What does Raining Blood mean?

Slayer: Raining Blood Meaning

Album cover for Raining Blood album cover

Raining Blood Lyrics

Trapped in purgatory
A lifeless object, alive
Awaiting reprisal
Death will be their acquisition

The sky is turning red
Return to power draws near
Fall into me, the skys crimson tears
Abolish the rules made of stone

Pierced from below,...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    Natejitsu
    click a star to vote
    Jun 27th 2009 !⃝

    This song is about people going to Hell. It is this song that is detailed on the cover of Reign in Blood. The narrator details his going to Hell and being judged, then he is placed on a spike (structure) on the wall or ceiling of Hell where his blood rains down upon the floor of Hell. If you don't believe me look at the cover for Satan's sakes.

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 5th 2012 !⃝

    Hey, a crazy idea came to mind. What if the persona is Jesus?

    "Trapped in purgatory
    A lifeless object, alive
    Awaiting reprisal
    Death will be their acquisition"

    This is Jesus before Pilate (a lifeless object alive, a puppet). Jesus awaits for reprisal (Destroying the temple upon His death). The acquisition (The start of Christianity) is the result of His death.

    "The sky is turning red
    Return to power draws near
    Fall into me, the skys crimson tears
    Abolish the rules made of stone"

    Jesus feels Himself bleeding at the cross, knowing He is about to die. Blood falls from His forehead (crimson tears falling) to His eyes (all he sees is a red sky). He knows His death will abolish the rules made of stone (Ten Commandments, the symbol of Judaism of the Old Testament).

    "Pierced from below, souls of my treacherous past
    Betrayed by many, now ornaments dripping above"

    Jesus being pierced by the centurion's spear. The betrayal is by the Pharisees (from above) who are now ornamental (useless before Christianity).

    "Awaiting the hour of reprisal
    Your time slips away"

    Jesus dies. It is the signal of the end of Judaism, as the temple shroud is torn in half.

    "Raining blood
    From a lacerated sky
    Bleeding its horror
    Creating my structure
    Now I shall reign in blood!"

    Jesus is raining blood (blood and water from His side). The rain is from the "sky", which is lacerated (again, His side, pierced from the spear). His death creates His new influential power structure (by all who witnessed His death). Jesus causes a new religion, which has a basis on self-sacrifice (signified by blood).

  3. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 26th 2019 !⃝

    It's about being cast out of heaven & wanting revenge. This song takes place during revenge & how the blood of angels is raining down on the Earth.

  4. anonymous
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    Sep 25th 2015 !⃝

    This song reminds me Clive Barker's Hellraiser.

  5. anonymous
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    Aug 2nd 2013 !⃝

    "It's about a guy who's trapped in Purgatory 'cause he was cast out of Heaven. He's waiting for revenge and he wants to {****} that place up." - Jeff Hanneman. Love it. <3

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 1st 2013 !⃝

    "It's about a guy who's in Purgatory 'cause he was cast out of Heaven. He's waiting for revenge and he wants to {****} that place up." - Jeff Hanneman. "The rest of the song explains what happens when he starts {****ing} people up." - Kerry King. The interpretation is up there, folks. God, I love this song. I'm thirteen and I hate today's crappy music. I love Slayer, Black Sabbath/Ozzy Osbourne, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth, KISS, Guns 'N Roses, The Runaways, Mötley Crüe and Led Zeppelin. Too bad Jeff died. Rock in Hell, man, rock in Hell. <3

  7. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 1st 2013 !⃝

    This is Jeff's exact words about "Raining Blood": 'It's about a guy who's cast down in Purgatory 'cause he was cast out of Heaven. He was waiting for revenge and wanted to {****} that place up.' Man, I love this song. It was awesome on GH 3. Rock In Peace Jeff Hanneman. <3

  8. anonymous
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    Oct 24th 2012 !⃝

    It's about cerialkiller who only kills when its raining

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  9. anonymous
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    Jun 20th 2012 !⃝

    Abolish the rules made of stone... is easy enough to understand. Satan wanted to abolish all the rules of God.

    Hmm to be honest the meaning of this song is written in the soundtrack to the apocalypse.

    And the meaning of reign so to speak is actually becoming powerful enough to overthrow heaven. The blood is the angels blood, or whoever is in Heaven before it gets overthrown.

    Trapped in purgatory.. refers possibly to the angels on earth that witnessed this happen but have forgotten since they were bound to human form, possibly.

    Fall unto me the skies crimson tears is a prophetic word I believe that Tom spoke because of his interpretation of Satan's thoughts about the crimson being a bloody colour maybe cos when I read this on soundtrack to the apocalypse I thought hmm I know what he meant you know, right there and then. Hmm the skies crimson tears, the tears may relate to the pain of the world and... well I D C rly it's only a song but hey watever I hope you get my drift.

    I hope y'all bought Slayer's new album I loved God hates us all full of aggressive perfection tbh. :) and Great chords but to be honest I did not listen to all the songs on christ illusion. \m/

  10. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 20th 2011 !⃝

    Get your facts straight. This song is about a guy who banished from heaven and he wants to overthrow heaven. All the blood falling is the blood of angels. The guy basically just goes in and "fucks the place up" from what Kerry king describes.

  11. JasmineStar
    click a star to vote
    Aug 11th 2009 !⃝

    Both the cover of the album Reigning blood, and the first track set the pace adn theme of the album, that it is about the Auschwitz concentration camps and the general torture and killing of millions of innocent people during that time. One really sad thing during the torture was the way some people were tortured to the point where they were forced to betray friends or family. The people who took power at this time could be said to be reigning in blood. In general using torture and war to try to take power.
    The song "raining in blood" follows that theme, and it is such a devastatingly sad theme i wuold not imagine many people can comment on the lyrics. However metal music is soemthign where each person can find an outlet to release their own pain, and the pain that we collectively carry from times such as these. U2 has a similar image of under a blood red sky, and sunday bloody sunday regarding the sad blood letting times and violence endured by people in ireland and many countries. It really is too sad to write about, but that is just the emotions for which we have no words, that a band like Slayer can help us grieve the shocking pain of what went on.

  12. MagnusCaligula
    click a star to vote
    Jul 4th 2009 !⃝

    Trapped in purgatory
    A lifeless object, alive
    Awaiting reprisal
    Death will be their acquisition

    A sentient being with no emotion; stands as judge over those brought before it

    The sky is turning red
    Return to power draws near
    Fall into me, the skys crimson tears
    Abolish the rules made of stone

    The coming of the antichrist is at hand. The rules made of stone refer to the ten commandments.

    Pierced from below, souls of my treacherous past
    Betrayed by many, now ornaments dripping above

    The torchered souls of the damned scream across the void. Anyone that stood in the path of the devil is well, an ornament dripping above.

    Raining blood
    From a lacerated sky
    Bleeding its horror
    Creating my structure
    Now I shall reign in blood!

    The blood of the slain fall as rain. A world of morbity is set for the rule of satan.

  13. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 18th 2009 !⃝

    If you ask me, its a song about his thought of the apocalypse


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