Do As You're Told

One more, one more time,
And I don't know if I can stay.
Your silence kills me;
Your quietness smites me.
Just do as you're told,
Just do as you're told.

No, your scribes can't take it away.
Every scholar with a book out
And a shred of credibility
Will tell you it's authentic
And from his own lips.
Just do as you're told.

There's no reinterpretation,
There's no reevaluation
That can help you escape
The call to give it all up
The demand to give it away.
Just do as you're told.

The outsiders can't join us
Out of fear that they will be us,
And I've tried to think of a way
To fix it, but I have no strength.
I'm just one girl.
Just do as you're told.

I'm afraid I can't speak,
I'm afraid I can't think,
I'm afraid I can't lower the gun
From our head.
Maybe the trigger's already pulled.
Just do as you're told.

For every invasion,
For every violation,
For every declaration of war,
For every dissolute life spent,
You're pumping bullets in.
Just do as you're told.

I'm shocked at his decision
To not send us away now
With a certificate of divorce
For our hideous face.
Just do as you're told
And maybe he won't be so reluctant.

Why have the rules grown old?
Do as you're told.