Hidden passages.

• Author: Rothschild, Matthew
• Position: President's inaugural speech - Editorial

Bush's inaugural address contained several explicit references to God, but there were even more masked references to the Bible that may have been lost on many of his audience, as they were on me. Then I did some research, with help from Dan Barker of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Internet website BibleGateway.com, and I discovered a subtext of his speech.

Here are a few of the hidden passages.

When Bush thanked the American people for granting him patience in "good measure," he was echoing Luke 6:38, "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure...."

When Bush talked of the "ideals of justice and conduct that are the same yesterday, today, and forever," he was echoing Hebrews 13:8, which says, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."

When Bush talked about the "untamed fire of freedom" in a passage that included the phrase "hope kindles hope," he was echoing passages from Jeremiah. For instance, Jeremiah 17:27 says: "I will kindle an unquenchable fire in the gates of Jerusalem." And Jeremiah 50:32 says: "I will kindle a fire in her towns that will consume all who are around her."

There are many other passages in the Bible that have a raging fire in them. For instance, Isaiah 33:14: "The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: 'Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?'"

When Bush talked about the day when "the captives are set free," he was echoing a common Christian phrase that "Jesus set the captives flee." And specifically he was alluding to Isaiah 61:1 and Luke 4:18, which talk about Jesus liberating "captives."

When Bush said, "History also has a visible direction, set by liberty and the Author of Liberty," he was being none too subtle. But he was also cribbing from Acts 3:15 ("You killed the author of life") and Hebrews 12:2 ("Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and...