Mining Secular Music for Biblical Nuggets

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Crickets.... Okay, what about this one?

“Late Last Night”

Late last night a young girl dreamed
Her love would grow forever,
Then a wise man, who from ages long ago seemed
Took her to a state of never-never,
And he told her everything he’d learned,
Taught her how the silver cord to sever,
But they stumbled and fell into hell.

Every song has now been sung,
The last wedding bell has long since rung,
And the prisoners have all been hung.
There is nothing more to create,
The universe is man’s estate,
The name of it is hate.

There is no new game to try,
No new name to love or cry,
No reason to laugh or die.
No new dreams are born within,
And all that will ever be has been.
There’s no new way to sin.

Each of us is god and so
There is nothing more to know,
No new place to go,
Not even in your mind,
For that was left behind.

Late last night a madman died,
An obvious case of suicide
So they laughed at his graveside,
Saying, “What’s the use to be blue?
There’s nothing that we could do.
Thank God that he’s dead, too!

For the last rites have been said,
The prophets are now all dead,
And their gravestones have not changed to bread.”
But there was a young child,
And a sage with long gray beard,
Who knew Satan’s priest should tell them—warn them
That his spirit had reappeared.

Each of them had seen the light
Flashing far away in the night
To return when the time is right
Some day beyond the end
To start the world spinning again.

[Cf. Ecclesiastes 3:15, 2 Peter 3:3-4 and Hebrews 9:28, among others]
 
Crickets.... Okay, what about this one?

“Late Last Night”

Late last night a young girl dreamed
Her love would grow forever,
Then a wise man, who from ages long ago seemed
Took her to a state of never-never,
And he told her everything he’d learned,
Taught her how the silver cord to sever,
But they stumbled and fell into hell.

Every song has now been sung,
The last wedding bell has long since rung,
And the prisoners have all been hung.
There is nothing more to create,
The universe is man’s estate,
The name of it is hate.

There is no new game to try,
No new name to love or cry,
No reason to laugh or die.
No new dreams are born within,
And all that will ever be has been.
There’s no new way to sin.

Each of us is god and so
There is nothing more to know,
No new place to go,
Not even in your mind,
For that was left behind.

Late last night a madman died,
An obvious case of suicide
So they laughed at his graveside,
Saying, “What’s the use to be blue?
There’s nothing that we could do.
Thank God that he’s dead, too!

For the last rites have been said,
The prophets are now all dead,
And their gravestones have not changed to bread.”
But there was a young child,
And a sage with long gray beard,
Who knew Satan’s priest should tell them—warn them
That his spirit had reappeared.

Each of them had seen the light
Flashing far away in the night
To return when the time is right
Some day beyond the end
To start the world spinning again.

[Cf. Ecclesiastes 3:15, 2 Peter 3:3-4 and Hebrews 9:28, among others]

(I note that no one is requesting that I sing these :^)
 
Crickets.... Okay, what about this one?

“Late Last Night”

Late last night a young girl dreamed
Her love would grow forever,
Then a wise man, who from ages long ago seemed
Took her to a state of never-never,
And he told her everything he’d learned,
Taught her how the silver cord to sever,
But they stumbled and fell into hell.

Every song has now been sung,
The last wedding bell has long since rung,
And the prisoners have all been hung.
There is nothing more to create,
The universe is man’s estate,
The name of it is hate.

There is no new game to try,
No new name to love or cry,
No reason to laugh or die.
No new dreams are born within,
And all that will ever be has been.
There’s no new way to sin.

Each of us is god and so
There is nothing more to know,
No new place to go,
Not even in your mind,
For that was left behind.

Late last night a madman died,
An obvious case of suicide
So they laughed at his graveside,
Saying, “What’s the use to be blue?
There’s nothing that we could do.
Thank God that he’s dead, too!

For the last rites have been said,
The prophets are now all dead,
And their gravestones have not changed to bread.”
But there was a young child,
And a sage with long gray beard,
Who knew Satan’s priest should tell them—warn them
That his spirit had reappeared.

Each of them had seen the light
Flashing far away in the night
To return when the time is right
Some day beyond the end
To start the world spinning TD777 again.

[Cf. Ecclesiastes 3:15, 2 Peter 3:3-4 and Hebrews 9:28, among others]
Great
 
Guess I might as well share another one of mine
since we seem to have exhausted the supply of Biblical nuggets in other secular music:

“Wouldn’t It Be Fine?”

Wouldn’t it be fine if we made time
To sing a song for everyone.
But men are dif; its one big if.

Wouldn’t it be good if someone would
Make one world from every word.
A book so nice would be worth reading twice.

If I chose the perfect dance,
Would you walk with me for long
Or long for some new way to move?

Wouldn’t it be fine if passing near
The king of chaos were to hear
The sound from earth of one good time?

If the world went simply round
With purring sound, I think we could
See good from wrong and sing one song.

A trio rhymes in harmony
Like rivers flowing to the sea.
If love is such a happy tune
Everyone should soon sing along
But what’s wrong with you and me?

(Cf. 1 Timothy 2:3-4, 2 Timothy 3:15-17, Romans 7:21-24)
 
I found this statement by a kindred soul online:

"I am not big on popular Christian music, so I wanted popular rock, folk, alt, classics, etc. that had a Christ-like message, without being over-the-top or obvious. Even if the song is entirely secular, I still would like to listen and make it my own. For example, "Whatta You Want From Me" by Adam Lambert, "So Damn Lucky" by DMB, "Some Nights" by fun., and "Today" by The Smashing Pumpkins are perfect Christian songs if the lyrics get swapped a bit. Also the purposeful by subtle ones like "Return To Innocence", "Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence, "Three Little Birds", "One Day" Matisyahu, and "Morning Has Broken" work just the same. Please share some songs that you may enjoy."

One of the replies was "Dust in the Wind", a favorite of mine that I have overlooked:

I close my eyes
Only for a moment and the moment's gone
All my dreams
Pass before my eyes with curiosity
Dust in the wind
All they are is dust in the wind

Same old song
Just a drop of water in an endless sea
All we do
Crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

Oh, oh, Now don't hang on
Nothin' lasts forever but the earth and sky
It slips away
And all your money won't another minute buy
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

(All we are is dust in the wind)
Dust in the wind
(Everything is dust in the wind)
Everything is dust in the wind
(In the wind)

[cf. Eccl. 3:20]
 
This song by the Beach Boys needs to be updated:

Starting out with Berkeley Free Speech
And later on at People's Park
The winds of change fanned into flames
Student demonstrations spark
Down to Isla Vista where police felt so harassed
They called the special riot squad of the L. A. County Sheriff


Well there's a riot going on, There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on, Student demonstration time

The violence spread down South to where Jackson State brothers
Learned not to say nasty things about Southern policemen's mothers

Nothing much was said about it and really next to nothing done
The pen is mightier than the sword, but no match for a gun

Well there's a riot going on...

America was stunned on May 4, 1970
When rally turned to riot up at Kent State University
They said the students scared the Guard
Though the troops were battle dressed
Four martyrs earned a new degree
The Bachelor of Bullets

I know we're all fed up with useless wars and racial strife
But next time there's a riot, well, you best stay out of sight
 
I just saw the news that my music hero Brian Wilson passed away
so I am posting the lyrics of his song "Love and Mercy" by way of tribute:

I was sittin' in a crummy movie
With my hands on my chin
All the violence that occurs
Seems like we never win

Love and mercy, that's what you need tonight
So, love and mercy to you and your friends tonight

I was lying in my room
And the news came on TV
A lotta people out there hurtin'
And it really scares me

Love and mercy, that's what you need tonight
So, love and mercy to you and your friends tonight

I was standing in a bar
And watching all the people there
Oh, the loneliness in this world
Well, it's just not fair

Hey, love and mercy, that's what we need tonight
So, love and mercy to you and your friends tonight
Love and mercy, that's what you need tonight
Love and mercy tonight
Love and mercy tonight

:cry:
 
An article by Owen Gleiberman I read this morning indicates that I am not the only one who has felt inspired
by Brian Wilson's music, whose harmonies seem angelic. He called BW "the high priest of pop music as the incarnation
of religious feelings" (love and joy) and cited "Song for Children" on Smile as encouraging him to have children when he was hesitant.

Many people have cited "Love and Mercy" as being "Gospel-adjacent", and "God Only Knows" is an obvious example of theism,
but I point to "In My Room" ("lie awake and pray") as the earliest example of a song that gives me hope to see BW in heaven
(based on Mark 9:40 and Luke 10:50, although Luke 11:23 has me worried).
 
I can't believe no one has cited the Byrds' "Turn, Turn, Turn" based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:

To everything, turn, turn, turn
There is a season, turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose under heaven
A time to be born, a time to die
A time to plant, a time to reap
A time to kill, a time to heal
A time to laugh, a time to weep

To everything, turn, turn, turn
There is a season, turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose, under heaven
A time to build up, a time to break down
A time to dance, a time to mourn
A time to cast away stones
A time to gather stones together

To everything, turn, turn, turn
There is a season, turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose under heaven
A time of love, a time of hate
A time of war, a time of peace
A time you may embrace
A time to refrain from embracing

To everything, turn, turn, turn
There is a season, turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose under heaven
A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rend, a time to sew
A time for love, a time for hate
A time for peace, I swear it's not too late
 
Happy 4th!

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America!
God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!

O beautiful for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness
And every gain divine!

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
 
Does "Creep" by Radiohead remind you of Scripture?

When you were here before
Couldn't look you in the eye
You're just like an angel
Your skin makes me cry
You float like a feather
In a beautiful world
I wish I was special
You're so very special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here

I don't care if it hurts
I wanna have control
I want a perfect body
I want a perfect soul
I want you to notice
When I'm not around
You're so very special
I wish I was special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here, oh, oh

She's running out the door
She's running out
She run, run, run, run
Run

Whatever makes you happy
Whatever you want
You're so very special
I wish I was special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here
I don't belong here

What about 1Cor. 1:18, Hebrews 13:14 and Philippians 3:20?
 
I just saw Chris Tomlin perform "Help My Unbelief" on Fox and Friends,
but although Genius lists 520 of his songs, I pooped out before finding the lyrics to this one,
perhaps because it just came out? [I realize he is not primarily a secular artist.]
 
Too bad George Harrison did not mean Jesus when he said "Lord:.

My sweet Lord, My Lord, Mmm, my Lord
I really want to see you, Really want to be with you
Really want to see you, Lord, But it takes so long, my Lord

My sweet Lord, My Lord, My Lord
I really want to know you, Really want to go with you
Really want to show you, Lord, But it won't take long, my Lord (Hallelujah)

My sweet Lord (Hallelujah), My Lord (Hallelujah), My sweet Lord (Hallelujah)
Really want to see you, Really want to see you, Really want to see you, Lord
Really want to see you, Lord, But it takes so long, my lord (Hallelujah)

My sweet Lord (Hallelujah), My Lord (Hallelujah), My Lord (Hallelujah)
I really want to know you (Hallelujah), Really want to go with you (Hallelujah)
Really want to show you, Lord (Ah, ah), But it won't take long, my Lord (Ah, ah, hallelujah)

(Etcetera)
 
Here is "Hello God" by Dolly Parton:

Hello, God? Are You out there?
Can You hear me? Are You listenin' anymore?
Hello, God? If we're still on speakin' terms
Can You help me like before?
I have questioned Your existence
My resistance leaves me cold
Can you help me go the distance?

Hello God? Hello? Hello?
This old world has gone to pieces
Can we fix it? Is there time?
Hate and violence just increases
We're so selfish, cruel, and blind
We fight and kill each other
In Your name defending You
Do You love some more than others?
We're so lost and confused

Hello, God? Are you out there?
Can you hear us? Are you listenin' anymore?
Hello, God? If we're still on speakin' terms
Can You help us like before?
Oh, the free will You have given
We have made a mockery of
This is no way to be livin'
We're in great need of Your love

Hello, God? Hello, God?
Can You grant us Love enough to make amends?
(Hello, God) Is there still a chance That we could start again?
Hello, God? We've learned our lesson Dear God, don't let us go
(Hello, hello) More than ever Hello God? Hello? Hello?

Hello, God? We really need You
We can't make it without You
(Hello, God) We beseech You
In the name of all that's true
Hello, God? Please forgive us
For we know not what we do
Hello, God? Give us one more chance
To prove ourselves to You Hello, God?
Hello, God?

[Reminds me of "Who Will Answer?" sung by Ed Ames.]
 
So, let us look again at the lyrics of "Who Will Answer":

From the canyons of the mind
We wander on and stumble blindly
Through the often tangled maze
Of starless nights and sunless days
While asking for some kind of clue
Or road to lead us to the truth
But who will answer?

Side by side two people stand
Together vowing, hand in hand
That love's imbedded in their hearts
But soon an empty feeling starts
To overwhelm their hollow lives
And when they seek the how's and why's
Who will answer?

On a strange and distant hill
A young man's lying very still
His arms will never hold his child
Because a bullet running wild
Has struck him down and now we cry
"Dear God, oh, why, oh, why?"
But who will answer?

High upon a lonely ledge
A figure teeters near the edge
And jeering crowds collect below
To egg him on with, "Go, man, go!"
But who will ask what led him
To his private day of doom
And who will answer?

If the soul is darkened
By a fear it cannot name
If the mind is baffled
When the rules don't fit the game
Who will answer? Who will answer? Who will answer?
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

In the rooms of dark and shades
The scent of sandalwood pervades
The colored thoughts in muddled heads
Relining in the rumpled beds
Of unmade dreams that can't come true
When we ask what we should do
Who, who will answer?

'Neath the spreading mushroom tree
The world revolves in apathy
As overhead, a row of specks
Roars on, drowned out by discotheques
And if a secret button's pressed
Because one man has been outguessed
Who will answer?

Is our hope in walnut shells
Worn 'round the neck with temple bells
Or deep within some cloistered walls
Where hooded figures pray in halls?
Or crumbled books on dusty shelves
Or in our stars, or in ourselves
Who will answer?

If the soul is darkened
By a fear it cannot name
If the mind is baffled
When the rules don't fit the game
Who will answer? Who will answer? Who will answer?
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
 
I am running out of secular songs, so I hereby declare Sunday to be CCM day,
and one of my favorites is "Silent Weeper" by Katrina Rae:

There's a young girl who's nursing her fifth cup of coffee
As she stares out the window to the street light below
Yet her one-room apartment is dark, just as dark as her heart is

And the Valentine card that she keeps by her pillow
Was given to her by the man of her dreams
But to him it was only a card, how the words are fading

Year after year with the heart of a child
She cried out hoping someone would find her
She turned it inside and hid far behind the eyes of a silent weeper.

Silent weeper, don't give up on love,
there's no need to fear, For the Lord is near.
Silent weeper, Jesus still loves you
He can heal your heart, for he too has scars
And he knows how sorrow feels
For the silent weeper

There's a man in the back of a small congregation
Reserving in a place that might never be filled
Though he dreams about changing the past He knows that can't happen

And the place where he once wore a ring is so tender
He knows that it's gone, but he still feels the pain
And he wonders if he is the only silent weeper

Silent weeper, don't give up on love,
there's no need to fear, For the Lord is near.
Silent weeper, Jesus still loves you
He can heal your heart, for he too has scars
And he knows how sorrow feels
For the silent weeper

Day after day they take more of the blame
While they bury themselves in the memories
And nobody knows how far sorrow goes To the heart of a silent weeper.

Silent weeper, don't give up on love,
there's no need to fear, For the Lord is near.
Silent weeper, Jesus still loves you
He can heal your heart, for he too has scars
And he knows how sorrow feels
For the silent weeper... Silent, silent, silent weeper...

(Isaiah 53:3-5, Hebrews 2:14-18, 4:15, 5:7-9, Matthew 23:37)
 
Let's make that Sunday and Saturday for CCM songs. Here is one from a founder of CCM, Larry Norman,
entitled "Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?":

Some people say rock 'n roll is of the devil, I don't believe that
It came from the church, belongs to the church
There's a good world that God has created here, He's given us everything
The devil has tried to steal it
I don't know why the devil should have anything, anything
Not your soul, not your life, not your marriage, not your future, not your music.

One, two, one two three
I want the people to know that he saved my soul
But I still like to listen to the radio
They say rock 'n roll is wrong
I'll give you one more chance
I feel so good I'm gonna get up and dance
I know what's right, I know what's wrong, I don't confuse it
All I'm really trying to say is
Why should the devil have all the good music?

There's nothing wrong with what I say
You know, Jesus is the rock and He rolled my blues away
They say to cut my hair, they're driving me insane
I grew it out long to make room for my brain
But sometimes people don't understand
What's a good boy doing in a rock n' roll band
And there ain't nothing wrong or satanic or communistic with blues licks
If you've got scriptures, show me to my face
Why should the devil have all the good music?

There's nothing wrong with what I play
Jesus is the rock and He rolled my blues away
Yes He did, all right
I'm not knockin' the hymns, just give me something that has a beat
No I ain't knockin' the hymns, just give me something that moves my feet
I don't like some of those funeral marches, I ain't dead yet.

Jesus told the truth, Jesus showed the way
There's one more thing I'd like to say
They nailed Him to the cross then they laid Him in the ground
But they should've known you can't keep a good man down
You can't keep Him down
Yeah devil, you can't keep Him down
All I'm really trying to say is
Why should the devil have all the good music?

There's nothing wrong with what we play
Jesus is the rock and He rolled my blues
Jesus is the rock and He rolled your blues
Jesus is the rock, He rolled our blues away.
 
I think Bob Dylan had been a believer long before he made it known publicly. And honestly, considering how pop Christianity marketed his faith, I don't blame him at all for returning to his cryptic ways, but I don't think he ever walked away from Jesus. Consider a few of his "pre-Christian" songs:

Dylan's, "All Along The Watchtower", references Isaiah 21. In fact, many of the songs on the John Wesley Hardin album are full of biblical allusions. It was the first album after his near fatal motorcycle accident, the death of his father, and the death of his musical godfather, Woody Guthrie.
Dylan's, "Mr Tambourine Man". Check out the lyrics. Who else could he be referring to except Jesus?
Dylan's, "Senor" (which in Old Spanish is translated "Lord') is one of the most apocalyptic songs I've ever heard.
Dylan's, "Gospel Plow", written in 1962

Noel Paul Stookey confessed to Dylan that his life was in a spiritual tailspin early on. "I went to him in my dope madness in the mid '60s and he said, "Have you read the Bible? I said, "No." And he said, "You should do that."ED99L7LXYAEnxcE.jpeg
Dylan with his Vineyard home group back in the late '70s. His wife is standing next to him.
 
I think Bob Dylan had been a believer long before he made it known publicly. And honestly, considering how pop Christianity marketed his faith, I don't blame him at all for returning to his cryptic ways, but I don't think he ever walked away from Jesus. Consider a few of his "pre-Christian" songs:

Dylan's, "All Along The Watchtower", references Isaiah 21. In fact, many of the songs on the John Wesley Hardin album are full of biblical allusions. It was the first album after his near fatal motorcycle accident, the death of his father, and the death of his musical godfather, Woody Guthrie.
Dylan's, "Mr Tambourine Man". Check out the lyrics. Who else could he be referring to except Jesus?
Dylan's, "Senor" (which in Old Spanish is translated "Lord') is one of the most apocalyptic songs I've ever heard.
Dylan's, "Gospel Plow", written in 1962

Noel Paul Stookey confessed to Dylan that his life was in a spiritual tailspin early on. "I went to him in my dope madness in the mid '60s and he said, "Have you read the Bible? I said, "No." And he said, "You should do that."View attachment 278342
Dylan with his Vineyard home group back in the late '70s. His wife is standing next to him.

I would love to believe that Dylan is a Christian, but his testimony seems vague. I found this via google:

"Bob Dylan's religious beliefs have shifted throughout his life, making it difficult to categorize him with a single faith. He was born into a Jewish family and later embraced Christianity, even going through a born-again phase in the late 1970s and early 1980s. More recently, he has shown ties to Chabad, an ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jewish movement. Dylan himself has stated that he finds his "religion" in the music and the spirituality within it, rather than adhering to a specific organized religion."

I think it must be his second wife Carolyn in the photo who influenced him to write the album Slow Train Coming in 1979.
Here are the lyrics to "I Believe in You":

They ask me how I feel
And if my love is real
And how I know I'll make it through
And they, they look at me and frown,
They'd like to drive me from this town,
They don't want me around
'Cause I believe in you

They show me to the door,
They say don't come back no more
'Cause I don't be like they'd like me to,
And I walk out on my own
A thousand miles from home
But I don't feel alone
'Cause I believe in you

I believe in you even through the tears and the laughter,
I believe in you even though we be apart
I believe in you even on the morning after
Oh, when the dawn is nearing
Oh, when the night is disappearing
Oh, this feeling is still here in my heart

Don't let me drift too far,
Keep me where you are
Where I will always be renewed
And that which you've given me today
Is worth more than I could pay
And no matter what they say
I believe in you

I believe in you when winter turn to summer,
I believe in you when white turn to black,
I believe in you even though I be outnumbered
Oh, though the earth may shake me
Oh, though my friends forsake me
Oh, even that couldn't make me go back

Don't let me change my heart,
Keep me set apart
From all the plans they do pursue
And I, I don't mind the pain
Don't mind the driving rain
I know I will sustain
'Cause I believe in you