# Lost 2.10: "The 23rd Psalm" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 11, 2006, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422 "2006-01-11T02:18:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/81 "2006-01-12T12:41:42Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > Um… he handed Charlie a fresh statue. He knows what’s in there. I think he’s going to follow the Locke mentality and tell Charlie he has to fight his own demons. I meant that Eko would be pissed because Charlie lied to him about knowing where the plane was. Not that it matters anyway, because (1) they found it anyway, and (2) it’s not there any more now anyway. Plus, in retrospect, Eko probably knew all along that Charlie was lying. That was my “right-immedately-afterwards” reaction. > [@Wile E](#): > > The cloud was interesting. I was thinking that the ticking noise sounded like computer noises. > [@RiKWriter](#): > > The noises in the cloud sounded to me like electrical discharges. My husband and I debated this last night. We both heard something different: I thought it sounded like helicopter noises, and he thought it was turboprop airplane noises, with maybe a little hint of dot-matrix printer. Admittedly, though, our TV isn’t so hot. Perhaps the Mystery Monster has the potential to be anything to anybody at any time? > [@av8rmike](#): > > I’m surprised Charlie didn’t say, “hey, you’re no priest. A priest wouldn’t have screwed up the psalm.” > > He did, right? I _think_ he got the [psalm](http://www.christnotes.org/bible.php?q=Psalm+23&ver=kjv) right. If not, it certainly sounded correct at the time. (In Catholic school many moons ago, I was taught that Catholics do not usually use the King James translation, but the KJV is arguably the loveliest and the most easily recognized of all translations - I believe the poetic license is defensible. I will say that the KJV is the only version I know by heart.) > [@Little Nemo](#): > > Why did Eko want his brother to sign the papers? As his brother pointed out, they proved nothing. You don’t get ordinated by another priest. And as a forgery, what was the point? If the papers worked as some kind of pass, why not just fake a signature on the bottom of an already forged pass? These guys were carrying AK-47’s - did they really think they were going to convince anyone they were real priests? My best guess is that the brother’s signature was on paperwork naming Eko and his associates as official missionaries. On some level I think Eko wanted his brother’s signature on the documents for real so that Eko could clear his conscience and earn some validation. Can’t explain the priest outfits, except as disguises. Maybe they were hoping they didn’t need to use their guns. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/82 "2006-01-12T12:47:41Z")
I think Jesus Stick will soon become a new catchphrase. I’m not sure I like the Lostaways embracing Ana Lucia so readily. She did kill Shannon. Or maybe that’s _why_ they’re embracing her… 😉 Forgive me, but I don’t know that much Nigerian history. I assumed Eko was kidnapped by a gang of guerillas. Would he not then become a member of some rogue army? It seemed he was more of a Mafia don. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/83 "2006-01-12T13:03:16Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > ``` > Is everyone convinced that WAAAAAALLLT is the one doing the typing? I don't know if I am, yet. > > ``` Why would he insist that Michael be alone? I think it might be a TRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP. ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/84 "2006-01-12T13:16:41Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > The plane that took off did not have the same tail numer as the plane on the island. > The plane on the island was a US registered plane – N(something) (did anyone catch it?) and the plane in Nigeria was 5Z- something (presumable a Nigerian registration) > > Both were Beech 18s tho. I think this is an example of adding on Eko’s past to match the first year of the show. However, attention to detail is their strength so I can’t imagine how or why they used different planes. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/85 "2006-01-12T13:38:31Z")
I suppose it’s conceivable they had to switch planes. After all, the statues and everything else was correct. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/86 "2006-01-12T14:22:50Z")
> [@rockle](#): > > I _think_ he got the [psalm](http://www.christnotes.org/bible.php?q=Psalm+23&ver=kjv) right. If not, it certainly sounded correct at the time. (In Catholic school many moons ago, I was taught that Catholics do not usually use the King James translation, but the KJV is arguably the loveliest and the most easily recognized of all translations - I believe the poetic license is defensible. I will say that the KJV is the only version I know by heart.) No, Eko screwed it up. He said “walk through the shadow of the valley of death” instead of “valley of the shadow of death”. Good episode, but I hated the black cloud. From this point on there’s no reason ot try and find a logical explanation for anything, which was most of the fun for me. Now we have sentient mind-reading black clouds. Bah. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/87 "2006-01-12T14:48:38Z")
> [@](#): > > No, Eko screwed it up. He said “walk through the shadow of the valley of death” instead of “valley of the shadow of death”. Didn’t Charlie say it the same way though? That’s what got me…I thought they both transposed the words. ---
**Author:** ![Dante](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dante/32/9673_2.png) [@Dante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dante)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/88 "2006-01-12T14:48:58Z")
> [@August West](#): > > Good episode, but I hated the black cloud. From this point on there’s no reason ot try and find a logical explanation for anything, which was most of the fun for me. Now we have sentient mind-reading black clouds. Bah. You’re making assumptions. All I saw was a black cloud that had flashes in it of the past of the person in front of it. I don’t assume any sentience or mind-reading from that. But I don’t discount it either. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/89 "2006-01-12T14:54:38Z")
Love this one. That was the most compelling flashback since Walkabout. Adewale, who made me chuckle over the Christmas break when I saw that he was in Ace Ventura 2, is an incredible addition to the show. A few random thoughts: - He seemingly refers to the priest he finds on the ground, not his brother, as the “man who saved my life.” Was he refering to who he was looking FOR or did he credit that man for kicking him out of the plane? Why was he kicked out by his friend? Greed or salvation? It seemed like Greed. - “Jesus Stick”! I love it! You know, Pat Robertson is always talking about assassinating Hugo Chavez and having the lord smite Ariel Sharon or Florida. The Pat Robertson needs to take it easy with his Jesus Stick. - “You Need to Come…” sounded like a trap, as suggested by **SenorBeef**. But why would the people who took Waaaaalllltttt want Michael? They could have taken him off the raft. - When I saw that first puff of smoke, I thought they had given us a gift. When they showed the extended view of it, I was stunned. We saw the TCM! It sounded like the TCM! The question is, why was it out in the woods that first night by itself? Also, does that type of smoke, with images embedded, fit into the description of any of the Dharma projects? ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/90 "2006-01-12T14:54:59Z")
Black cloud = shadow of death? So Locke and Eko have walked through the valley of the shadow of death. ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/91 "2006-01-12T14:59:18Z")
I really liked this one. Eko is a great character. > [@August West](#): > > Good episode, but I hated the black cloud. From this point on there’s no reason ot try and find a logical explanation for anything, which was most of the fun for me. Now we have sentient mind-reading black clouds. Bah. For now I’m going with the idea that the cloud is made up of a bunch of nanomachines or something like that. Also, did anyone else hear the drug deal guys mention Sayid right before they got Eko-slashed? I don’t even remember the exact context of it now, but I was sure I heard Sayid’s name. ---
**Author:** ![Dante](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dante/32/9673_2.png) [@Dante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dante)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/92 "2006-01-12T15:15:36Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > - “You Need to Come…” sounded like a trap, as suggested by **SenorBeef**. But why would the people who took Waaaaalllltttt want Michael? They could have taken him off the raft. Just for accuracy’s sake, the text that we saw said “You need to com”. We didn’t actually see the word “come”. For all we know, Walt’s telling him they need to compost more. Forty odd people can make a pretty big mess, you know. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/93 "2006-01-12T15:19:12Z")
> [@Rushgeekgirl](#): > > Didn’t Charlie say it the same way though? That’s what got me…I thought they both transposed the words. I kind of thought Charlie mumbled that part. I knew from the previews that Eko said it wrong, so I did try to listen to what Charlie said to see if the writers screwed up or did it on purpose. I got the feeling at that point Charlie was trying to remember the words and was going along with what Eko said. So now I’m thinking too much about this “shadow of the valley of death.” Certainly I can’t be alone. I thought the black cloud (“shadow”?) was pretty dumb and fake-looking. Then again, I’ve never seen a swirling black cloud filled with images that snakes through the jungle before, so maybe that really is what they look like. It just looked to me like it was added on top of the picture and wasn’t actually in it. I liked the Eko story for the most part. Let’s not forget that Eko isn’t the only one to have an unbelievable connection to something/someone who was on the island before the crash. Jack just happened to know who Desmond was as well. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/94 "2006-01-12T15:19:25Z")
> [@borschevsky](#): > > Also, did anyone else hear the drug deal guys mention Sayid right before they got Eko-slashed? I don’t even remember the exact context of it now, but I was sure I heard Sayid’s name. I noticed it as well. I think it is a coincidense, though. I’d like to see a clip of it, though. So the black smoke is the monster, right? I’m glad we got that secret out of the way. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/95 "2006-01-12T15:21:06Z")
Make that “coincidence”. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Greywolf73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d9b06d/32.png) [@Greywolf73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greywolf73)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/96 "2006-01-12T15:22:11Z")
> [@Mama Tiger](#): > > Black cloud = shadow of death? So Locke and Eko have walked through the valley of the shadow of death. I thought it was interesting that two most “faithful” are the only ones that have directly encountered the black cloud and not been harmed. I’m assuming, of course, that the TCM that ate the pilot and the black cloud are the same thing. Or part of the same thing. I also found it interesting that the drug dealer guy commented to Eko, “It is true what they say-you have no soul.” Right before Eko cut his throat. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/97 "2006-01-12T15:23:39Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > - He seemingly refers to the priest he finds on the ground, not his brother, as the “man who saved my life.” Was he refering to who he was looking FOR or did he credit that man for kicking him out of the plane? Why was he kicked out by his friend? Greed or salvation? It seemed like Greed. I took that as a comment from a reformed / reborn Eko as genuine thankfulness for his life being spared no matter what the motivation of the gold tooth guy for kicking him off the plane. And I read goldie’s motivation as “You and your brother have screwed this up royally, I’d shoot you if I had the time, but since I don’t I hope you enjoy whatever cruel fate the soilders inflict.” Little did goldie know that Eko would be mistaken for the real priest. -rainy Oh yeah, and wasn’t it Eko who put his brothers body in the plane? I can see him not wanting to leave it behind, then goldie snaps. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/98 "2006-01-12T15:25:27Z")
> [@](#): > > A guy in Nigeria watchs his brother take off in a plane. Years later he takes off on another plane in Australia. Are we sure it was years ago? My impression at the time was that it was maybe a few days between when the heroin plane departed and when Eko went to find them, if that. Those bodies were certainly not years decomposed. Two months or so would be a lot closer. ---
**Author:** ![av8rmike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/99 "2006-01-12T15:28:16Z")
> [@borschevsky](#): > > For now I’m going with the idea that the cloud is made up of a bunch of nanomachines or something like that. Where did this idea come from? I heard some guy on a radio call-in show mention it as well, but I didn’t catch the beginning, so all I thought was, “WTF is this guy smoking?” ---
**Author:** ![thwartme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@thwartme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thwartme)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422/100 "2006-01-12T15:32:23Z")
> [@borschevsky](#): > > For now I’m going with the idea that the cloud is made up of a bunch of nanomachines or something like that. That’s what I meant by referring to Michael Crichton’s novel _Prey_ in my earlier comment. In that novel, a bunch of nano-bots modelled after swarming insects get up to all sorts of nefarious deeds. IIRC, they are even controlled by a siren noise, kind of like that air-horn sounding bleat that seems to accompany the TCM every so often. thwartme [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lost-2-10-the-23rd-psalm/339422.md?page=6)