If you beat up, you butcher, and you bleed a man 
You bang up and badger and blood-let a man 
And then I come along 
On the feet of man 
And halfway laugh and cry 
About the meat of man 

And I do what I can 
To bale string and tie 
Some ballad truths 
Up and cured out 
For the feed of man 

Folks try to tell me 
That it's on God's orders 
That you bleed your man 
It's on God's good word that you 
Bleed your man 
On God's plan print 
That you dead a man 
Or spit and curse and whip your man 

I say I'll help you squeeze and fix yourself up a 
A new kind of God of some kind 

One that tells you 
Fertilize and multiply 
One that tells you 
Outsow and outblow 
Outplant and outgrow 
Outdo, and outrun, and outclimb, and outspread 
Every other tree and bush 
And brushy fruits and flower petals 
Outfruit them all 
For the feed of man 
Outstalk and outhunt and outthink 
For God's own sweet sake, outthink! Outthink! 
Outthink the fruits 
Outgrow these animal kinds and shapes of man 
It you miss and go down 
Your dust will turn up on that long hot job 
Once more again 

To help in the feeding and the seed of man 
And not in the bleeding and the end of man