Do you know what's worth fightin' for
When it's not worth dyin' for?
Does it take your breath away
And you feel yourself suffocatin'?
Does the pain weigh out the pride
And you look for a place to hide?
Did someone break your heart inside?
You're in ruins

One, twenty-one guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, twenty-one guns
Throw up your arms
Into the sky
You and I

When you're at the end of the road
And you lost all sense of control
And your thoughts have taken their toll
When your mind breaks the spirit of your soul
Your faith walks on broken glass
And the hangover doesn't pass
Nothing's ever built to last
You're in ruins

One, twenty-one guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, twenty-one guns
Throw up your arms
Into the sky
You and I

Did you try to live on your own
When you burned down the house and home?
Did you stand too close to the fire
Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone?

When it's time to live and let die
And you can't get another try
Something inside this heart has died
You're in ruins

One, twenty-one guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, twenty-one guns
Throw up your arms
Into the sky
One, twenty-one guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, twenty-one guns
Throw up your arms
Into the sky
You and I


Lyrics submitted by bfg1024, edited by otislover

21 Guns Lyrics as written by Billie Joe Armstrong John Edmund Andrew Phillips

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

21 Guns song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

252 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +17
    General Comment

    The 21 gun salute is the highest honor one can receive upon burial, usually in a military context. It makes me wonder, who was laid to rest here? An answer I'm not quite sure of.

    But the whole pairing of "One, twenty-one guns" I'm guessing reiterates the importance of the individual, the idea that one person can do something worth the honor of multiple others showing respect, especially if that person gave their life for a cause.

    The whole album has reminded me of the song "Acrobat" by U2; specifically, the lines "I'd join the movement if there was one I could believe in. Yeah I'd break bread and wine if there was a church I could receive in."

    Don't be an agnostic, believe in something. Those who do and die in such purpose deserve our respect.

    Don't let the bastards grind you down.

    davidecoyoteon May 17, 2009   Link
  • +14
    General Comment

    Great song by a great band. I think that people on this site get very defensive about what they think different songs stand for. A song can be interpreted a hundred different ways. I love when a band decides to let everyone else in on what a song is truly about, but I also love those who refuse to. This song made me feel a lot of different things.

    I really took to the line “Does the pain weigh out the pride”. This is something experienced by people every day. Things we choose to endure, whether for selfish reasons or moral reasons.

    I also agree with the above stated “21 gun salute” reference. But I think It can be interpreted a few different ways also. It is typically used to honor someone’s life after their death, laying them to rest, but I think that the “anti-war pro-peace” undertones give that a different twist. I feel like it stands for something a little bit bigger. Think about it. ONE 21 guns. As in ONE UNITED 21 guns. ONE UNITED 21 guns laying the war to rest. ONE UNITED action for the peace beyond the difference. You and I.

    I also think that the reference to “looking for forgiveness from a stone” is talking about people regretting not cherishing the life/time they had with people before they died. The stone being reference to the gravestone or headstone in a cemetery. Tied into the war, after it’s all over and no one is there to take the blame we have to look at all of the life that we did not cherish. Looking for forgiveness from the dead.

    Just sayin.

    YellowLedbetterLoveon July 15, 2009   Link
  • +8
    General Comment

    second verse is talking of after the war, unlike getting drunk, the after effects (hangover) never goes away. You're gonna be messed up for life.

    And in the third verse i believe it to be talking of how soldiers will burn down another families home. could you really live with yourself after killing someone in a fire? or maybe going crazy as some people do after a war, not being able to live by yourself and needing help.

    After you have killed the other soldier, you can never take it back. There are no second chances on taking another life. Once it's done, a part of you dies inside, No matter how tough you may be.

    nokejibijabon May 21, 2009   Link
  • +7
    My Interpretation

    Wow great song. hooked instantly with the "1..., 21 guns." Could and should be released as 3rd or 4th single. Obviously antiwar or it could be about C&G(christian and gloria) situation. knowing what your fighting for and is it worth your life.

    "Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone". I really really love this line. I think its another stab at christianity and how christians look at jesus as a source of forgiveness. and their statues and crosses are the stones. thats my take in reading it at least. awesome either way.

    Tigreen555on May 13, 2009   Link
  • +6
    General Comment

    the way I interpret this song is that war is so terrible, the people who fight in it and have the pride can be messed up for life for taking someones life. "And you look for a place to hide? Did someone break your heart inside?. You're in ruins"

    Just have one 21 gun salute to honor those who have died. then lay down the guns and hope you never have to pick them up again. "One, 21 guns. Lay down your arms. Give up the fight"

    People are constantly left in ruins from what they were forced to do in war. Just end the war and throw the guns in rejoice that it's all over. "Throw up your arms into the sky, You and I" <--- you and I meaning us and our enemy. Let's just give it all up. :)

    nokejibijabon May 21, 2009   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    An anthem for surrender.

    gd_edion May 16, 2009   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    very different style from green day

    i like it

    budfighter77on May 07, 2009   Link
  • +2
    My Interpretation

    It's about a fighter. It's multifaceted, and not just anti-war. The fighter has been soldiering for years now. The thoughts in his mind are asking him now whether the cause he's fighting for is worth all it takes from him. Before he began to question himself, the fight brought him a great deal of pride.

    But something happened. This experience, whatever it was, has manifested itself in every thought inside the lover's mind. He's done everything he can think of to carry on with the fight like before, but this memory is in the way.

    That's just my interpretation, but what the hell do I know?

    irondal2on May 16, 2009   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    Everytime I here this song it makes me think of September 11, 2001. I can just imagine a video of the footage with this song playing in the background...and I am not really sure why seeing as I believe that our Country should fight for our freedom. however, I think it is now getting out of hand but I am proud that our troops prevailed and showed everybody that we will stand together and never back down.

    RIP to all lost soulds that terrible day. and GOD BLESS AMERICA!

    great song though by Greenday

    Hannah34on September 15, 2009   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    The song must have been written about war and how a soldier deals with the trauma afterward. But the beauty of it is, how each one can relate to it on their own level, cuz everyone is at war with something or the other at some point. I'd listen to the song over 21 times on loop when I went through a break up, made so much sense, and lent a direction. I love this song!

    reebee0511on December 29, 2011   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve. The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future. Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere" The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Album art
Magical
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Album art
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
“Head &gt; Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Album art
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Album art
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it. “I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.