2 Chronicles Allusions & Cultural References

Technically, the Bible is probably the most alluded to work, ever. Let's take a closer look.

Literary and Philosophical References

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
Dante runs into Solomon up in Heaven. Guess he turned out to be a pretty decent king after all.

Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
The fanatical, uncompromising Captain Ahab is probably named for King Ahab of Israel.

King Solomon's Mines by Sir H.R. Haggard
This novel is an adventure about a group of treasure hunters looking for the legendary mines that provided Solomon with all his bling. People are still looking for those mines today. 

The Headless Horseman by Thomas Mayne Reid
This 1866 novel is the first time the phrase "jumping Jehoshaphat" ever appeared in print. This slang was mildly popular around the time and was probably inspired by mixing the names Jesus and Jehovah and coming up with the former king of Judah's name.

Athalie by Jean Racine
This 1691 French play is based on the tragic life of the murderous Queen Athaliah of Judah.

One Thousand and One Nights
One of the stories in this collection involves a fisherman who finds a bottle in the sea with the seal of Solomon on it. When he opens it, he finds a genie who was put in there because he made King Solomon angry.

The Physicists by Friedrich Durrenmatt
This 1962 play features a mentally ill patient who believes that King Solomon himself visits him every night. We'd love to eavesdrop on some of those conversations.

King Solomon's Ring by Karl Lorenz
This famous ethologist wrote about his research into animal behavior in this popular book that took its name from the Seal of Solomon, which was supposed to have given Solomon the ability to speak the language of animals.

The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
One of the stories in this 14th-century Italian masterpiece has two men going to visit King Solomon for advice. One man complains that his wife doesn't listen to him. Solomon's wisdom? He isn't beating her hard enough.

Pop Culture References

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
The Ark of the Covenant makes an appearance at the end of this movie when the Nazis try to open it. Seriously, guys. God was not kidding when he said hands off.

Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Solomon makes an appearance in this magna series as a king who was betrayed (and went on to create the entire world that the series is set in). So meta.