Diamonds In The Rough (2008) "Dancing Dead"

[reprinted as written by Avenged Sevenfold]
As performed by A7X

Dead men, they celebrate,
as the final chapter fades away.
'Cause they can't hide, we can see their flesh is rotten.

The band plays a hopeful tune,
the champagne is poured as they socialize.
The look in their eyes, hide in the light.

Everything is paid for tonight, while at the party of the dead dancing in their graves.
The drinks here are free so relax,
enjoy the sight of all the dead dancing in their graves.
And while the world that they built, told 'em to change, told 'em to listen,
they just kept it the same.
And now that midnight has come, I'll get a room watching the dead dancing in their graves.

Bones covered up by suits, as the visible scars, they multiply.
Kiss it goodbye, too stubborn and I'll destory.

Tick, tock, the time bomb has been
recognized and pressurized.
Nowhere to hide, swallowing light!

Everything is paid for tonight, while at the party of the dead dancing in their graves.
The drinks here are free so relax,
enjoy the sight of all the dead dancing in their graves.
And while the world that they built, told 'em to change, told 'em to listen,
they just kept it the same.
And now that midnight has come, I'll get a room watching the dead dancing in their graves.

I feel a coming strength
And now it's too late to chan-

[Background chatter.]

Everything is paid for tonight, while at the party of the dead dancing in their graves.
The drinks here are free so relax,
enjoy the sight of all the dead dancing in their graves.
And while the world that they built, told 'em to change, told 'em to listen, they just kept it the same.
And now that midnight has come, I'll get a room watching the dead dancing in their graves.

A7X fans together saw how mankind is slowly destorying itself, as one pointed out, "Society (especially the rich that got their money through shifty means) tries to hide their inner selves by dressing themselves up nicely, drinking expensive champagne etc, while truthfully they are corrupt and dead inside."

In Jesus' day the rich were the religious elite, and He accused them of exactly the same things. It's some pretty stiff reading, called "The Seven Woes."

The Pharisees wanted it all. They wanted to be seen as perfectly obedient to God, but they also wanted what they wanted. So they interpreted God’s word in such a way to make it easy for them to get what they wanted and still look like they were being perfectly obedient to God.

They conformed God’s word to fit inside the lives they wanted, instead of surrendering themselves, heart, soul, mind and body to be conformed by God, no matter how painful the process, into genuine holiness.

Let’s try contrasting these woes with the beatitudes

Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

"Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

1) First woe "You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to."

Compare this with “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Shutting up the kingdom verses entering the kingdom. The proud in spirit keep themselves and others out of God’s kingdom because they refuse to admit to their own sin and insist that they can achieve faultlessness, or at least enough goodness to obligate God to bring them into heaven.

This is what the religious leaders did by teaching their own rules and rejecting Messiah Jesus. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Those who mourn over their sin will know the comfort of God’s forgiveness and cleansing. Our lesson: we enter into the kingdom by confession of sin, and faith in Jesus Christ and we should tell others the good news.

2) Second woe "You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are."

Compare this with “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” Hell versus inheritance. The Pharisees were out to win others to their own system instead of bringing them to the living God. Instead of saving souls, the religious leaders were condemning souls. Our lesson: point people to Christ rather then yourself

3) Third woe "You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.'"

Compare this with “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” Greedy for gain versus hungering for holiness. The Pharisees had worked out a religious system where they could back out of their promises if it got too costly for them and still maintain their reputations. God’s character is pure, there is no shadow in Him. But instead of being men of godly integrity, they encouraged evasive language to conceal things. Our lesson: be truthful at all times

4) Fourth woe "You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness."

Compare this with “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Rejecting mercy versus obtaining mercy. Jesus said to them, "You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel." the gnat was the smallest unclean creature, and the camel was the largest. The Pharisees had rules for every tiny thing, straining out the gnats, while at the same time forgetting about all the important things, swallowing whole camels of uncleanness.

The complaint is not that they failed to take great care with the Scriptures; it’s that they missed the point of them. They missed God's will. Justice, mercy and faithfulness are the important qualities God is seeking. Obeying rules is no substitute. Our lesson: focus on right relationships with others and show justice, mercy and faithfulness in those relationships.

5) Fifth woe "You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence"

Compare with “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Defiled in heart versus pure in heart They were occupied with external obedience, not the essence of true faith. If they kept the outside looking good, they would get praise and honor from other people. They had no consideration for God’s view of their hearts and minds. Our lesson: be clean from the inside out.

6) Sixth woe "You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness."

Is much like the fifth, being outwardly pure, but inwardly corrupt. The Pharisees lived for reputation, not character.

7) Seventh woe "You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!"

Persecutors of God’s people are from Satan, peacemakers are God’s children Compare with “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.” They were the heirs of those who had failed to recognize the prophets of old. Our lesson: love God’s word, and be teachable to His truth.

Jesus finished His invective with this: "Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar."

The Hebrew Bible started with Genesis and ended with Second Chronicles. The first prophet was Abel, in Genesis, and the last prophet was Zechariah listed in Second Chronicles, stoned by the religious leaders of his day, in the temple courts.

Compare with "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Jesus finished His last discourse by weeping over Jerusalem. He loved them! After all that, Jesus loved them. That’s what grace is.

If the Jews had accepted Jesus’ way of love and forgiveness, of humility and obedience, then there never would have been the rebellions that brought Rome’s devastation of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 A.D.

The truth is, hypocrisy grieves God

The Pharisees had constructed their version of the holy life that was all about the externals, following lots of rules and regulations, measured in terms of religious activities and conformity to what they said looked good. The Pharisees were proud of their own religiosity, and expected other people to honor them for it.

The holy life Jesus teaches emphasizes the inner person, a life that is based on the principles of truth found in God’s word. Jesus measures spirituality in terms of character and sacrificial service.

What is your version of the holy life based on?

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