He caught a train from Alexandria
Just a broken man in flight
Running scared with all his devils
Saying prayers all through the night
Oh but mercy can't find him
In the shadows where he calls
Forsaking all his better angels
That's how every empire falls

The bells ring out on Sunday morning
Like echoes from another time
All our innocence and yearning
And sense of wonder left behind
Oh gentle hearts remember
What was that story is it lost
For when religion loses vision
That's how every empire falls

He toasts his wife and all his family
The providence he brought to bear
They raise their glasses in his honor
Although this union they don't share
A man who lives among them
But still a stranger to them all
For when the heart is never open
That's how every empire falls

Padlock the door and board the windows
And put the people in the street
It's just my job, he says, I'm sorry
And draws a check and goes home to eat
But at night he tells his woman
I know I hide behind the law
She says, you're only taking orders
That's how every empire falls

A bitter wind blows through the country
A hard rain falls on the sea
If terror comes without a warning
There must be something we don't see
What fire begets this fire
Like torches thrown into the straw
If no one asks then no one answers
That's how every empire falls