Haven’t seen you in quite a while
I was down the hold, just passing time.
Last time we met it was a low-lit room
We were as close together as a bride and groom.
We ate the food, we drank the wine
Everybody having a good time except you.
You were talking about the end of the world.I took the money, I spiked your drink
You miss too much these days if you stop to think.
You led me on with those innocent eyes
And you know I love the element of surprise.
In the garden I was playing the tart
I kissed your lips and broke your heart.
You, you were acting like it was the end of the world.In my dream, I was drowning my sorrows
But my sorrows they’d learned to swim
Surrounding me, going down on me
Spilling over the brim
Waves of regret and waves of joy.
I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.
You, you said you’d wait till the end of the world.
This song, Until The End of the World (U2), portrays the betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas. It attempts to depict what was going through the mind of Judas when he encountered Jesus in the garden and was about to betray him. This is why he says to Jesus in the first line of the song “Haven’t seen you in quite a while / I was down the hold, just passing time.” Judas then thinks back about the “low-lit room,” which was the last supper. The New Testament uses the marital relationship of bride and groom to symbolize the relationship between Christ and the Church. Bono uses these terms to symbolize the closeness that existed between the disciples and Christ at the last supper since this was Christ and his church communing together. Eating the food and drinking the wine is a reference to the last supper being the first communion since Jesus said that the bread and the wine were symbols of his blood and body.
The words “the end of the world,” which are repeated throughout the song, are probably a reference to the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. There are a few reasons for this. First, the death of Jesus was the end of the world because his death ruptured history. The death of Jesus Christ brought the possibility of salvation for everyone that preceded him and everyone that came after him. Second, the death of Jesus Christ also represents the end of the world because “the world” is used as a reference to the sinful state of humanity. In 1 John 2:16 it says, “For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do—comes not from the Father but from the world.” In 1 John 5:4-5 it says, “everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” The death of Jesus Christ on the cross was the “end of the world” because it produced victory over evil including the devil and the sinful state of humanity.
The second section says, “I took the money, I spiked your drink.” This is a reference to two elements of the betrayal. At the last supper, Jesus used the fact that Judas dipped his bread at the same time as Jesus to predict that Judas would betray Jesus. In addition, Judas took money from the Jewish leaders, which they paid him to betray Jesus. Therefore, Bono uses these two elements of the story to convey the idea that Judas in some sense poisoned the drink of Jesus at the last supper when he dipped his bread at the same time as Jesus. Judas then says in the song, “I kissed your lips and broke your heart,” which is a reference to his betrayal of Jesus through a kiss. The third section of the song is just depicting the emotional state of Judas when he betrayed Jesus.
In order to truly appreciate this song, you have to watch the live performance of it at Slane Castle, which can be viewed at YouTube. In this live performance of the song, Bono and Edge act out the betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas. Edge plays the role of Jesus, and Bono plays the role of Judas. Bono (Judas) kisses Edge (Jesus) on the cheek to symbolize the betrayal. Then it seems that the roles change. Edge still plays Jesus, but Bono now plays the devil. There is an eschatological battle that is played out between Bono (the devil) and Edge (Jesus) where Edge (Jesus) defeats Bono (the devil), and as Bono (the devil) is in retreat, he puts up two fingers behind his head to make clear that he is playing the devil. As Bono (the devil) retreats, he falls down on the stage and although he kicks at Edge’s (Jesus) guitar from his fallen position on the stage, Edge (Jesus) defeats Bono (the devil).
(Posted by Trask)
2 responses so far ↓
Chris // August 11, 2006 at 2:52 am
By summarising the third verse as “The third section of the song is just depicting the emotional state of Judas when he betrayed Jesus.” I think that you have missed a trick. If you look closely at the last three lines
“Waves of regret and waves of joy.
I reached out for the one I tried to destroy.
You, you said you’d wait till the end of the world.”
This deals with the forgiveness of Judas by Jesus, something that we should all celebrate, that if Jesus can forgive the man who betrayed him then what great hope there is for all us minor sinners
Antibush // February 16, 2007 at 5:22 am
Bush goes ballistic about other countries being evil and dangerous, because they have weapons of mass destruction. But, he insists on building up even a more deadly supply of nuclear arms right here in the US. What do you think? What is he doing to us, and what is he doing to the world?
If ever there was ever a time in our nation’s history that called for a change, this is it!
The more people that the government puts in jails, the safer we are told to think we are. The real terrorists are wherever they are, but they aren’t living in a country with bars on the windows. We are.