Now gather 'round all you ladies and gents
Let me tell you about this earthly tent
To where the Lord descended
And people were told to repent
What you may not know, there Jane and Joe
Is that long ago they'd take bulls and goats
And they'd cut their throats
And hope the blood would save-a their souls
If you look back, Jack, to the Tabernacle
With a deep respect, I think you'll be thankful
That the old is gone
And the new has taken its place
It was glorious space, that holy tent
For that come-but-stay-away covenant
But the new's been sent
And the old has passed away
Now don't mishear me, don't get me wrong
It was splendid tent forty-five feet long
And fifteen high and fifteen wide
With beautiful walls on the side
And it was divided in two big parts
The priest would start in the holy place
Where he would go in each day to offer things
So that the Lord would change his mind
And not destroy everyone in line
The next part was the Most Holy Place
And every year there was just one day
Where the high priest would go behind the curtain
Determined to avert the certain wrath of God
That would destroy the vermin of the land
And in the grand plan of wisdom divine
The inside was like a Garden, ripe
With relics prized which symbolized
That Paradise you might could find
Kill the bull, offer the grain
Make a sacrifice to God and then do it again
What can wash away my sin?
Not the blood of animals
What can make me whole again?
Not the blood of animals
O feeble is the stream
That leaves my soul unclean
No creature can redeem
Not the blood of animals