"what do I do next? " said the bishop to the priest
"i have spent my whole life waiting, preparing for the feast
And now you say jerusalem has fallen and is lost
The king of heathen saracen has seized the holy cross."
Then the priest said "oh my bishop, we must put them to the sword
For God in all his mercy will find a just reward
For the noblemen and sinners, and knights of ready hand
Who will be the lord's crusader, send word throughout all the land
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost;"
"tell me what to do", said the king upon his throne
"but speak to me in whispers for we are not alone
They tell me that jerusalem has fallen to the hand
Of some bedevilled eastern heathen who has seized the holy land;"
Then the chamberlain said "lord, we must call upon our foes
In spain and france and germany to end our bitter wars
All christian men must be as one and gather for the fight
You will be their leader, begin the battle cry
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost"...
Ooh, high on a hill, in the town of jerusalem
There stood saladin, the king of the saracens
Whoring and drinking and snoring and sinking, around him his army lay
Secure in the knowledge that they had won the day;
A messenger came, blood on his feet and a wound in his chest
"the christians are coming!" he said, "i have seen their cross in the west,"
In a rage saladin struck him down with his knife
And he said "i know that this man lies
They quarrel too much, the christians could never unite!
I am invincible, I am the king
I am invincible, and I will win..."
Close they came, the army of richard the lionheart
Marching by day and night, with soldiers from every part
And when the crusaders came over the mountain and they saw jerusalem
They fell to their knees and prayed for her release;
They started the battle at dawn, taking the city by storm
With horsemen and bowmen and engines of war
They broke through the city walls
The heathens were flying and screaming and dying
And the christian swords were strong
And saladin ran when he heard their victory song;
"we are invincible, God is the king
We are invincible, and we will win!"
"what do I do now? " said the wiseman to the fool
"i have spent my whole life searching, to find the golden rule
Though centuries have disappeared, the memory still remains
Of those enemies together, could it be that way again? "
Then the fool said "oh you wise men, you really make me laugh
With your talk of vast persuasion and searching through the past
There is only greed and evil in the men that fight today
The song of the crusader has long since gone away
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost
Jerusalem is lost...
Jerusalem."