I Will Face God and Walk Backwards Into Hell

About

I Will Face God and Walk Backwards Into Hell is a quote from a dril tweet that has long been celebrated as a powerful catchphrase, despite coming from a comedic tweet. Since the original post to Twitter / X in mid-2012, the quote has been used in numerous memes in addition to becoming a phrasal template in which the first part of the statement is changed.

Origin

On May 22nd, 2012, dril^[1] tweeted, "IF THE ZOO BANS ME FOR HOLLERING AT THE ANIMALS I WILL FACE GOD AND WALK BACKWARDS INTO HELL," gaining over 36,000 retweets and 81,000 likes in 12 years (shown below).

Spread

Over the following decade, the phrase "I will face God and walk backwards into hell" was used in numerous snowclones. On October 23rd, 2014, Twitter user @Cam_Oflage^[2] posted a parody combining the tweet with Paradise Lost, gaining seven retweets and 35 likes in 10 years (shown below, left).

On November 9th, 2018, Twitter user @vageege^[3] used it in a tweet discussing My Hero Academia, gaining over 40 retweets and 150 likes in six years (shown below, right).

The tweet has also become widely celebrated as a powerful phrase, regardless of its humorous context. For example, on April 17th, 2018, Tumblr user zerofarad^[5] attempted to explain the line's power, writing:

To face God and walk backwards into hell is not to turn from God and reject his authority, but to acknowledge his rules and do the opposite anyway. To be specifically contrary in the full awareness that it hurts yourself at least as much as him. In an older idiom, "to cut off your nose to spite your face."

The post gained over 5,000 notes in six years (shown below).

On March 29th, 2023, Tumblr user vexwerewolf^[4] pointed out that while many lines the site likes to quote come from literature, "I will face God and walk backwards into hell" comes from Dril. The post gained over 73,000 notes in one year (portion shown below).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References