Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
Here’s as best as I can put it, from what I know:my question comes from a verse of maiden...
Heaven can wait!
"Take my hand, I'll lead you to the promised land,
Take my hand, I'll give you immortality,
Eternal youth, I'll take you to the other side,
To see the truth, the path for you is decided."
The “promised land” is a concept originating in Judaism, a place Abraham was told by God that he and his descendants would live in. Moses and Joshua lead the Israelites back to it after serving in Egypt as slaves. Fast forward many hundreds of years and the country of Israel was founded on the same notion of Jews returning to their homeland.
African-Americans took the concept of “the promised land” during slavery, to mean Heaven or an end to slavery. This usage is the one that’s led to the modern interpretation of the line, which is either a literally land promised to you, or just simply Heaven. Steve uses it in the song because it’s about a man who dies and comes back to life. The promised land in the song is paradise — Heaven. And the narrator says that it can wait til another day.