Cover art for When You Gonna Wake Up by Bob Dylan

When You Gonna Wake Up

Aug. 20, 19791 viewer

When You Gonna Wake Up Lyrics

[Verse 1]
God don’t make promises that He don’t keep
You got some big dreams, baby, but in order to dream you gotta still be asleep

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?


[Verse 2]
Counterfeit philosophies have polluted all of your thoughts
Karl Marx has got you by the throat and Henry Kissinger’s got you tied up in knots

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?

[Verse 3]
You got innocent men in jail, your insane asylums are filled
You got unrighteous doctors dealing drugs that’ll never cure your ills

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?

[Verse 4]
You got men who can’t hold their peace and women who can’t control their tongues
The rich seduce the poor and the old are seduced by the young
[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?

[Verse 5]
Adulterers in churches and pornography in the schools
You got gangsters in power and lawbreakers making rules

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain?

[Verse 6]
Spiritual advisors and gurus to guide your every move
Instant inner peace and every step you take has got to be approved

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, said when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?

[Verse 7]
Do you ever wonder just what God requires?
You think He’s just an errand boy to satisfy your wandering desires

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain?
[Verse 8]
You can’t take it with you and you know that it’s too worthless to be sold
They tell you, “Time is money,” as if your life was worth its weight in gold

[Verse 9]
There’s a Man up on a cross and He’s been crucified for you
Believe in His power, it's all about you got to do

[Chorus]
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up — strengthen the things that remain?

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Credits
Written By
Release Date
August 20, 1979
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