“Surrendering” by Alanis Morissette

Under Rug Swept
Maverick
2002



God is singing a sort of ode to the person in this song. God has pursued her like a lover and now, looking back on these events, God lauds how far she’s come, encourages her to continue moving closer, and assures her that there is nothing to fear. This song beautifully describes God’s delight in the development of the relationship.

You were full and fully capable

You were self sufficient and needless

Your house was fully decorated in that sense

You were taken with me to a point

A case of careful what you wish for

But what you knew was enough to begin

And so you called and courted fiercely

So you reached out, entirely fearless

And yet you knew of reservation

And how it serves

And I salute you for your courage

And I applaud your perseverance

And I embrace you for your faith in the

Face of adversarial forces that I represent

So you were in but not entirely

You were up for this but not totally

You knew how arms length-ing

Can maintain doubt

And so you fell and you're intact

So you dove in and you're still breathing

So you jumped and you're still flying

If not shocked

And I support you in your trusting

And I commend you for your wisdom

And I'm amazed by your surrender in the

Face of threatening forces that I represent

You found creative ways to distance

You hid away from much through humor

Your choice of armor was your intellect

And so you felt and you're still here

And so you died and you're still standing

And so you softened and still

Safely in command

Self-protection was in times of true danger

Your best defense to mistrust and be wary

Surrendering a feat of unequalled measure

And I'm thrilled to let you in

Overjoyed to be let in in kind

Interpretation

You were full and fully capable

You were self sufficient and needless

Your house was fully decorated in that sense

God acknowledges the person was doing fine in life. She was competent (“fully capable”), independent (“self sufficient”), and didn’t really need God in one sense. Her house had all the necessary furnishings—it looked good from the outside. Implied here is that the narrator’s life was just a façade; she really did need God.

You were taken with me to a point

A case of careful what you wish for

But what you knew was enough to begin

As God pursues the person, she warily begins to fall in love with God. This relationship starts cautiously as she opens up to God but God says these tentative steps are “enough to begin”. God does not expect a complete and total commitment on the first date.

And so you called and courted fiercely

So you reached out, entirely fearless

And yet you knew of reservation

And how it serves

God reflects on her progress and recalls how she “called and courted fiercely” implying that she overcame her initial caution to “[reach] out” to God. This intense and “fearless” response to God may have been only temporary because soon the person reverts to wariness or “reservation”. This attitude is one of self-protection. The person doesn’t want to over-commit and then be burned. Caution “serves” her by avoiding the possibility of being let down.

And I salute you for your courage

And I applaud your perseverance

And I embrace you for your faith in the

Face of adversarial forces that I represent

God continues to encourage (“salute”, “applaud”, and “embrace”) the person like helping a child learn to walk. God goes on to celebrate her “courage”, “perseverance”, and “faith” despite the conflict (“adversarial forces”) that a relationship with God might “represent”. God understands that she is moving slowly and it’s okay. She has a lot of baggage to deal with such as beliefs that viewed a relationship with God as a negative thing.

So you were in but not entirely

You were up for this but not totally

You knew how arms length-ing

Can maintain doubt

As she struggles with her emotions, the person dabbles in a relationship with God and yet maintains a degree of separation (she was “in but not entirely” and “up for this but not totally”). She holds on to doubt as a virtue and applies this to every aspect of life, even in relationships. She keeps all her relationships (not just the one with God) at arms length. This is the core practice that keeps the person from loving God and, in turn, other people. She distances herself from others as a means of protection but with God she is starting to let down that guard.

And so you fell and you're intact

So you dove in and you're still breathing

So you jumped and you're still flying

If not shocked

In this pivotal stanza the person breaks down and gives over completely to God (she “fell”, “dove”, and “jumped”). When this happens she discovers she doesn’t stop being a unique person. She is still “intact”, alive (“breathing”), and even excelling or “flying”. She is shocked that this is the case.

And I support you in your trusting

And I commend you for your wisdom

And I'm amazed by your surrender in the

Face of threatening forces that I represent

God again celebrates the person for her “trusting”, “wisdom”, and “surrender”. These small steps are praised even though she still harbors some doubt, this time due to the “threatening forces” that God represents. Any relationship is threatening because she believes intimacy—being vulnerable—will somehow diminish her as a person.

You found creative ways to distance

You hid away from much through humor

Your choice of armor was your intellect

The person continues to keep God at a “distance” by using “humor” or lack of serious reflection as a façade. She also uses her “intellect” in an attempt to protect herself from becoming too attached to God. She hides behind intellectual reasoning as “armor”. Maybe she denies God’s existence or aspects of theology she doesn’t like. She gets increasingly “creative” in her attempts to remain aloof.

And so you felt and you're still here

And so you died and you're still standing

And so you softened and still

Safely in command

Despite her best efforts, the person moves closer to God. Another stone falls away from the wall surrounding her heart as she “felt”, “died”, and “softened” as she falls in love with God. The narrator permits herself to feel (implying that she has kept her emotions guarded until now) and is surprised to find herself still sane or “here”. She experiences the renewal promised by Jesus when we die to ourselves. She discovers that she is “still standing.” She also finds that allowing her heart to be “softened” is not fatal but leaves her “safely in command” describing the peace that comes in God’s hands.

Self-protection was in times of true danger

Your best defense to mistrust and be wary

Surrendering a feat of unequalled measure

And I'm thrilled to let you in

Overjoyed to be let in in kind

God once again declares his delight at how much the person has overcome. She has laid down her “self-protection” that kept her safe in “times of true danger”. She conquered her “mistrust” and “wary” approach to relationships that had been her “best defense”. The most important step is that she surrendered which God describes as “a feat of unequalled measure”. Now, God is overjoyed to be in relationship with her (“to let you in”) and to be loved by her (“to be let in in kind”).