Bob was almost gone,
But God's love and sacrifice
Saved him from hellfire.
"Saved" is one of Bob Dylan's most electrifying born-again Christian songs. It's the second track on the 1980 album of the same name, and comes in hot on the heels of the short first song, "A Satisfied Mind," rumbling and stuttering along to a savage gospel beat. It is, as I always say, not a message that I'm inclined to follow or believe in, but if you're on the fence about these kinds of things, a song like this would definitely tip you over to the side of belief. The album cut is forceful enough, but if you really want to get this song full throttle, it's worth searching online for a version of this song that he and his band performed at Massey Hall in Toronto in 1980. The band is out of this world, every single one of them.
How he was and how he is, with the key difference being that he was saved:
1. Was: He was blinded by the devil, born ruined by original sin, already dead as his mother gave birth to him.
2. Is: Touched, healed, delivered, sealed, all by the grace of God.
3. Is: Saved (by the blood of the lamb)
4. Is: Glad and thankful.
5. Is: upright, full of endurance and freed from the pit all for one low price (the acceptance of the grace of God)
6. Is: Freed from emptiness and wrath.
7. Was: Unrescued, going down for the last time
8. Is: Spared, not by deeds or miracles, but by faith.
9. Was: Hindered and stalled
Here's the Massey Hall performance. This might be the greatest live performance ever, if by the band. Dylan seems a little disconnected.
But God's love and sacrifice
Saved him from hellfire.
"Saved" is one of Bob Dylan's most electrifying born-again Christian songs. It's the second track on the 1980 album of the same name, and comes in hot on the heels of the short first song, "A Satisfied Mind," rumbling and stuttering along to a savage gospel beat. It is, as I always say, not a message that I'm inclined to follow or believe in, but if you're on the fence about these kinds of things, a song like this would definitely tip you over to the side of belief. The album cut is forceful enough, but if you really want to get this song full throttle, it's worth searching online for a version of this song that he and his band performed at Massey Hall in Toronto in 1980. The band is out of this world, every single one of them.
How he was and how he is, with the key difference being that he was saved:
1. Was: He was blinded by the devil, born ruined by original sin, already dead as his mother gave birth to him.
2. Is: Touched, healed, delivered, sealed, all by the grace of God.
3. Is: Saved (by the blood of the lamb)
4. Is: Glad and thankful.
5. Is: upright, full of endurance and freed from the pit all for one low price (the acceptance of the grace of God)
6. Is: Freed from emptiness and wrath.
7. Was: Unrescued, going down for the last time
8. Is: Spared, not by deeds or miracles, but by faith.
9. Was: Hindered and stalled
Here's the Massey Hall performance. This might be the greatest live performance ever, if by the band. Dylan seems a little disconnected.
Hello Robert, Thank you for posting this interesting analysis. Come and join us inside Bob Dylan's Music Box http://thebobdylanproject.com/Song/id/543/Saved and listen to every version of every song composed, recorded or performed by Bob Dylan, plus all the great covers and so much more.
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