Your Arms Too Short to Box with God: A Soaring Celebration in Song and Dance is a Broadway musical based on the Biblical

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

 Book of Matthew, with music and lyrics by Alex Bradford

Alex Bradford

Professor Alex Bradford was a multi-talented gospel composer, singer, arranger and choir director who was a great influence on artists such as Little Richard, Bob Marley and Ray Charles and who helped bring about the modern mass choir movement in gospel.Born in Bessemer, Alabama, he first appeared...

 and a book by Vinnette Carroll, who also directed. Micki Grant

Micki Grant

Micki Grant is an American singer actress, writer and composer. She performed in Having Our Say , Tambourines to Glory and Jericho-Jim Crow, The Gingham Dog, Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope and has received three Tony Award nominations for her writing...

 was credited for "additional music and lyrics."

A 1980 revival was the Broadway debut of star Jennifer Holliday

Jennifer Holliday

Jennifer-Yvette Holliday is an African-American singer and Tony Award-winning actress. She started her career on Broadway in musicals such as Dreamgirls, and later became a successful recording artist...

, then billed as Jennifer-Yvette Holliday.

Original production

Produced by Frankie Hewitt

Frankie Hewitt

Frankie Hewitt was an American theater producer and founder of the Ford's Theatre Society, responsible for restoring and reopening the historic site as a working theater....

 and the Shubert Organization, it opened December 22, 1976, at Broadway

Broadway theatre

Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

's Lyceum Theatre in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

. It moved to the Eugene O'Neill Theatre

Eugene O'Neill Theatre

The Eugene O'Neill Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 230 West 49th Street in midtown-Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, it was built for the Shuberts as part of a theatre-hotel complex named for 19th century tragedian Edwin Forrest...

 on November 16, 1977, and closed January 1, 1978, after 429 performances. The costumes were designed by William Schroder. The wardrobe is on display at the Costume World Broadway Collection in Pompano Beach

Pompano Beach, Florida

Pompano Beach ) is a city in Broward County, Florida, along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean just to the north of Fort Lauderdale. The nearby Hillsboro Inlet forms part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 99,845...

, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

.

Revival

Your Arms Too Short to Box with God was revived twice on Broadway, first at the Ambassador Theatre

Ambassador Theatre (New York)

The Ambassador Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 219 West 49th Street between Broadway and 8th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp for the Shuberts, the structure is unusual in that it is situated diagonally on its site to fit the maximum number of...

 and the Belasco Theatre

Belasco Theatre

The Belasco Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 111 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan.-History:Designed by architect George Keister for impresario David Belasco, the interior featured Tiffany lighting and ceiling panels, rich woodwork and expansive murals by American artist...

 (June 2–October 12, 1980), then at the Alvin Theatre (September 9–November 7, 1982). During the 1982 run, Al Green

Al Green

Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...

 appeared with Patti Labelle

Patti LaBelle

Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry...

 in the show.

Legacy

The phrase first appeared in James Weldon Johnson

James Weldon Johnson

James Weldon Johnson was an American author, politician, diplomat, critic, journalist, poet, anthologist, educator, lawyer, songwriter, and early civil rights activist. Johnson is remembered best for his leadership within the NAACP, as well as for his writing, which includes novels, poems, and...

's poem "The Prodigal Son", which was published in his 1927 book of poems, God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse

God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse

God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse is a 1927 book of poems by James Weldon Johnson patterned after traditional African-American religious oratory...

.

The phrase has survived in modern culture and is sometimes used in other contexts. "Your lungs is too small to hotbox with God" is a line used by rapper Xzibit

Xzibit

Alvin Nathaniel Joiner , better known by his stage name Xzibit , is an American rapper, actor, and television host. He is known as the host of the MTV show Pimp My Ride, which brought him mainstream success...

 in Eminem

Eminem

Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...

's "Bitch Please 2". Xzibit had used a variation of the line ("Your little lungs is too weak to hotbox with God") on an earlier work with rapper Talib Kweli

Talib Kweli

Talib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...

. The phrase also appears in the Black Star

Black Star

-In astronomy:*Dark star , a theoretical star that has a surface escape velocity that equals or exceeds the speed of light*Dark star , a theoretical star heated by dark matter annihilation in the early universe...

 song "Thieves in the Night", in the line "Your firearms are too short to box with God". It is additionally the opening line of the Killah Priest

Killah Priest

Walter Reed, better known as Killah Priest, Iron Sheik from the Middle East, or Masada, is an American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan affiliate who was raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant & Brownsville neighbourhoods in Brooklyn. He is known for intensely spiritual lyrics loaded with metaphors and religious...

 hip-hop album Heavy Mental. The line also appears in "Drunk Daddy" by the Cherry Poppin' Daddies

Cherry Poppin' Daddies

The Cherry Poppin' Daddies are an American band established in Eugene, Oregon, in 1989. Formed by Steve Perry and Dan Schmid , the band has experienced many membership changes over the years, with only Perry, Schmid and Dana Heitman currently remaining from the original line-up.The Daddies' music...

; "It's All Real" by Pitch Black; and "Mortal Combat" by Big Daddy Kane

Big Daddy Kane

Antonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MC's in Hip Hop...

. Nas

Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...

 also used the line in his song "You're Da Man" from his 2001 album Stillmatic

Stillmatic

Stillmatic received generally positive reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 69, based on 12 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews"...

. GZA

GZA

Gary Grice , better known by his stage names GZA and The Genius, is an American hip hop artist and founding member of the seminal hip hop group the Wu-Tang Clan. He has also appeared on his fellow clan members' solo projects and has maintained a successful solo career...

 of the Wu-Tang Clan

Wu-Tang Clan

The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...

 also used a variation ("Rhymes too short to box with God") on his track "Paper Plates" from Pro Tools

Pro Tools

Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television...

.

The show's title was parodied in the episode "Insane Clown Poppy

Insane Clown Poppy

"Insane Clown Poppy" is the third episode of the twelfth season of The Simpsons. It aired on November 12, 2000 in the US. In the episode, during an outdoor book fair, Krusty finds out he has a daughter , but loses her trust after gambling away her violin to Fat Tony, prompting Homer and Krusty to...

" of the animated television series The Simpsons

The Simpsons

The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

.

Awards and nominations

Delores Hall

Delores Hall

Delores Hall is an American stage and television actress who made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the ensemble of Hair.-Musical theatre career:...

 won the 1977 Tony Award

Tony Award

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...

 for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Carroll earned Tony nominations for Best Book of a Musical and Best Direction of a Musical, with Talley Beatty

Talley Beatty

Talley Beatty was born in Cedar Grove, Louisiana, a section of Shreveport, but grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He is considered one of the greatest of African American choreographers, and also bears the titles dancer, educator, and dance company director...

 nominated for Best Choreography

Choreography

Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...

.