed tons of soldiers with the jaw of an ass. Moses led an army to destroy multiple tribes while travelling to the Promised Land. There are endless examples of badass war heroes who fought in incredible battles in the old book.
9. Heroic Leaders
Just like Game of Thrones, The Bible is filled with many different thrones, both of this world and beyond. There are countless amounts of kings and queens fighting and manipulating to rule. And then there are also those who are are not interested in ruling over others, those who are simply interested in leading humanity to salvation.
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