“I’m yearning to be done with all this measuring of truth. An eye for an eye, And a tooth for a tooth.”

song ~ “The Mercy Seat”  
artist ~ Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds  

It began when they come took me from my home
And put me in Dead Row,
Of which I am nearly wholly innocent, you know.
And I’ll say it again
I .. am .. not .. afraid .. to .. die.

I began to warm and chill
To objects and their fields,
A ragged cup, a twisted mop
The face of Jesus in my soup
Those sinister dinner meals
The meal trolley’s wicked wheels
A hooked bone rising from my food
All things either good or ungood.

And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this measuring of truth.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth
And anyway I told the truth
And I’m not afraid to die.

Interpret signs and catalogue
A blackened tooth, a scarlet fog.
The walls are bad. Black. Bottom kind.
They are the sick breath at my hind
They are the sick breath at my hind
They are the sick breath at my hind
They are the sick breath gathering at my hind

I hear stories from the chamber
How Christ was born into a manger
And like some ragged stranger
Died upon the cross
And might I say it seems so fitting in its way
He was a carpenter by trade
Or at least that’s what I’m told.

Like my good hand I
Tattooed E.V.I.L. across it’s brother’s fist
That filthy five! They did nothing to challenge or resist.

In Heaven His throne is made of gold
The ark of His testament is stowed
A throne from which I’m told
All history does unfold.
Down here it’s made of wood & wire
And my body is on fire
And God is never far away.

Into the mercy seat I climb
My head is shaved, my head is wired
And like a moth that tries
To enter the bright eye
I go shuffling out of life
Just to hide in death awhile
And anyway I never lied.

My kill-hand is called E.V.I.L
Wears a wedding band that’s G.O.O.D
‘Tis a long-suffering shackle
Collaring all that rebel blood.

And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this measuring of truth.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth
And anyway I told the truth
And I’m not afraid to die.

And the mercy seat is burning
And I think my head is glowing
And in a way I’m hoping
To be done with all this weighing up of truth.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth
And I’ve got nothing left to lose
And I’m not afraid to die.

And the mercy seat is glowing
And I think my head is smoking
And in a way I’m hoping
To be done with all these looks of disbelief.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth
And anyway there was no proof
Nor a motive why.

And the mercy seat is smoking
And I think my head is melting
And in a way I’m helping
To be done with all this twisting of the truth.
A lie for a lie
And a truth for a truth
And I’ve got nothing left to lose
And I’m not afraid to die.

And the mercy seat is melting
And I think my blood is boiling
And in a way I’m spoiling
All the fun with all this truth and consequence.
An eye for an eye
An a truth for a truth
And anyway I told the truth
And I’m not afraid to die.

And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this measuring of proof.
A life for a life
And a truth for a truth
And anyway there was no proof
But I’m not afraid to tell a lie.

And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this measuring of truth.
An eye for an eye
And a truth for a truth
And anyway I told the truth
But I’m afraid I told a lie.     _{(Image source)}

Comments 

This song relates the thoughts of a man sentenced to death. Alone in his prison cell, he awaits execution in the electric chair – aka, “the mercy seat.”  That "mercy seat”  also alludes to the Old Testament concept of the “Throne of God,” before which the man believes he will pass after he dies. 

Not afraid to die

At the beginning, the convict proclaims that he is innocent – or, at least, "nearly wholly innocent."  He goes on to claim that “I never lied.”  He also asserts that he is “not afraid to die,” and he subsequently repeats that assertion several times throughout the song. 

Afraid he lied

In the very last line, however, he admits that, in fact, he “told a lie.”  But he does not tell us what he lied about. Was his proclamation of innocence a lie? Maybe, but at this late stage, it hardly matters.

More likely, he lied when he said that he was not afraid to die. Standing at death’s door, he realizes that he does not want to die.     _{(Image source)}
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – "The Mercy Seat"  _{(Right-click to hear on YouTube)}
Lyrics by Nick Cave, courtesy of –   NickCave. com

This is my entry in the 60-Day Lyrics Challenge.
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