This song is, essentially, B. Dolan saying he has returned from the 5 year break between this and his last album. He uses “Lazarus” as a metaphor for rebirth. Saint Lazarus of Bethany is a character in the bible who is brought back to life by Jesus, 4 days after his death
[Intro]
[Verse 1]
In another life
We launched a strike
Against the ocean
And fought the waves
The dream we brought to life
Got it's throat cut
And washed away
You crawled into your darkness
And acted rotten
Flesh decayed
And plead with us
To keep it shut
And leave you with your rage
No names to lay
The blame down on
No words to use as weapons
No prize for all your precious charm
To win, no firm direction
And if inside that second
You decide that life is forfeit
And cop a hangman's necklace
For your fortune I will watch you
I saw you in your summer
Thought you'd be the light in autumn
But every knife
Has had a slice and
Shadows bleed out longer
You talked the sun down from it's place
Convinced it night had fallen
You lay down in your grave
And let a liar kiss your coffin
I've eaten my tongue off the plate
The taste has made me nauseous
Consider this resistance
To your only standing orders
I don't believe you'd rest in peace
I don't believe you can
I hope you rise
I hope you wake
The fuck up dead man!
[Bridge]
This sickness will not end in death
This sickness
This sickness
This sickness
Will not end in death
[Verse 2]
Come on dig
Push, shake off the dust
Wake up the mind
Make the blood rush
God is never coming back
Lazarus
There's no justice
There's just us
So ball your fists
And give a fuck
If you wanna get up
Don't call it a what?!
You've been here for years
Waiting for a savior
That will never appear
But here's hoping
Words that you hold
In your throat
Tear you open
Crawl through the dark
And push back the boulder
Cast out the shadow
It's all good
We older
Wiser
More inspired
And you already know how the rhymes are
(FIRE!)
Yeah, and I do need to boast
Cause this goes out
To those we hold close
Who die by the record
And ride for their folks (Strange Famous!)
No love for the ones with no code
Hopped on for a second
Or a run of some shows
But I ain't co-sign shit
Motherfucker hell no
Those free EPs
Ain't worth the download
Bet the presence alone
Gives you stage fright though
Cold killer through the blizzard
Where they've driven off the road
Kept steady with a slow hand
Second to no man
Grown man
Back on my program
I'm so damn
Close to the edge
But I'm not a ghost yet
Two hands fulla hurt
I'm a hellified threat
Got plans for the purse
I'm a settle my debts
Never been afraid to die
Cause I can't stay dead
And that's S-F-R
Certified fresh!
You suckas!
(You gotta go away to come back)
[Outro]
Lazarus was produced by Cecil Otter.