5 classic movies that botched Bible verses
3. 'Footloose' (1984)
The Bible teaches that dancing can actually be a form of worship when performed with a heart of faith, and the 1980s dance classic "Footloose" certainly testifies to that truth.
Kevin Bacon stars as Ren McCormack, a teenager from Chicago who moves to a small town where dancing is outlawed. He eventually falls for the daughter of a local pastor and tries to help overturn the dancing ban.
Because the plot involves a pastor and his daughter, the movie makes a number of Bible references, including when Ren attempts to use the Word to sway Reverend Shaw Moore (played by John Lithgow): "Aren't we told in Psalm 149, 'Praise ye the Lord. Sing unto the Lord a new song. Let them praise His name in the dance'?
Despite the admirable effort, it’s not quite what Psalm 149 says in the King James: “Praise ye the Lord. Sing unto the Lord a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.” (v. 1-3)
Still, Ren does get it right when he quotes (albeit in a truncated version) 2 Samuel, when he says, “And it was King David — King David, who we read about in Samuel — and what did David do? ‘David danced before the Lord with all his might ... leaping and dancing before the Lord.’"