Lyrics Black Cross - Bob Dylan

This is the story of Hezekiah Jones
Hezekiah Jones lived in a place in Arkansas
He never had too much
Except he had some land
An' he had a couple of hogs and things like that
He never had much money
But he'd spend what he did make as fast as he made it
So it never really mattered that he had much money
But in a cupboard there
He kept in the cupboard
He kept in the cupboard books
He called the books his "rainy season"
The white folks around the county there
Talked about Hezekiah
They said, "Well
Well Old Hezekiah, he's, he's harmless enough
But the way I see it he better put down them goddam books
Readin' ain't no good, for nigger is nigger"
One day the white man's preacher came around
Knockin' on doors
Knockin' on all the doors in the county
He knocked on Hezekiah's door
He says, "Hezekiah, you believe in the Lord?"
Hezekiah says, "Well, I don't know, I never really seen the Lord
I can't say, yes, I do"
He says, "Hezekiah, you believe in the Church?"
Hezekiah says, "Well, the Church is divided, ain't they
And... they can't make up their minds
I'm just like them, I can't make up mine either"
He says, "Hezekiah, you believe that if a man is good
Heaven is his last reward?"
Hezekiah says, "I'm good... good as my neighbor"
"You don't believe in nothin'," said the white man's preacher
You don't believe in nothin'!"
"Oh yes, I do," says Hezekiah
"I believe
That a man should be indebted to his neighbors
Not for the reward of Heaven or fear of hellfire"
"But you don't understand," said the white man's preacher
"There's a lot of good ways for a man to be wicked"
Then they hung Hezekiah high as a pigeon
White folks around there said, "Well... he had it comin'
'Cause the son-of-a-bitch never had no religion!"