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Fresh ink. Please critique.




'Zekiel's Bones

A worship experience
for a song leader and a group


(Worship leader enters and begins to sing acapella a portion of the old negro spiritual, pointing to the various bones referred to on his own body as he precedes...)

The toe bone connected to the foot bone.
The foot bone connected to the ankle bone.
The ankle bone connected to the shin bone.
The shin bone connected to the knee bone.
The knee bone connected to the leg bone.
The leg bone connected to the hip bone.
The hip bone connected to the back bone.
The back bone connected to the rib bone.
The rib bone connected to the shoulder bone.
The shoulder bone connected to the neck bone.
The neck bone connected to the head bone.
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

(Spoken)

You remember the rest of this old American black spiritual about the prophet Ezekiel's vision of the valley of dry bones. Today we're going to tell that story again, all of us together. Here is how we will do it: I'll sing a line, then you repeat that same line again after me exactly.

Are you ready? We need a little rythm for this to work properly. Can you clap with me?

(Establish the clapping rhythm.)

Good! Now sing each line after me.

(Repeat the toe bone through head bone section above, with the leader singing each line and the group repeating after him. When this is finished, proceed immediately to the lyrics below.)

Hand of God took 'Zekiel,
Led him to this valley.
Showed him all these dry bones,
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

God said, "Can these bones live?"
'Zekiel said, "Lord, you know."
God said, "You start preachin'.
They'll hear the Word of the Lord."

Bones, bones, dry bones.
Bones, bones, dry bones.
Bones, bones, dry bones.
Hear the Word of the Lord!

'Zekiel started preachin',
Bones began to rattle.
They all shook together,
To hear the Word of the Lord.

Skeletons put flesh on,
Bodies put their skin on.
A valley full of dead men,
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

Bones, bones, wet bones.
Bones, bones, wet bones.
Bones, bones, wet bones.
Hear the Word of the Lord!

The finger bone connected to the hand bone.
The hand bone connected to the wrist bone.
The wrist bone connected to the elbow bone.
Elbow bone connected to the arm bone.
The arm bone connected to the collar bone.
The collar bone connected to the neck bone.
The neck bone connected to the head bone.
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

God said, "Call the four winds.
Breathe upon these dead men.
When my wind starts blowin',
They'll hear the Word of the Lord."

'Zekiel called the four winds,
They blew through the valley.
Then rose up an army,
To hear the Word of the Lord.

Bones, bones, live bones.
Bones, bones, live bones.
Bones, bones, live bones.
Hear the Word of the Lord!

Hand of God took 'Zekiel,
Led him to this valley.
Showed him all these dry bones,
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

You and me are dry bones,
Till we get God's Spirit.
Then we are God's army.
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

Bones, bones, dry bones.
Bones, bones, wet bones.
Bones, bones, live bones.
Hear the Word of the Lord!

Bones, bones, dry bones.
Bones, bones, wet bones.
Bones, bones, live bones.
Hear the Word of the Lord!

The head bone connected to the brain bone.
The brain bone connected to the heart bone.
The heart bone connected to the spirit bone.
The spirit bone connected to our mighty God.
Now hear the Word of the Lord!
Now hear the Word of the Lord!
Now hear the Word of the Lord!

c2007 Skip Johnson
All rights reserved


Note: This piece is meant to be chanted line by line with a leader singing each line, followed by the group following with exactly the same line--rather like a marching chant in the military. The "lining" styling for leading a less familiar song with a large group who could neither read, nor write was used among the black slave worshippers in early America, and also taken up by other white congregations later in situations where music was largely an oral rather than a written expression.

The imagery of the lyric is taken from the prophet Ezekiel, chapter 37, verses 1-14, a passage I've come across in my rereading of that prophet's most unique and vivid words to God's people during the early years of the 70 years of Babylonian exile the Israelites suffered for their national apostacy and sins. Surely in the face of national defeat, the slaughter of many among their nation by Nebuchadnezzar's army, the destruction of their temple and the city of Jerusalem, and their own helpless condition as captives in a distant land, they felt as though all their hopes as a people were as dead as the valley in Ezekiel's vision. This depiction was meant to give them hope for the future in the face of what looked like permanent human defeat. It achieved that.

Curious difference between armies of human rulers and the army of God. Human generals start with a live army, and when they are done, often times it is a dead one. God's army is just the other way around. He starts with the dead, and ends up with the living. While I respect the former sort of army, if I had my choice, I'd rather enlist in the one Ezekiel saw.

I'd like to try this out with the young people's groups I regularly have opportunity to assist as a song leader. Last week I went over to our pre-school through 12th grade school--they've got just over 100 kids total--and spent time with pretty much every grade level, as well as doing the high school assembly for the morning. All the groups were asking for their favorite songs I'd written and sung for them last year. Maybe it is time to write them a new one. I think this might work for a children's story at our church, if I could get our congregation to sing along.

Dear Skip...

That is one of my favorite parts of the Bible.... and you've done it up so well!!!....I think it would make a great children's
Bible Song.

I believe that scripture has another meaning too.
I believe it looks forward....to God commanding the whole House of Israel..(and not just the small country of Israel)to
come from their graves... He puts flesh and skin back on the bones...and gives them His spirit...

Neat Post...Skip...

best to you this evenin'
Kaley

Hi Skip,

This seems more than a bit too close to the old standard song...Dry Bones, at least for me. Some of the lines just seem incredibly close...ie
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones
Now hear the Word of the Lord.
That is right out of the other song.

I know you have worked in the Ezekial stuff really well but overall...I don't think this will fly due to its proximity to the other song that has been around forever.

Hugs,
Bobbie

Hey Skipper

do it!!!

rittman

Kaley,

The scene certainly does give a word picture of something similar we can expect at the resurrection at Jesus' Second Coming--the literal bringing to life of those who have died who will be raised to go to heaven. Such passages at I Thessalonians 4:13-18, Daniel 12:2, John 11:23, 24 and Isaiah 26:19 speak of that event.

While it may seem incredible to some that God can, in fact, raise those long dead, He has already shown He has the power to do exactly that. When Jesus died on the cross, there was an earthquake. At that time many long-dead righteous people were resurrected from their tombs. Matthew 27:31-33 says:

"At that moment (the moment of Jesus' death) the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. the earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke pene and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people."

I believe they were among the "host of captives" that Paul says went back with Jesus to heaven at the time of His ascention following His own resurrection. (Ephesians 4:8) So some folks just like us who once lived on planet Earth are already in heaven in the same sort of resurrected bodies God promises to all of His own. Seems Biblically speaking that nobody gets into heaven without their body--which is exactly why the Bible speaks of the resurrection as the "blessed hope" for God's faithful ones. Curiously, the resurrection of the body is also embedded in "The Apostles' Creed", an early statement and summary of Christian beliefs from the early ages. Not always in our time does this belief come through as clearly in much Christian teaching as the Bible actually portrays it.

I agree with you that Ezekiel's vision pictures more than simply something that is a fantasy or allegory. Resurrection of the bodies of God's people is real. It has happened already in the past with those long dead. It is prophecied to occur again planet wide in the not too distant future.

Thanks for taking a look and noting the broader implications of the prophecy.

Skip

Bobbie,

This is a derivative work, and borrows some lines from the old standard, even as that old standard borrowed lines from Ezekiel's original. I seriously thought of including that old negro spiritual--at least in part--into this reworking in a more formal way. I especially like the part that goes...

The toe bone connected to the foot bone,
The foot bone connected to the ankle bone,
The ankle bone connected to the shin bone,
The shin bone connected to the knee bone...clear on up to the head bone.

I might rework this piece intentionally to achieve that.

In the past, I've used portions of older hymns as bridges, intros and conclusions to newer parallel materials on quite a few occasions. The only thing necessary to do in this sort of borrowing of previously existing material is to note in the copyright application which parts you are borrowing and which parts are original in your new work.

In a piece called "Gospel Seed" I wrote a few years back in Idaho, the chorus for "Bringing in the Sheaves" was dropped in as a bridge. In another piece called, "Hello, Little Old Ladies", I employed the melody for "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" with altered words in a bridge section to poke a little gentle fun at the sometimes stale and boring worship styles in certain congregations. In "Singing Hymns on the City Bus", I included a verse of "Amazing Grace" just before the final chorus for pacing and to enhance the storyline. In live performance, an inserted snatch of a well known standard in no wise detracts from the newer composition. It simply adds immediate familiarity for the listener, connecting what they already know with what I'm introducing that is new.

Think I'll see if I can do something similar here. Thanks for your comments.

Skip

P.S. (A litle later...) I've gone back and done a rewrite with your comments in mind. Check it out above.

Richard,

Bobbie's comments makes me think I'll rework this slightly to include an intro/conclusion of the old standard spiritual on the same theme as the "frame" for this. I omitted it earlier because of overall length. In a piece that is participative echoing between a leader and the group listening, that might not be as large of an issue, however.

In performance, I could gain the attention of the listeners by singing solo the "toe bone through head bone" portion of the old spiritual. Then I would stop and give instructions for them to help me tell the story of Ezekiel's valley of dry bones by the listeners repeating each line after me. Then maybe at the end, we could all do the "toe bone through head bone" section again together to conclude.

Hmmm... I'm going to have to practice this if I'm going to do it right. My new section has very little range in melody line and should be immediately accessible to most any audiance to participate with first time through. The added sections from the old spiritual would simply add color and interest.

This might work as a children's story, or a campfire special at a summer camp, or for setting up a sermon based on that passage from the Bible.

Thanks for your encouragment.

Skip

HiDee Skip-Migo!

Looks like we're Both Borrowin' from Black Predecessors for our Lyrics Today~! ;-)>

Feels Powerful & Enabling..Hat's Off to ya, Amigo!

No Nits today!

Big Guy-Hug,
Ol' Stan

Stan,

In the Bible it speaks of a scribe who would become a disciple of Christ's kingdom. (A scribe was a professional writer in the days of Jesus.) Jesus said, "The scribe who becomes a disciple of the kingdom will be like a householder who brings forth from his treasure room things new and old."

So it would seem, at least in Christian circles, that the practice of mingling newly created compositions with that which came before is an acceptable thing. In fact, there's a great deal of that sort of borrowing in the Bible itself. Later writers often make allusion to, or borrow portions of, thought from those who came before them. The final book of the Bible (the book of Revelation) paraphrases images, phrases, and themes from every book that comes before it.

Guess there is a precedent for borrowing based on previously known material. So long as it is openly done, it is acceptable.

There are any number of country songs that make reference to other country singers and songs already familiar to the listeners. I think the problem would come if a person presented what was derivative as something that was entirely original. Or borrowed largely from the recently penned, unknown work of a contemporary and passed it off as one's own intellectual property.

I hope not to do that in this piece.

Thanks for a look.

Skip