The Facts on File Dictionary of Allusions - Green Valley High School

countries was set on one side when it became clear that
only one of them could hope to attract signifi cant UN
backing.
Good Samaritan (sbmairitbn) A person who
kindly and selfl essly helps a stranger in distress or
diffi culty. <strong>The</strong> expression alludes to the parable
that Christ told, recorded in Luke 10:25–37,
about a Jew who was brutally attacked while on
his way from Jerusalem to Jericho and left for
dead. His plight was ignored by a priest and a
Levite who passed by on the other side without
giving him any help at all. But later a Samaritan
who happened by took compassion on the man,
and in spite of the fact that the Samaritans were
open enemies of the Jews, the Samaritan looked
after him, paying an innkeeper to take care of
him. <strong>The</strong> phrase Good Samaritan does not, incidentally,
appear in the actual text of the King
James Bible (1611) and appears not to have
become an accepted translation until at least
1640. “No one would remember the Good Samaritan
if he’d only had good intentions. He had
money as well” (Margaret Thatcher, tele vi sion
interview, January 6, 1986). See also fall among
thieves.
Good Shepherd Jesus Christ. Of many epithets
by which Jesus is referred to in the Bible, this one
appears in John 10:11 and alludes to the image of
Christ as a shepherd tending his fl ock. It evokes
the parable of the lost sheep related in Matthew
18:12–14, in which a shepherd goes to the aid of
the single sheep that is lost, despite the fact that
the other 99 sheep in his fl ock are all safely
accounted for. <strong>The</strong> title is on occasion applied to
anyone who assumes responsibility for the welfare
of others. I will put my faith in the Good Shepherd to
see us safely home.
goodwill to all men
good thing come out of Nazareth (nazbrbth)
Something good that comes from an unexpected
source. <strong>The</strong> expression alludes to Christ, who
spent his childhood in Nazareth. <strong>The</strong> phrase
appears in John 1:46, where Nathanael expresses
surprise upon learning that Jesus came from the
insignifi cant town of Nazareth: “And Nathanael
said unto him, Can there any good thing come out
of Nazareth? Philip said unto him, Come and see.”
“She had almost fancied that a good thing could
come out of Nazareth—a charming woman out of
Tablothay’s Dairy” (Thomas Hardy, Tess of the
D’Urbervilles, 1891).
good tidings of great joy Good news. <strong>The</strong>
phrase alludes to Luke 2:10, in which the angel
of the Lord brings the good news of Christ’s
birth to shepherds tending their fl ocks in the
fi eld: “And the angel said unto them, Fear not:
for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people.” Sometimes this
phrase is rendered as glad tidings of great joy,
“. . . and though of the same religious sentiments
as Mr. Treat, yet his attention was turned
to those glad tidings of great joy, which a Savior
came to publish” (Henry David Thoreau, Cape
Cod, 1865).
goodwill to all men Charitable feeling to all of
humanity. This exhortation to the faithful to behave
with generosity toward their fellow humans (especially
during the Christmas season) has its origins
in Luke 2:14, in which the birth of Christ at Bethlehem
is a cause of much rejoicing: “suddenly there
was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the
highest, and on earth peace, good will toward
men.” After all, it’s Christmas, the season of goodwill to
all men.
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