So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
When the dawn is bright and new
And the day is full of hope
It's easy to continue your journey
Like a king on his royal way
You will stand there amidst silence
In the void of endless winter
On the ice of an unknown lake
In the heart of loneliness
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the shiny mirror of time
When the days are getting colder
And the winds clash against each other
When light is getting dimmer
And darkness shrouds the roads
You will drift into strange byways
Lost in foreign lands
Stranded on frigid shores
On a godless desolate plain
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
It's there when your endeavour ends
On the face of a forlorn lake
Under weight of a timeless sky
It is there where you shall die
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crownn
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the shiny mirror of time
Death of a king
Death of a king
Death of a king
And the day is full of hope
It's easy to continue your journey
Like a king on his royal way
You will stand there amidst silence
In the void of endless winter
On the ice of an unknown lake
In the heart of loneliness
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the shiny mirror of time
When the days are getting colder
And the winds clash against each other
When light is getting dimmer
And darkness shrouds the roads
You will drift into strange byways
Lost in foreign lands
Stranded on frigid shores
On a godless desolate plain
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
It's there when your endeavour ends
On the face of a forlorn lake
Under weight of a timeless sky
It is there where you shall die
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crownn
On the ice of the lake of death
On the mirror of time
There you will meet yourself
There you'll weigh your crown
On the ice of the lake of death
On the shiny mirror of time
Death of a king
Death of a king
Death of a king
Lyrics submitted by Opethfanatic89
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A great song by a great band. I believe this song is the definition of, not all men are built to be great leaders or kings. Just because someone's destiny is that they are to become king, doesn't mean that's something they are gonna excel at. This song is about how some kings do not realize the stress or weight of the world they may have to bear, and as a consequence he ends up dead. The death could be a literal death or a figurative death, as in he is dethroned.