Popular songs based on the Bible

Handel's Messiah consists exclusively of Bible quotations, such as, "For unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon shoulder." (Isaiah 9:6)

The Lord's Prayer has been set to music by a number of artists and composers. A 1935 setting by Albert Hay Malotte is a familiar and popular staple of the church choir repertoire. It has been recorded in a pop music context by Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Turn, Turn, Turn - Pete Seeger (popularized by the Byrds, for whom it was their second #1 hit, was adapted from Ecclesiastes) [1]).

Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen (refers to King David)[2]

Hair - PJ Harvey (relates the story of Samson and Delilah) [3]

Dead - The Pixies (tells of King David's love for Bathsheba and murder of Uriah the Hittite) [4]

The Unicorn - (words: Shel Silverstein) tells the story of the Great Flood and explains the absence of unicorns from the Ark see: http://www.unicorncollector.com/music.htm

Deck of Cards - (T.Texas Tyler) sung by Tex Ritter (1948). This tells the (supposedly true) story of a soldier using a deck of cards, which he claims, helps him to remember the bible.

It Ain't Necessarily So, from Porgy and Bess, by George and Ira Gershwin, is a perennial hit and has had numerous recordings. In the opera, it is sung by the villain, Sportin' Life, a character patterned after Cab Calloway's stage persona. The song is sung with sly insinuation: Sportin' Life opines that "The things that you're li'ble to read in the Bible, it ain't necessarily so," and says that he "just takes that gospel whenever it's poss'ble—but with a grain of salt."

All you Zombies by the Hooters. The first lines say it all: "Holy Moses met the Pharaoh / Yeah, he tried to set him straight / Looked him in the eye / Let my people go"