How Long, O Lord?

Lyrics

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Verse 1 (lead singer, low growl, organ stab on each chord change)

They built a house of power — (Dm / Gm / Dm)
Where the children disappeared — (Gm / A7 / Dm)
And the ones who tried to tell it — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
Were called liars, bought, or feared — (Dm / Gm / A7 / Dm)

The files sat in the shadows — (Dm / Gm / Dm / Dm/C)
While the world was told a lie — (B♭ / F / Gm / A7)
But the blood still cries from islands — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
And the truth will not stay dry — (Dm / Gm / A7 / Dm)

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Chorus (full choir, stomp on beat 1 & 3, clap on 2 & 4)

How long, O Lord — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
Will the wicked hide their face? — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
They sell the innocent for silver — (Dm / Gm / Dm / Dm/C)
And give the guilty private grace — (B♭ / F / Gm / A7)

But You see every ledger — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
Every island, every flight — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
The silence ends tonight — (Dm / Gm / Dm)
The silence ends tonight — (A7 / Dm / Dm)

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Verse 2 (spoken-sung, almost growled, choir responds after each line)

They flew above the law — (Dm / Gm)
("Above the law?") — (Dm / A7)
And the law looked away — (Dm / B♭)
("Looked away, Lord") — (F / A7)

They said, "Trust the system" — (Dm / Gm)
("Which system?") — (Dm / A7)
But the system was the prey — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)

No names upon our tongue tonight — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
Just the pattern and the rot — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
But the prophet's mouth is open now — (Dm / Gm / Dm / Dm/C)
And the cover's burning hot — (B♭ / F / Gm / A7 / Dm)

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Bridge (modulates up to E♭ minor — darker, heavier, half-time drums)

They hide behind the badge — (E♭m / A♭m / E♭m)
Behind the robe, behind the cross — (B♭7 / E♭m)
But You weigh the hearts of princes — (E♭m / A♭m / E♭m / B♭7)
And You count the orphan's loss — (E♭m / A♭m / B♭7 / E♭m)

The island mansions crumble — (E♭m / A♭m / E♭m)
The sealed affidavits speak — (B♭7 / E♭m)
Not by sword — not by army — (E♭m / A♭m / E♭m / B♭7)
But by the truth the humble keep — (E♭m / A♭m / B♭7 / E♭m)

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Chorus reprise (back to Dm, full band, tambourine, shouting)

How long, O Lord — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
How long? — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
The children asked — the poor begged — (Dm / Gm / Dm / Dm/C)
And the powerful said, "Not yet" — (B♭ / F / Gm / A7)

But Your kingdom is a courtroom — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
And the Judge has heard the cries — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
Every cover will be torn — (Dm / Gm / Dm)
Every hidden thing will rise — (A7 / Dm)

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Outro (slow, spoken over a single Dm chord, then a cappella)

"They asked me not to sing this. They said it would cause division. But the prophet does not make the wind blow. The prophet just points to the storm."

(Choir, soft, one chord per word)

Truth — (Dm)
is — (Gm)
com — (Dm)
ing — (A7)
Truth is coming — (Dm / Gm / Dm / A7)
Not with a name — (Dm / B♭ / F / A7)
But with a fire — (Dm / Gm / Dm)
And every throne of silence — (A7 / Dm)
Will expire — (Gm / A7 / Dm)

(Hold Dm. Drum hit. Silence.)

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Would you like the next track to follow as a response to this one — perhaps number 2 (Lament & Lullaby) or number 7 (Unity Across Difference) — to give the album an emotional arc?