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my jail shoes on
the well kept cemetary lawn
both of them weeping
their one good son now was gone
the irony to see my dad down on his knees
crying out to jesus
but lord i've always done what's right
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
when we were kids
i did my best to make them proud
it just wasn't in me
i could not fly straight to save my life
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
their big success is now their biggest failure
their golden child has been dethroned
their reputation is now in ruin
their tower to heaven has come tumbling down
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
the well kept cemetary lawn
both of them weeping
their one good son now was gone
the irony to see my dad down on his knees
crying out to jesus
but lord i've always done what's right
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
when we were kids
i did my best to make them proud
it just wasn't in me
i could not fly straight to save my life
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
their big success is now their biggest failure
their golden child has been dethroned
their reputation is now in ruin
their tower to heaven has come tumbling down
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
and looked the other way...
Lyrics submitted by Killxxxmequickly
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We are a fallen people living in a fallen world who care nothing for the things of God. If it were up to us we would be utterly depraved. It is only through grace that anything good happens at all. The bible tell us that ALL good things are a gift from God.
We deserve nothing. The fact that anything good at all ever happens to us is a sheer demonstration of God's amazing grace! Therefore it's the wrong posture to be mad at God for not stopping the bad things that happen to us. Instead we need to be grateful and thankful and fall down on our faces in worship that He chooses to give us good things.
Therefore, the way I interpret this song is thus: it's an illustration of this father's backward thinking. He's frustrated with Jesus for supposedly looking the other way when a bad thing happens and not helping him. In reality, Jesus is looking the other way when he gives us any good thing at all. Anything bad that happens is just a return to the status quo.
It's remarkable how much Jesus looks the other way and gives us so many good things that is when something bad happens that we take notice. That's how blessed we are! Jesus showers us in grace and love so much that when that shower temporarily abates, we cry out because suddenly the bad things that are being covered up by Jesus' grace become apparent.
How amazing and abundant is grace that we forget we are a depraved people living in a fallen, broken, ugly cold world.
which is unconditional love, and it's not easy,
but by asking god why their son has not made them happy, Jesus smiles as if to say, remember who gave his only son for you, be happy you have a son at all.
I believe the song is about being happy with what you have.
Did you completely skip this part?
crying out to jesus
but lord i've always done what's right
and all the while
the good lord smiled
and looked the other way
What would the good lord need to forgive if he's always done what's right?
the parents choose a favorite son and ignore the other so in the end they loose the one thing that made them what they were because of the treatment of the other son and jesus looks the other way because they may have deserved what they got.
Yup, definitely what the song is about. Covered from an openly Christian songwriter by a band fronted by a devout Christian. The song by Pedro the Lion is part of a concept album, this is from a character in the story's view. However, like most songs there is a meaning behind it though it its from a concept album. My take on it is that when the character is crying out to Jesus, Jesus is smiling and looking away because it is all part of a greater, bigger plan that He has for all of us, accept it or not. He doesn't "help" the character because to give the character what they want wouldn't help him because the character doesn't know what's good for him/her. Basically, Jesus is smiling almost in a joking way as if to say "He/she'll thank me in the long run."