tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2448601238585270507.post2235449460103827185..comments2024-03-21T00:34:35.359-07:00Comments on Every Bob Dylan Song: Bob Dylan Song #112: The Wicked MessengerTonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12613923038816299394noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2448601238585270507.post-23021775612577341282017-03-13T21:22:45.544-07:002017-03-13T21:22:45.544-07:00Hello Tony, thank you for posting this interesting...Hello Tony, thank you for posting this interesting analysis. Join us inside Bob Dylan's Music Box http://everybobdylansong.blogspot.com.au/2009/06/bob-dylan-song-112-wicked-messenger.html and listen to every version of every song.David George Freemanhttp://everybobdylansong.blogspot.com.au/2009/06/bob-dylan-song-112-wicked-messenger.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2448601238585270507.post-2043728468742234332015-01-09T07:09:24.194-08:002015-01-09T07:09:24.194-08:00Dave, your depth of analyis of this nuanced song i...Dave, your depth of analyis of this nuanced song is worthy of the lyric. Thanks for posting. I also love Tim O'Brien's version on Red on Blonde. <br />EdSeekerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03792471777724370437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2448601238585270507.post-51363454319167597892009-09-06T14:46:29.637-07:002009-09-06T14:46:29.637-07:00Some thoughts on ‘The Wicked Messenger”.
Eli is i...Some thoughts on ‘The Wicked Messenger”.<br /><br />Eli is is apparently a variant on the name of God as spoken in Hebrew and Aramaic. This suggests the messenger is not wicked since he comes from God. The narrator’s view is therefore jaundiced.<br />The question who had sent for him is irrelevant; what matters (and what the narrator has recognized, but is now ignoring) is who he was sent by - God.<br />It would seem then that the messenger was not ‘multiplying’ (exaggerating) small matters, but characterizing important matters accurately – perhaps like how to behave morally.<br />In the light of this, his ‘flattery’ could perhaps have been a genuine attempt at diplomatic politeness, which is being willfully misrepresented.<br /><br />Feet burning suggests the place he is delivering a message to has hellish qualities – full of evil. Since the messenger is from heaven, he notices it more than the intended recipients of his message.<br /><br />Leaves begin to fall: Image, from Isaiah, of fallen angels going into hell.<br />Seas parting: Image of God’s goodness – saving Israelites.<br />That these things begin happening, ie now, suggests that both evil and God’s love are timeless. <br />This man from God should have been welcomed, not ‘confronted’. The exhortation not to bring any news that isn’t palatable is absurd. These people (ie. us) need to know the bitter truth. The comment that it opened up his heart would be both patronizing and untrue - wishful thinking on the part of the disingenuous narrator.<br /><br />Messenger could be Christ, or a Christ-like figure attempting to win over the misguided.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02046284404504457849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2448601238585270507.post-62863131838436671422009-06-18T17:39:42.233-07:002009-06-18T17:39:42.233-07:00wicked messenger = anothe dig at the press / media...wicked messenger = anothe dig at the press / media ?<br /><br />re. why not fully embrace christianity for another 12 years? Because at this moment he's still embarking on the family man chapter. And for BD it's all about chapters.Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16062180895899998738noreply@blogger.com