This song is first and foremost a declaration of how a girl saved him from himself. No matter his past or the state she found him in, none of it was ever important to her. She only cared about helping him out of the drunken sin that almost killed him. Hozier's lyrics are almost always infused with religious reference, and when he thinks of the love he shares with this girl, concepts like heaven and hell lose their meaning. Life, death, and the prospect of an afterlife all pale in comparison to his new saviour.
These thoughts are what keep him standing while he labours under the burning heat. Doing hard labour for little pay is stressful, especially in the face of debt or having to provide for another. No matter hard he works, he is reminded that as long as he has his girl, he can continue to work hard because she's at home waiting for him. It's also a reminder to continue working at bettering himself for her; to not regress back into the lazy, drunken state she found him in. And even when the hard work of life eventually gets the better of his physical body, that still is not enough to keep her out of his heart and mind. Even death cannot keep them apart.
This song is first and foremost a declaration of how a girl saved him from himself. No matter his past or the state she found him in, none of it was ever important to her. She only cared about helping him out of the drunken sin that almost killed him. Hozier's lyrics are almost always infused with religious reference, and when he thinks of the love he shares with this girl, concepts like heaven and hell lose their meaning. Life, death, and the prospect of an afterlife all pale in comparison to his new saviour.
These thoughts are what keep him standing while he labours under the burning heat. Doing hard labour for little pay is stressful, especially in the face of debt or having to provide for another. No matter hard he works, he is reminded that as long as he has his girl, he can continue to work hard because she's at home waiting for him. It's also a reminder to continue working at bettering himself for her; to not regress back into the lazy, drunken state she found him in. And even when the hard work of life eventually gets the better of his physical body, that still is not enough to keep her out of his heart and mind. Even death cannot keep them apart.