Lyric Review 3: Mystery Of Mercy by Caedmon's Call

Time for an in-depth analysis of Mystery of Mercy, an Andrew Peterson/ Randall Goodgame song from the record Back Home, by Caedmon's Call. Here are the lyrics:

I am the woman at the well, I am the harlot
I am the scattered seed that fell along the path
I am the son that ran away
And I am the bitter son that stayed

My God, my God why hast thou accepted me
When all my love was vinegar to a thirsty King?
My God, my God why hast thou accepted me?
It's a mystery of mercy and the song, the song I sing

I am the angry man who came to stone the lover
I am the woman there ashamed before the crowd
I am the leper that gave thanks
But I am the nine that never came

My God, my God why hast thou accepted me
When all my love was vinegar to a thirsty King?
My God, my God why hast thou accepted me?
It's a mystery of mercy and the song, the song I sing

You made the seed that made the tree
That made the cross that saved me
You gave me hope when there was none
You gave me only your Son

My God,My God,Lord you are my God.
My God,My God,Lord you are my God.
My God,My God,Lord you are my God.
My God,My God,Lord you are...my God.

c. Andrew Peterson, Randall Goodgame

Peterson and Goodgame have crafted a simple, profound song with two verses, a chorus, a bridge, and a coda.
The rhyme scheme for the verses is
A
B
C
C
although the final two lines do not present perfect rhymes, but rather, assonant (meaning that the vowels sound alike, but not the consonants. Ex: "thanks" and "came" both have the long A, but end with different consonants. An example of a perfect rhyme with "came" is "same.") When a writer is not afraid to stray from perfect rhymes (whether prefering assonants or another kind of imperfect/ slant rhyme, or no rhyme at all) he finds many possibilities. One mark of beginning, or poor, writers, is that every line ends with a perfect rhyme, meaning that their songs are filled with phrases and rhymes that have been used ad nauseum, like true/ blue and love/above. Perfect rhymes will always be a popular choice for writers of all levels, but the discriminating writer knows he has other choices in his arsenal.
The rhyme scheme for the chorus is
A
B
A
B
which aids the melody in differing it from the verses.
The scheme for the bridge is also different:
A
A
B
B
and the coda is
A
A
A
A
with all the rhymes being identical (identical rhymes are words that rhyme with themselves. In this case, it is achieved because all four lines are identical, meaning that the end rhyme is "God" each time).
Now that we've got the mechanics out of the way, let me say that:
My God, my God, why hast thou accepted me?
says more in one line than many songs say from first verse to final chorus. This line meets all the requirements of "Gray's Law" (see my post on Matt Redman's "Face Down"). 1. It is steeped in authentic Biblical teaching (making use of Jesus' echo of the prophet "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?") It is a passionate line. And it is both traditional (hearkening back to Jesus' words) and new, given how they've turned the quote around.
They've done so in a way that highlights the depths of God's love, the unfairness of Christ's passion, and the unfairness of our own redemption, paid for by that very passion. There is no end to the devotions and theological treatises that could be written based on that single line.
Caedmon's Call does this so often in their lyrics (both those they write and those they cull from the writers of their choosing) that I am confident the Church will be singing their songs long after most modern Christian songs have gasped their last.

The use of Biblical imagery in "Mystery Of Mercy", and the way the imagery is incorporated, assures that the Biblically astute Christian and the newcomer alike will understand what a great mystery it is that God would show us mercy. Take the line:
When all my love was vinegar to a thirsty King
Those of us who know the crucifixion story perk up at the reference. But the meaning was not lost on my six-and-eight-year old boys, listening with me in the car. "Why would a King drink vinegar?" they said. "Gross." "Who would give a King vinegar to drink?"
Do you see how this line is superior to so many lines in so many songs that express the sentiment in words like:
When the love I have to offer is not enough
or
When I say "I love you" but yet, still I sin.
Note that they also use contrast to show that "none is righteous; no, not one." Both the adulterer and the man with a stone are undeserving of this mercy. Both the prodigal and the grumbling stay-at-home son have fallen short of the glory.

This song works well thematically with the rest of the "Back Home" record. Randall Goodgame's "Only Hope" (an adaptation of Charles Wesley's hymn, "Depth of Mercy") starts:

Depth of mercy, can there be / Mercy still reserved for me?
Can my God, your wrath forbear / Me, the chief of sinners, spare?

and follows in the second verse with:

I have long withstood your grace / Long provoked you to your face.
Would not hearken to your calls / Grieved you by a thousand falls.

Caedmon's multi-instrumentalist Josh Moore contributes "You Created," a song that furthers the mystery of God's might and love, starting with the Biblical

Who is like unto the Lord our God / Who dwelleth on high, Who dwelleth on high

even as he offers glimpses of God's nature:

You created nothing that gives me more pleasure than You.
You won't give me something that gives me more pleasure than You.

and "Beautiful Mystery" by Aaron Tate, Derek Webb, and Cliff Young returns to the theme of God and His love for us, while offering the thought that this mystery is the most profound, and the simplest. They say it directly in the first verse:

'Cause most things true are simple and complex
So it is with you; what else should I expect?

and metaphorically in the bridge:

The truth is a river where the strong can swim down deep.
The weak and the broken can walk across so easily.

What a word-picture, and, again, what a mystery. The gospel is more than enough to puzzle and challenge the greatest thinker, yet simple enough for a child to understand.

"Mystery Of Mercy," coming at the end of the record, is a satisfying period (or should I say, question mark) on an album of significant theological weight and scriptural authority. The string section, a common enough device in CCM, is full yet understated, complimenting Cliff Young's vocal delivery rather than overwhelming it, as often happens in prototypical CCM bands -- providing yet another example of what sets Caedmon's Call apart from most bands with CCM success.