“Selah” is the second track on Kanye West’s ninth studio album ‘Jesus Is King’ released on October 25, 2019. The song seems to discuss Kanye’s place as a mortal human being among the likes of Gods and Lords.
‘Selah’ is a word found in the Bible in the Book of Psalms. The Hebrew-descent word is said to have a loose meaning between “uplift,” “motivate,” “alleviate” and “exalt.” However, as per Kanye, the word means to “to look back and reflect upon.”
There are several Biblical references in the song; Noah and the flood, John 8:33, John 8:36, Judas and more. For these Biblical references, Kanye sneaks in lyrical verses coinciding with the contents of the Bible. Listen to the track below.
Buy ‘Jesus Is King’ Album on Apple Music and Amazon
In the first verse of “Selah” we can see Kanye comparing himself to ‘Noah.’ Noah was instructed to build an ark big enough to hold two of all types of animals that roamed the earth. It is often said that Noah was ridiculed for this task, but when the floods came, Noah was everybody’s sole saviour. Kanye West has had a ”controversial’ history in personal life as well as on stage. But now, people are screaming for his music and his vision embedded in his music. ‘Yandhi’ was Kanye’s previous album title that was scrapped in 2018.
The direct references to the verses of the Bible have been converted to lyrics by Kanye West.
John 8:33 in the Bible reads; “They answered him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?’” John 8:36 in the Bible reads, in response to the above question; “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
Kanye also contradicts between the ‘weak’ and the ‘strong’ people. He plays on the words ‘weak’ and ‘week’ and says that normal people start their week on Monday, alluding to the common ‘work week.’ But strong (with faith) people start their week on Sunday by attending to church services.
“Selah” also presents a beautiful chorus of “hallelujah” sung by a Sunday service choir. The word ‘hallelujah” in Hebrew means ‘praise God.’
In the second verse, Kanye West calls upon all the people in the world, including the youth, to change themselves for the better. He attempts to reunite the people as ‘the army of God.’ In everything we do, keep God in mind and at heart and we shall reap the fruits of His favour abundantly.
Let us hear what you think about this track by Kanye West in the comments below. If you enjoyed this article, do share it with your friends.