<P> The phrase first appeared in James Weldon Johnson's poem "The Prodigal Son," which was published in his 1927 book of poems God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse . The passage--which refers to an arm singular rather than arms plural--reads: </P> <P> Young man--Young man--Your arm's too short to box with God . </P> <P> But Jesus spake in a parable, and he said: A certain man had two sons . Jesus didn't give this man a name, But his name is God Almighty . And Jesus didn't call these sons by name, But ev'ry young man, Ev'rywhere, Is one of these two sons . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section below does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section below by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (January 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table>

Arm's too short to box with god