A short history of "Hallelujah" - lyrics, versions, oddities

[siouxsie]

I always thought "the baffled king" referred to King Saul, to whom David was a musician when he was younger. David played the "secret chord" to Saul, the baffled king.

David of course became King later on, replacing Saul!

[Actaion]

Hi,

I got a simple question concerning the line:

"All I ever learned from love, is how to shoot at someone who outdrew you"

What does "outdrew" mean here?
I'm not a native speaker, I looked up the word, but I can't make sense of it. Does it mean something like "to pull out"? But out of what then? What can be meant?

[sirp2000]

Hi,

I got a simple question concerning the line:

"All I ever learned from love, is how to shoot at someone who outdrew you"

What does "outdrew" mean here?
I'm not a native speaker, I looked up the word, but I can't make sense of it. Does it mean something like "to pull out"? But out of what then? What can be meant?

Hi Actaion

The word "outdrew" is often used in the context of a gunfight between cowboys in western films: it means drawing one's gun out of the holster and firing it before one's opponent can do the same. Hope this helps!

[maxdiamond]

Thank you for this thread.

I am interested in locating as many verses to this song, published or unpublished, as possible. i have been told there are 15 published verses and that Leonard claims to have written over 80. Is there a place where at least all the published ones have been collected?

Thanks.

[sebmelmoth2003]

the pook radio programme mentioned earlier made radio 4's pick of the year - first item in show - audio online until this weekend.

show hosted by rob brydon

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pd69k

[IMM]

As in most good poetry, there is room for interpretation, and layers of meaning, but, perhaps there is no reference to Samson?
The line
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
'may' be a reference to one (or more) of the "long-haired kings" of the Davidic line.
Just a thought from someone who's been described as looking baffled.

@GARYMARKBE
Rameses II and Moses aren't likely concurrent -- see David Rohl
I once knew a man from Fort William ...

[Vicomte]

And as an aside, at 15h55 (French Time)today, Steve Wright played Hallelujah on BBC Radio 2 to celebrate LC being inducted in to the Song writers Hall of Fame in New York on 17 June this year.

[IMM]

The word "outdrew" is often used in the context of a gunfight between cowboys in western films: it means drawing one's gun out of the holster and firing it before one's opponent can do the same. Hope this helps!

What's the man in the white hat to do?
When I was younger(early 60's), there was a community center that showed old (older than me) grade B western movies, usually in black and white. One thing was consistent in them -- the one wearing the black hat always drew his weapon first. It presents an age old problem for the 'good guy'.

[ForYourSmile]

Thanks Actaion for this great post. At this time at home in COVID prevention, It has helped me to review the exciting and not so short history of "Hallelujah". When I finish it, I will update my WEB respecting your terminology to quote the verses and with my thanks to you. When I can do it, the most difficult is the English translation.

Question: Does anyone know, why the hell they printed Wainwright's cover on the o.s.t, though in the film it was Cale's version? (Rufus' version is nice, too, and both version are quite similar, but still, it seems very odd to me.)

After almost 12 years I don't know if you are interested or already have answers. Surely there are now many sources of information; I have found this in https://www.cbcmusic.ca/posts/17727/joh ... nard-cohen: “… when it [Hallelujah] appeared in a key scene in 2001’s wildly successful animated film Shrek (though, due to label loyalty issues, a new version by Rufus Wainwright was used on the film’s official soundtrack).”

It makes sense. John Cale has participated in a large number of projects and collaborations, also as a producer, he knows the music industry. In 2006 and 2007 he participated in the tribute concerts produced by Alberto Manzano, "Acordes con Leonard Cohen". Later, the album was published (CD and DVD), but we loss the great Cale's versions ("Alexandra Leaving" and "Hallelujah"), nor in other albums that Manzano continued to publish with that stuff, unlike Jackson Browne and all the others. Copyright reasons may be similar to "Shrek".

Another possibility, my theory: as you say the Cale's setting in the film was reduced to O1, N1 and N3, but also the start of N3 "maybe there's a God above" was removed. It is an entertainment product fundamentally for children, they could consider the name of G*d inappropriate, or open agnostic thoughts. In the soundtrack album the version must be complete, the audience and the moral margin is wider, the phrase is no longer necessary to be censorship, but there is still a big problem in N2: Rufus Wainwright says "the holy dark" and John Cale respects "the holy dove". Nothing new, I don’t know why for Frank Sinatra was Jilly who loved Mrs. Robinson more than she imagined and not that Jesus of Paul Simon.

[ForYourSmile]

This is the draft that waits the moment that I can update my WEB (English version with the translate.google help). I have made improvements in the covers part. I still have some contributions pending that I cannot consult now. There are a lot of youtube links here, keep in mind that these things may eventually go away, but never the Leonard Cohen Files or The Cohen’s Work. Corrections will be welcomed.
----
“Hallelujah” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttEMYvpoR-k was not considered a “rare song” although its evolution is, to say the least, amazing. Leonard Cohen had already written and rewritten many verses, say about 80, before publication in “Various Positions” 1984. At that moment I observed, among biblical images, a kind of loneliness and nostalgia for a lost relationship loaded with sensuality. The truth is I found it a bit exaggerated.

That album, "Various Positions," ends with another mystical prayer: "If It Be Your Will," of unbearable submission but sublime beauty and begins with "Dance Me to the End of Love" with Casio rhythm, another curious path that goes from the Holocaust to a love song and that would be a basic piece of his repertoire. In those days Columbia didn't believe in that record, the president Walter Yetnikoff said, "Look, Leonard; we know you're great, but we don't know if you're any good." And they refused to publish it in the USA.

As Cohen recalls, only Bob Dylan seemed interested in "Hallelujah," on his 1988 tour he performed it twice, Montreal on July 8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuLmf7DMPPo and Los Angeles on August 4, 1988. There is no official recording, we know him from audience shots. (Well, to be honest there is a Polish version of "Hallelujah" recorded in 1985 by Maciej Zembaty, of course this fan, with 60 covers, was an authority of the Cohen's work).

On the 1988 tour Cohen introduced new verses https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvLiVSCX4Xw. The stanza N2 is especially explicit:
“I remember, when I moved in you.
And the holy dove, she was moving too.
Yes every single breath that we drew was Hallelujah”.
Well, the reason for the nostalgic memory materialized. Time ago someone was told me that Cohen was not at all nostalgic, I'm not at all sure about that. Nostalgia is in the past, the excitement for a relationship waited is also a good theme, a beautiful Cohen’s example is "Tonight Will Be Fine". “Hallelujah” does not seem to me a suitable song for weddings or funerals, although its spirituality.

At that time, without the Internet, it was not easy to know or spread the new "Hallelujah", I recorded it at the concert in Barcelona on May 24, we also saw it on television at the concert in San Sebastian on May 20 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZRtph-j4rQ (N1 N2 N3 N1, surely a mistake), it was a much appreciated TVE video by the fans. The revised "Hallelujah" was officially released on "Cohen Live" in 1994, from the concert in Austin on October 31, 1988.

It was the exvelvet John Cale who listened to the new verses in concert (Beacon Theater NY 1990) and asked Cohen to send him the lyrics; he received 15 pages by fax. However he did a mix between the studio album and the live version, the result was O1 O2 N1 N2 N3 with slight variations and he released it on the 1991 tribute album "I'm Your Fan" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwK5M2TpyHo. The formula was adopted in many of the versions that began to be lavished. Most notable, the most broken and lonely was Jeff Buckley’s “Hallelujah” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIF4_Sm-rgQ (Grace 1994) that would create a whole style. "Hallelujah" became popular with the 2001 animated film "Shrek” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4tYJdDj3_8, in a cut-out version by John Cale in the film (O1 N1 N3 without the first verse "maybe there's a God above"), and the full version of Rufus Wainwright on the soundtrack album.

From here the versions are countless; it is a regular part of the repertoire of vocal groups or musical talent contest programs. At the moment I have collected more than 100 hallelujahs in 11 languages, more instrumental http://molistoni.cat/lc/songa.htm (not updated), far from the more than 600 versions of Jarkko https://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/covers-b.pdf.

Depending on the taste of each, the versions are configured by choosing stanzas. Bon Jovi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSJbYWPEaxw, Sheryl Crow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G2ec-rlPb8 and Allison Crowe keep Cale’s five. k.d. lang https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTOslDiMd4E sings the same format but eliminating N2. Bono uses the original version of "Various Positions" by adding N3. In TV shows it is limited, for reasons of time, to three stanzas, O1, O2 and N3, avoiding the more controversial N2. In a few appears the O4 (or its variations), a verse to which Cohen was very loyal, and important for me.

There are those who dare to try to improve Cohen’s work. Rufus Wainwright https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBo-n_17XU0, Leonard's almost family, changes "the holy dove" to "the holy dark", why not "the holy pink"? It's more fun, isn't it? For her part Allison Crowe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIMOdVXAPJ0 sings "the holy ghost". I need an expert in symbology to understand it, and I don’t know if in religious symbolism. These things happen; maybe they have a higher morale or just try not to get into trouble. So for some reason, for Frank Sinatra Jilly was who loved most Mrs. Robinson than she imagined https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szLD-XYQL5g, and not this Jesus of Paul Simon.

An English version of "Hallelujah" can be sung literally. When translating into another language it is no longer so, the text must be interpreted, and this becomes very difficult in the case of Cohen's poetry. The adapter, depending on their knowledge of Cohen, language and technique may be more or less faithful, more so if they take the opportunity to change and create something of their own. I am interested and amused to see the results, which is what they have understood or what inspires them. I will cite some versions, with my assessment of very faithful [10] to slightly inspired [1]:

• Catalan: Jorcx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTsV5TeTirs 2006, N1 N2 N3 N4, as always perfect and faithful to Cohen [10].
• Catalan: Andrea Motis i Joan Chamorro https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvFZFTIUdV8 2014, Al•leluia, O1 N2* N3, [8].
• Catalan: Gerard Quintana https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QQpHFk3Kio 2006, Al•leluia, O1 O2 N1 N2* N3, [8].
• (N2* "... Recorda quan a dins teu hi entrava jo i entrava Deu i respiràvem un fort al•leluia” "... Remember when into you I entered and God entered and we breathed a strong hallelujah...")
• Catalan: Jordi Batiste 2004, xx xx xx xx, acknowledged making a cover of Jeff Buckley, [8].
• Catalan: Filferro https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vZ16KFvmt4 2016, O1 O2 ¿? ¿?, [2].
• Spanish: Draco Rosa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9YBPt4-g00 2008, Aleluyah, O1 O2 O3 O4, [4].
• Spanish: Enrique Morente y Lagartija Nick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5q7JVtmrsI 1996, Aleluya, N1 N2 N3, adaptation by Morente and Alberto Manzano, 3 stanzas and 06:30 minutes, let to say they are long, [3].
• Spanish: Sandra Carrasco https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iev8MhwLmDY 2015, Aleluya, O1 O2 ¿? N3, very beautiful, [2].
• Spanish: Surfin Bichos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS0pUzjduwI 1993, Aleluya, O1 O2 ¿? ¿?, [4].
• Spanish: Volador https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9RDpuA7k_0 2005, Aleluya, ¿? ¿? ¿? ¿? “…disculpas por cambiar su canción, el señor no llegó a mi corazón… perdone Sr. Cohen”, “apologies for changing your song, Lord did not reach my heart… sorry Mr. Cohen” [2].
• Spanish: Ana Belén y Víctor Manuel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIGNbdZsGGA 2015, Aleluya, O1 O2 ¿? ¿?, [4].
• Polish: Maciej Zembaty https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTh_WgrcmWA 1985, Alleluja, O1 O2 O3 O4, pre 1988, [9].
• Wales: Brigyn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0qzBIns9DM 2019, Haleliwia [3].
• Danish: Steffen Brandt and Tina Dickow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfIBmGkut5g 2004 O1 O2 N1 N2 N3 N4 very broad and faithful, except for significant variations in N2 without losing the concept [8].
• Hebrew: No’am Peled https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRvkH_6pPDQ 2004, O1 O2 N1 (Eng in part) O4 N3, [8].
• Italian: Eugenio Finardi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrIWTp-Ngk8 2003, O1 O2 N1 N2, [8].
• Finnish: Hector https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr6G24JHAu4 1995, ¿? ¿? N1 N2, almost unrecognizable "Leonard Cohen, Hector" [1].
• Swedish: Ebba Forsberg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghWf5w2ux7A 2009, O1 O2 N1 N2 N3 N4, free in the final stanzas [6].
• Czech: Juraj Kukura https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC7lBUWV8l8 1995 “Alleluja”, “Leonard Cohen, Hana Sorrosová” [¿?].

There are those that we should no longer call versions, it is a new text that has nothing to do with Cohen's, only this spiritual melody remains with all the hallelujahs. Some time ago I called them "rare lyrics". They would have a rating of [0].

• Italian: Francesco Baccini https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icA8KYe3z4o 2003, “Shrek Alleluia”, “Leonard Cohen, Enrico Nascimbeni and Francesco Baccini”, the sadness of the ogre Shrek.
• Czech: Lucie Bila http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm#bila 2009, “Desatero”, “Leonard Cohen, Gabriela Osvaldová”, apology for The Ten Commandments.
• Czech: Hana Horecká http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm#hana 2010, “Leonard Cohen, Hana Horecká”, Christmas song and love song with reproach for breaking a vow.
• Czech: Jakub Smolik http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm#jakub 2010, “Leonard Cohen, Hana Sorrosová”, he has died and ascends to heaven with joy, he asks God to take care of the children, one yet to be born.
• Czech: Jitka Zelenkova https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfejz6CNOq4 2010, “Zní Nové Haleluja”, “Leonard Cohen, re-written by Pavel Vrba”, it has a slight inspiration [1].
• Czech: Wabi Daněk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lMSaMIsTPs 2013, “Haleluja”, “Leonard Cohen”, he remembers the moment of his father’s death.
• Czech: Nezmaři http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm#nez https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXJeNKNtpgc 2014, “Leonard Cohen, Pavel Zajíc”, Christmas song with a parade of holy kings and beggars on the stairs.
• English: Father Ray Kelly http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm#ray 2014, it was a viral video, the pastor starts singing to the surprise of the bride and groom.
• Spanish: Il Divo http://molistoni.cat/lc/hallrar.htm 2008 and Jencarlos Canela 2011, “Leonard Cohen”, among good wishes, miracles, conversions and donations to the Church, versions with much diffusion.

The amazing transformations of this song do not seem to bother Cohen at all, the spred of his work in any form was already good. John Cale remembers Cohen telling him, "You just take from it what you find useful and move on." I don't consider myself a particularly purist fan, but at least there's one case I can't understand: Serge Lama in 1971 did a French version of "Bird on a wire", "Vivre tout seul" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQAMgzTf4xw signed by Cohen and Lama. Cohen sang a mix of verses from this version with verses from the English original on the 1976 tour on French-speaking sites https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vwNdxztAtk, presenting it as a translation. In my opinion, it is not at all a translation, nor a version or adaptation; Lama doesn't understand "Bird on a wire", at least as I understand it on, and betrays the spirit of the song, "Bird on a wire", talks about the conflict between freedom and fidelity to the couple, Lama of living alone. Cohen, the author, accepted it, I didn't.

Thanks to https://www.leonardcohenforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=13097 by Actaion

[Kate Parlee]

"what I hear on the original is "Battle" king.", "Baffled king doesn't fit at all."

Yes, I've always heard "Battle king", too. I was amazed this evening to find that the "official" version is "Baffled"; I can't see how that fits at all. On relistening to the Various Positions song... Well it's a toss up. In The Essential Leonard Cohen, I definitely hear Battle.

I've heard that he experimented with, and played to audiences, other versions that never got written down. I think it was a barometer of his feelings at the moment, I'm just glad I can listen to it, no matter the version. Still, "Baffled" just doesn't work for me.

Best,
Kate

[waiting53]

Hi

That's a great summary about quite a confusing situation with the lyrics to this song - thanks!

One thing, though...

Every printed version of the lyrics I've ever seen says - "baffled" king, which is what everyone sings in the million covers, but what I hear on the original is "Battle" king.

That's what I sing when I cover it, because that's what I think I hear on Various Positions, and because it makes sense; it's the juxtapostion of David the Warrior vs David the Composer...

Baffled king doesn't fit at all.


FWIW, I also think that the covers all sound too much the same, and they all seem to be based on another cover rather than the original - maybe the Rufus Wainwright version?

The melody is slightly flattened out compared to the original, less dynamic and less interesting, and the sightly increased tempo vs the original, I also think, doesn't fit as well with the emotion of the song.

Thanks,
Aaron

[waiting53]

Hello friends.
I tried to bring somes systematic order in the Hallelujah lyrics in the different versions.

These are the original lyrics from the Album Various Positions (1984):

O1
Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

O2
Your faith was strong, but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you
To a kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

O3
You say I took the Name in vain
I don't even know the Name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

O4
I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah


10 years later Cohen published an almost completely changed version on Live Songs (1994)

N1
baby I've been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
love is not a victory march
it's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

N2
There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
but now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

N3
Maybe there's a God above
but all I ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you
It's no complaint you hear tonight
It's not some pilgrim who's seen the light
it's a cold and it's a lonely(/broken )Hallelujah
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

N4=O4
I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah


So only the last verse of four stayed the same. One year before the additional verses had also been published in the book Stranger music (1993).

Strangely enough, already a few years before Cohen published the altered version, John Cale presented a cover version of the song on the tribute album I'm your fan (1991), which included some of the newer verses.
Cales version contained the following five verses: A1, A2, N1, N2, N3
Cale also changed the melody of the first two lines of the verse slightly.

Jeff Buckley adopted exactly Cales constellation on his Album Grace (1994), his Hallelujah is one of the most famous and adored versions today.

The song reached an broader audience when featured on the soundtrack of the popular animation movie Shrek. The song, sung by Cale, was played in the film for quite a long time, and in the foreground (i.e. no speaking or other noises hearable while most of the time), featuring the verses O1, N1 and N3 in full length. Very odd: While you could listen to Cale's version during the film, it was Rufus Wainwright's version, was was printed on the soundtrack disks. Wainwright also adopted the Cale mix of five verses.

With the help of Shrek Hallelujah entered the mainstream and became more and more popular.
Today it is an obligatory performance for every singer to win a talent show on TV anywhere in the world.

Some facts strike me as remarking:

- Nearly every cover version is based on the mixture of verses introduced by John Cale. Apart from those already mentioned, there are for example Bon Jovi, Sheryl Crowe and Allison Crowe sticking to those five verses. Also K.D. Lang (omitting N2 on studio version, N3 on live version).
The same goes with the slight change ofthe melody.
Hardly anybody uses one of Cohens versions (The German Group Wir sind Helden is the only exception which comes to my mind right now. And even here it 's only true for the lyrics, music is closer to Cale here, too.). Bono uses the full original album lyrics with added N3.

- Cohen itself made use of all seven verses during his 2008 tour, playing usually six of them on each performance. Most used version was: O1, O2, N3 (or O3), N1, N2, O/N 4

- Mainstream covers (Show-winners Kurt Nilsen and Alexandra Burke e.g.) usually cut the verses N1 and N2 to give it a standard playing time, leaving only three verses (O1, O2, N3). (Left out is always the the verse N2, which contains the most explicit lyrics.)

- Verse O4/N4 is the only one, which appeared in both of Leonard's published versions - yet also the only one, which never shows up in any cover version!

Question: Does anyone know, why the hell they printed Wainwright's cover on the o.s.t, though in the film it was Cale's version? (Rufus' version is nice, too, and both version are quite similar, but still, it seems very odd to me.)

Best regards,
Actaion

P.S.: corrections welcome

OK So I saw a little girl on YouTube sing the religious "version" of Hallelujah. I s that a thing? Did Cohen write a different version?
Thank you Suewaiting

[JanetB7]

Many Christians rejoiced when they heard “Hallelujah” played on Shrek (2001 Movie - https://bit.ly/3EtU3Te) as they thought it was a beautiful hymn. It was sung when Shrek became downcast as Lord Farquaad was going to marry Princess Fiona, whom Shrek really loved. Lord Farquaad didn’t love Fiona but he could only be crowned King if he married a princess. Consequently, “Hallelujah” was presented in the movie from Shrek’s perspective of disillusionment at the situation, bitterness at being outwitted by Farquaad and sadness at losing Fiona, rather than from happiness or in praise to God (even though “Hallelujah” means “Praise God”).

“Hallelujah” might also have been written from the same perspective of disillusionment by Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, who was a general in King David’s army. Despite his dedication and faithfulness to King David, the king purposely sent General Uriah to the battlefield’s frontline to be killed (2 Sam 11), so that David could marry Bathsheba. This was despite David having other wives – 7 in total, as well as many concubines.

Some say that Leonard Cohen, who wrote the original “Hallelujah” song, may have become similarly disillusioned with his Jewish heritage or by his perception of hypocrisy among those who declare their faith, as he became an ordained Buddhist Priest.

The first verse of Shrek’s “Hallelujah” describes how David composed music that please God (eg. in the Psalms and other songs he composed which calmed King Saul’s tormented/ “baffled” mind in 1 Sam 16:23). However, Leonard Cohen asks the confused King Saul “But you don't really care for music, do you?”. Some say that he was really questioning if Saul, in his baffled mind, really knew what he was singing when he sang “Hallelujah” to David’s music (eg. worshipping and praising God).

The second verse describes how King David tried to prove that his faith was strong, but in fact proved that he did not did not have much faith at all (“Your faith was strong but you needed proof, you saw her bathing on the roof, her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you”). As a result of his attraction to the Bathsheba’s beauty, the mighty King became so weak that he was easily captured and tied up (“She tied you to a kitchen chair, she broke your throne, she cut your hair”).

David lost the legacy of his crown and throne when his son through Bathsheba (King Solomon) followed his father’s example and married 700 wives with 300 concubines. David could have chosen any of his many sons, but he chose Bathsheba’s son to be his successor. As a result, David’s great nation that was admired by the rest of the known world quickly crumbled, was divided into Israel & Judah and was subsequently conquered by other nations after Solomon’s death. Bathsheba through her son, broke David’s line of succession and overthrew his descendant’s’ reign.

David lost his power and strength (“she cut your hair”) just as Samson lost his strength when his hair was cut. And instead of singing “Hallelujah” to praise God, the song suggests that David’s “Hallelujah” was a result of making love to Bathsheba (“And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah”).

Consequently, instead of praising God by singing the Hallelujah refrain, the unusual words in the verses appear to twist the normally expected intention of the Hallelujah chorus. Some say that the song may rather be interpreted to mock those who sing the “Hallelujah” chorus by saying that some are “baffled” like King Saul and don’t really know what they are singing. It suggests that people may sing it just because the (“secret”) musical chords sound nice, or it makes them feel good (such as when making love like David), rather than because they are really praising God from a grateful and righteous heart.

The final verse clearly outlines Leonard Cohen’s non-Christian perspective to his song when he wrote “Maybe there's a God above” (Buddhists do not believe that God exists). He tells us that he is not singing to God as he does not know if God exists. He also says that his “Hallelujah” does not come from feelings of love - “It's not a cry you can hear at night”. Instead, he tells us that the “Hallelujah” he sings is “cold” (unemotional without feelings towards God) and “broken” (ie. not really or truly praising God).

The verses point to King Saul singing Hallelujah, not because he was praising God but because he was baffled/ confused and tormented. The verses suggest that David on the other hand, composed the Hallelujah music only because the chords sounded nice, and said “Hallelujah” in the second chorus only from making love to Bathsheba. Just like Saul and David, some mention that Leonard appears to also mock those who sing Hallelujah by suggesting that they don’t know what they are singing and declaring that he too can sing the (third) Hallelujah chorus, even though he has not seen the light as a Christian (“It's not somebody who's seen the light”).

Others mention that Leonard seems to suggest that this song with a cleverly hidden double-meaning, was his way of getting revenge at Jews/ Christians who attacked him even though he might have loved them, when he wrote “And all I ever learned from love, was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you”. He wrote and sung 60+ verses with various combinations for this one song, with many having similar repeating themes such as “You say I took the name in vain, I don't even know the name, but if I did, well really, what's it to you?, It's no complaint you hear tonight, It's not some pilgrim who's seen the light, it's a cold and it's a lonely Hallelujah.”

While Leonard might have despised the Saul’s confusion, David’s hypocrisy and questioned the King David’s righteousness and integrity through his “Hallelujah” song, he appears to have overlooked the David’s contrition and repentance, seeking forgiveness on realizing his mistake, and God’s faithfulness and love for all who humble themselves and turn from their own ways. For “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

Hallelujah lyrics–
“I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth, the minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah (x4 chorus)

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair, she broke your throne, she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah (x4 chorus)

Maybe there's a God above
And all I ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you
It's not a cry you can hear at night, It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and its a broken Hallelujah”