"Judas" by Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga’s song, Judas, is full of biblical allusions, along with the music video that she made for the song. The first allusion is at the very beginning of the video. Gaga is seen with a gang of motorcyclists riding with a man who is wearing a crown of thorns. This man, representing Jesus in the video, is riding with several other men wearing the names Judas, Peter, and John on the back of their jackets. These men represent Jesus’ disciples in the video.
The song begins with the line “When he comes to me I am ready/ I’ll wash his feet with my hair if he needs.” Lady Gaga has put herself in the position as Mary Magdalene when she washed Jesus’ feet and dried them with her hair. Luke 7:38 tells of Mary Magdalene washing the feet of Jesus. “and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.” This reference of Lady Gaga as Mary Magdalene is made later when she is seen washing Jesus’ feet with Judas sitting beside her. She is seen as Mary Magdalene again in the video as she is standing in a crowd wearing a white dress while the crowd throws stones at her. Gaga is then seen laying on the ground as if she had been stoned. This story is described in John 8:5-9, “Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.”
The second line of the song goes on to make another allusion saying “Forgive him when his tongue lies through his brain/ Even after three times he betrays me.” This line is referring to Peter. When townspeople asked Peter if he knew Jesus, Peter betrayed Jesus by answering the people that he did not know him. This story is told in Matthew 26:69-75, “Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.”
Lady Gaga’s next line refers to the bringing down of Jesus. “I’ll bring him down, bring him down, down/ A king with no crown, king with no crown.” Jesus is being called the king with no crown he was the king of the Jews but never wore a crown. This is also referencing the crown that the soldiers gave him when he was being crucified. Later in the video, Lady Gaga is seen leading the group who is bringing Jesus down. The man portraying Judas is then seen giving Jesus the “kiss of death” as the story described in Mark 14:44-46, “Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard." And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, "Rabbi!" And he kissed him. And they laid hands on him and seized him.” These allusions are far from the only ones in this video.
There are many others I could have also written about but I chose the most obvious ones to me. Lady Gaga claims not to be making any kind of “religious statements” in this video but a “social statement.” She explained “Judas” as song about “falling in love with the wrong man.” This theme fits well with her allusion to make the disciple who betrayed Judas as being the “wrong man” in the song. All of the other allusions made in the song also fir in because they were of characters who were around Judas or of characters who also sinned betraying Jesus. Lady Gaga further explained it as “The song is about honoring your darkness in order to bring yourself into the light. You have to look into what’s haunting you and need to learn to forgive yourself in order to move on.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wagn8Wrmzuc
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/ladygaga/judas.html
The song begins with the line “When he comes to me I am ready/ I’ll wash his feet with my hair if he needs.” Lady Gaga has put herself in the position as Mary Magdalene when she washed Jesus’ feet and dried them with her hair. Luke 7:38 tells of Mary Magdalene washing the feet of Jesus. “and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.” This reference of Lady Gaga as Mary Magdalene is made later when she is seen washing Jesus’ feet with Judas sitting beside her. She is seen as Mary Magdalene again in the video as she is standing in a crowd wearing a white dress while the crowd throws stones at her. Gaga is then seen laying on the ground as if she had been stoned. This story is described in John 8:5-9, “Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.”
The second line of the song goes on to make another allusion saying “Forgive him when his tongue lies through his brain/ Even after three times he betrays me.” This line is referring to Peter. When townspeople asked Peter if he knew Jesus, Peter betrayed Jesus by answering the people that he did not know him. This story is told in Matthew 26:69-75, “Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.”
Lady Gaga’s next line refers to the bringing down of Jesus. “I’ll bring him down, bring him down, down/ A king with no crown, king with no crown.” Jesus is being called the king with no crown he was the king of the Jews but never wore a crown. This is also referencing the crown that the soldiers gave him when he was being crucified. Later in the video, Lady Gaga is seen leading the group who is bringing Jesus down. The man portraying Judas is then seen giving Jesus the “kiss of death” as the story described in Mark 14:44-46, “Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard." And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, "Rabbi!" And he kissed him. And they laid hands on him and seized him.” These allusions are far from the only ones in this video.
There are many others I could have also written about but I chose the most obvious ones to me. Lady Gaga claims not to be making any kind of “religious statements” in this video but a “social statement.” She explained “Judas” as song about “falling in love with the wrong man.” This theme fits well with her allusion to make the disciple who betrayed Judas as being the “wrong man” in the song. All of the other allusions made in the song also fir in because they were of characters who were around Judas or of characters who also sinned betraying Jesus. Lady Gaga further explained it as “The song is about honoring your darkness in order to bring yourself into the light. You have to look into what’s haunting you and need to learn to forgive yourself in order to move on.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wagn8Wrmzuc
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/ladygaga/judas.html