What do you think Writing on the Walls means?

underOATH: Writing on the Walls Meaning

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Album cover for Writing on the Walls album cover

Writing on the Walls Lyrics

Maybe we
Why don’t we
Sit right here for half an hour
We’ll speak of what
A waste I am
And how we missed your beat again

I swear we need to find some comfort in this run down place,
To bridge the gap of this conscious state that we live...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Jul 6th 2007 !⃝

    Ok, my take on this song is that it isn't totally about religion. Just because they represent their god does not mean that that's all they write about. This song may be about someone who is on there deathbed, telling someone that they are sorry,and thinking about the bad things they did/said to that person. "I'm taking back all the things I said Thinking back all the things I said", and "I swear we need to find some comfort in this run down place
    To bridge the gap of this conscious state that we live in
    And I'm short of time" support that. Now I also think that he calls himself a waste, because he knows he is going to die, and he doesn't feel that he is worthy to mourn over. I think that the "walls" represent life. The writing on the walls are all of the things you see once you are about to leave/die. Once its too late you see all of the bad, good, whatever, the memories. And for the part about "to fit they shape they tell you" its not about other people, its once again about the walls. What hand you were dealt, what your situation in this world will allow you. Once you kind of open your mind and just forget about the words "there" and "those" or "they" refering to people, I think the lyric make a lot more sense. Just my opinion, this is a great band with a lot of creative and spiritual energy.

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    Saprissa4eva
    click a star to vote
    Jul 4th 2009 !⃝

    This is what I Think this song is about....

    Hes talking about himself, and how he just met God, or he was with God but decided to go out into the world and get lost again. So when he says..

    "Maybe we, Why don't we sit right here for half an hour, well speak of what a Waste I am, And how we missed your beat again"
    He's saying why is it that he never goes to church for that half and hour.. He's like asking himself that but then the second part "well speak of what a waste I am" Hes talking to God in Prayer saying that to God that his a a waste and that he missed his beat... He missed having that part of God in his heart.

    "I swear we need to find some confort in this run down place." Again he is in the Prayer and he's telling Good to give him confort in his Rundown place which in that moment is his heart because he's Sinned and done so much bad without Regret but he's asking God to give him some Confort to help him Forget and regret.

    "To Bridge the gap of this conscious stat that we live in" Is like saying to Bridge that Gap from this Life to Eternal life, Like Prayer.. as Ive been saying
    "Im Short in time" Meaning he doesn't have forever to pray..

    Then "How come you try and Bring us home, to Fit the shape of I pray for, what they tell you, you to move on, move on, But Mostly what they show you" This part is praying he's telling God Why do you try to bring me here Home (church) to Make (Fit) the shape (thing) that I pray for, he's basiclly telling God why do you bring me here, if you don't answer my prayer? of what I want to be....
    And God Respondes What they tell you.. and What the show you, he's like saying because you keep living in the past seeing the things THEY say not what I say, and God then says Move on, Move on.. like stop living in the past, today is a new day...

    Then the he states "at this rate we can't keep up" like saying God we're on two different pages I don't have enough faith.. and then he says " Im thinking back on the thins I said.." Because He said something in the past to others that he regrets and he knows it..
    Then God says "But sure I can't just sit still, Keep me filled in.. I swear ill come.." He's saying allow me to come in... and then when God Hears this he tells him to keep praying that he will come....

    When he says we walk alone, he's in his head still praying, taking a walk with God, having a conversation with him... alone back home.. Is simply saying Gods walking him back to reality.. meaning the prayers almost over...

    Your almost gone and I'm okay means that altho the prayers almost over the boy feels okay... And he still sees Gods shadow... meaning He knows Gods still with him...And then he just states that he will remember Gods Prescense...
    Then he's praying saying I Hope to God you come down, I hope to God you can feel this now, he's praying that .. And then I know there must be some way out of here and all of them will be waiting there.. Is Saying that the person knows there's a way out of the Bad things out of Sin... and all of them as in God and angels are waiting In heaven for him.....

    In my opinion I think mines pretty close... lol

    I HOPE SOME OF YOU GUYS ACTUALLY READ THIS BECAUSE I THINK ITS PRETTY DARN CLOSE =]

    God bless!

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Feb 21st 2009 !⃝

    This song is about escaping the material things in life, and finding meaning to one's purpose. "I swear we need to find some comfort, in this, run down place"
    It goes along to portray the fact that we are all inferior, and that no one is perfect, but God loves us anyways "Taking back all the things i said, thinking back all the things i said" No matter if you think you're alone, God is always there "We walk alone....I remember, your presence"

  4. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Mar 6th 2018 !⃝

    I may have heard somewhere that this song was about a friend who passed from a heroin overdose. The song plays out from both the POV of a user and also the POV of someone close to that person. “I hope to God you come down, I hope to God you feel this now”

  5. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 24th 2011 !⃝

    Many people believe that there is only one person speaking in these lyrics. I think there are two. The person who is screaming is the one who is dying, and the person who is singing (whom I believe to be his brother) is alive and healthy. For me, the biggest indication of this is towards the end of the song-
    "You're almost gone and I'm ok,"
    "I STILL SEE YOUR SHADOW."
    "To give you time to be afraid."
    "BUT NEVER YOUR FACE AGAIN, I REMEMBER YOUR PRESENCE."
    It is clear to see with these lyrics this person is comforting his brother while he's barely hanging onto life on his deathbed. This is my favorite song and it is very powerful and while this is my interpretation, I'm sure this song can have many different meanings.

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 31st 2011 !⃝

    I think it is a prayer...a person talking to God...he says

    "Maybe we, why don't we? Sit right here for half an hour?"
    Like if he wanted to say
    "Hey God sit here with me to talk for some time "
    And he part where he says
    "And we'll speak of what a waste i am"
    Means that he is telling God that he is not worth to be with him, but even like that God is with him, and the last part he says
    "And how we missed your beat again"
    Like if he had sinned, and feeling dirty because of it, thinking God left him because of it so he is worried, and afterwards he also question humanity.

    "How come you try and,
    (That brings us home)
    To fit the shape of
    (I pray for)
    What they tell you
    (you to move on, move on)
    But mostly what they show you

    This part he is questioning humanity for they try to fit and shape the word of God at their will, and not to preach about the truth, and so they take the easier path AKA the world.

    At this rate, we cant keep up,
    (I'm thinking back on the things I said) 2x
    But I sure can't just sit still
    Keep me filled in, I swear I'll come"

    And that shows one of them thinking back the lies he had told to everyone, and how he shaped the words of God for his own use and then he is asking for forgiveness asking God to keep him filled with his spirit, and then he will do things right now without lies. and the next part is:

    "We walk alone
    Back home
    Alone
    Back home"

    The "Home" here is heaven or the church, for though "We walk alone" has ambiguous meaning for one cannot walk alone if he is with someone else so the "WE" means more than one people As one like God and the person as one, one person but God, holy spirit and Jesus.

    "You’re almost gone and I’m ok
    (I still see your shadow)
    To give you time to be afraid
    (But never your face again
    I remember your presence)"

    The first line means that We are nothing without God but God is still GOD (OK) without us, it says he still see his shadow, that is things are not as they used to be, they are fading, "to give you time to be afraid" means that the person is dying because it denied God's truth, he still see his shadow, remember his presence, but is afraid, and will never see God again.

    "I hope to God, you come down
    I hope to God you can feel this now
    I hope to God, you come down
    I hope to...(God)..."

    Is the prayer of someone that thinks God forgot him/her and wants God to feel their pain, and the feelings they feel, but they are not aware of the Bible or the words of God that says God forgave every sin by the price of blood, and the only thing they can hope at that time is for God nothing more.

    "I know there must be some way out of here
    And all of them will be waiting there"
    Some way put of here means someone that is revolted with their situation and are full of living in fear, so they start searching for God and for solution to him and to everyone else, those are the valiant of heart that God chose and for the end "All of them will be waiting there" That part have two meanings for me, The first is, And all of the angels and people in heaven will be waiting there for you, or means that The people chosen by God will never fade, but all of them will be waiting there, for each one of us, to save us and show us the truth.

    Thanks for your attention.

  7. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Dec 25th 2010 !⃝

    we are all divided by differeces, and different understanding, we let judment of eachother cloud out minds, and enable us to relate to eachother and god. hince writing on the wall, hince babylon.

  8. vickaykarlmacrazy
    click a star to vote
    Feb 22nd 2010 !⃝

    I don't know how some people could think this song is about god, this song is seriously a work of art, and it expresses emotions not found in every being, but if found in yourself you'll know what I mean, the emotions of a worked body that had been through pain and tear, and this song is expressing still, the pain and tear, and it helped me express a lot when I went though this time, I thank this band for creating such a thing.

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 27th 2009 !⃝

    ha...ppl check out the UO777 dvd...when they play ths song spencer screams : MY LOST FRIEND sometime in the soft part of ths song...that should make it pretty clear thats what its about..and it makes sense if u read the lyrics

  10. anonamous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 1st 2009 !⃝

    i think when he talks about how a waste he is, its because he feels helpless.an hes talking to a girl. and he thinks they are each others comfort in thier broken home.and he wonder why she trys to please the crazy people with them in the broken home.he tells her to move on he takes back the stuff he said ( like each other bein comfort).cause he cant let life keep going this way. he feels like hes just alone. everyones just alone.so she moves on an hes glad, but he will always remember how it was good wen they were together.and he hopes she will realize that she doesnt have to please those people. cause there is a way out of a broken life.

  11. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Mar 15th 2009 !⃝

    so.. this song is definitely about a broken home. families that arent there and betraying each other essentially. this explains both the video and the song. funny how underoath has the extreme talent of getting into peoples heads.

  12. LoveIsAHoax
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    Jul 28th 2008 !⃝

    The video is bizarre.
    The song is really good though.
    And duh they're a Christian band.
    So for that person that was like
    "singing about "their god"
    ...you're messed up.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  13. anonymous
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    Dec 22nd 2007 !⃝

    [Music Faith] What's the story being portrayed through the "Writing on the Walls" music video?

    [Grant Brandell] It's basically a murder-mystery. The boy and the girl are in love and her father pulls them apart basically not allowing them to be together. There's a mentally unstable man in the apartment building that you basically are lead to believe is the killer until the end of the video when you learn the boy is through his eyes at the end of the video. That’s a broad, quick definition of the video.

    thats what I found and I believe its pretty much the most accurate interpretation.

  14. DMlive
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    Nov 10th 2007 !⃝

    Yes the writing on the walls yes when God wrote on the wall finally some kid got it took a while but yes.

  15. anonymous
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    Sep 13th 2007 !⃝

    Doesn't the Writing on the Walls refer to the fall of Babylon in The Bible?

  16. anonymous
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    Jun 20th 2007 !⃝

    Ok, some of the interpretations are good if this were a secular band. but like everyone knows...THEY'RE CHRISTIAN. now with that in mind, now try to figure it out. It has a christian meaning behind it. If you don't believe me, just ask me of my interpretaion and ill tell u. BUT IT IS A CHRISTIAN SONG WITH A CHRISTIAN MEANING SUNG BY A CHRISTIAN BAND, so it's probably not gonna have a secular meaning to it.
    -god bless

  17. anonymous
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    Jun 11th 2007 !⃝

    This song is a representation of a very dysfunctional family. Most likely involving a step-father, biological father, a daughter and a son. This song is written from the perspective of the by standing son who witnesses the step-father abusing the daughter. After the biological father realizes the step-dad is abusing his daughter; he intervenes. The step-father, and the biological father get into a fight, and the step-dad ends up killing the biological father.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  18. anonymous
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    Mar 25th 2007 !⃝

    It's about not being who you wanna be...and being forced into thing you don't want..

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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