Released: October 9, 2007
Songwriter: Dave Mustaine
Producer: Kevin Flaherty
Part 1: Holy Wars
[Instrumental Intro]
[Verse 1]
Brother will kill brother, spilling blood across the land
Killing for religion, something I don't understand
Fools like me who cross the sea and come to foreign lands
Ask the sheep for their beliefs, "do you kill on God's command?"
A country that's divided surely will not stand
My past erased, no more disgrace, no foolish naive stand
The end is near, it's crystal clear, part of the master plan
Don't look now to Israel, it might be your homeland
Holy wars...
Part 2: The Punishment Due
[Verse 2]
Upon my podium as the “know-it-all scholar”
Down in my seat of judgement, gavel's bang, uphold the law
Up on my soapbox, a leader out to change the world
Down in my pulpit as the holier-than-thou-could-be-messenger of God
[Verse 3]
Wage the war on organized crime
Sneak attacks, rappel down the rocks, behind the lines
Some people risk to employ me
Some people live to destroy me
Either way they die... they die!
[Verse 4]
They killed my wife and my baby
With hopes to enslave me
First mistake... last mistake!
Paid by the alliance
To slay all the giants
Next mistake... no more mistakes!
[Guitar Solo & Instrumental Shift]
[Verse 5]
Fill the cracks in with judicial granite
Because I don't say it don't mean I ain't thinking it
Next thing you know, they'll take my thoughts away
I know what I said, now I must scream of the overdose
And the lack of mercy killings
Mercy killings
Mercy killings, killings, killings, killings
Next thing you know, they'll take my thoughts away
[Instrumental Intro]
[Verse 1]
Brother will kill brother, spilling blood across the land
Killing for religion, something I don't understand
Fools like me who cross the sea and come to foreign lands
Ask the sheep for their beliefs, "do you kill on God's command?"
A country that's divided surely will not stand
My past erased, no more disgrace, no foolish naive stand
The end is near, it's crystal clear, part of the master plan
Don't look now to Israel, it might be your homeland
Holy wars...
Part 2: The Punishment Due
[Verse 2]
Upon my podium as the “know-it-all scholar”
Down in my seat of judgement, gavel's bang, uphold the law
Up on my soapbox, a leader out to change the world
Down in my pulpit as the holier-than-thou-could-be-messenger of God
[Verse 3]
Wage the war on organized crime
Sneak attacks, rappel down the rocks, behind the lines
Some people risk to employ me
Some people live to destroy me
Either way they die... they die!
[Verse 4]
They killed my wife and my baby
With hopes to enslave me
First mistake... last mistake!
Paid by the alliance
To slay all the giants
Next mistake... no more mistakes!
[Guitar Solo & Instrumental Shift]
[Verse 5]
Fill the cracks in with judicial granite
Because I don't say it don't mean I ain't thinking it
Next thing you know, they'll take my thoughts away
I know what I said, now I must scream of the overdose
And the lack of mercy killings
Mercy killings
Mercy killings, killings, killings, killings
Next thing you know, they'll take my thoughts away
Warchest
- Holy Wars... The Punishment Due (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Ashes In Your Mouth (Live at the Cow Palace, San Francisco)
- High Speed Dirt (Live at the Alpine Valley, East Troy, WI, 23/5/92)
- Skin o’ My Teeth (Live at the Alpine Valley, East Troy, Wisconsin 5/23/92)
- Architecture of Aggression (Demo)
- Keeping Score... (Interview)
- Five Magics (Demo)
- Tornado of Souls (Demo)
- Holy Wars... The Punishment Due (Casey McMakin Demo)
- Dark Themes... (Interview)
- Anarchy/Problems (Session Take)
- Never Say Die (Live)
- Duke Nukem Theme
- Coming Home
- One Thing
- Sweating Bullets (Live from the Cow Palace, San Francisco)
- Breakpoint (Session Take)
- Strange Ways
- Anarchy In The U.K. (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Black Friday (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Peace Sells (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Take No Prisoners (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Devil’s Island (Live at Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Lucretia (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- In My Darkest Hour (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- The Conjuring (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- The Skull Beneath The Skin (Live from Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Hook in Mouth (Live from the Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Hangar 18 (Live at the Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Wake Up Dead (Live at the Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Intro/Rattlehead (Live at Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- A Secret Place (Live at Woodstock, New York, 25/7/99)
- It’s Electric (Live at Wembley Arena, London, England, October 14, 1990)
- Into the Lungs of Hell
- Hangar 18
- The Killing Road
- Train of Consequences
- Reckoning Day
- Foreclosure of a Dream
- Symphony of Destruction
- À Tout le Monde
- Hook in Mouth
- Liar
- In My Darkest Hour
- Set the World Afire
- Devils Island
- Peace Sells
- Wake Up Dead
- The Skull Beneath the Skin
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- Go to Hell
- Angry Again
- Kill the King
- Of Mice and Men
- Kick the Chair
- Dread and the Fugitive Mind
- 1000 Times Goodbye
- Moto Psycho
- Crush ’Em
- Insomnia
- She-Wolf
- Use the Man
- Almost Honest
- Trust
- Diadems
- Paranoid
- Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!
- Warchest (2007)
- Holy Wars... The Punishment Due
- À Tout le Monde
- Tornado of Souls
- Symphony of Destruction
- Peace Sells
- In My Darkest Hour
- Sweating Bullets
- Hangar 18
- Rust in Peace... Polaris
- Five Magics
- Mechanix
- Take No Prisoners
- Dystopia
- Trust
- The Conjuring
- Hook in Mouth
- Countdown to Extinction
- Lucretia
- Good Mourning/Black Friday
- Set the World Afire
- Angry Again
- Wake Up Dead
- Dawn Patrol
- Conquer or Die!