Lyric discussion by mydreamquest 

Cover art for The Mercy Seat lyrics by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Mercy Seat isn't so cut and dry. Everyone wants to know: Did he get executed for a crime he didn't commit?

Of course not. With the lyrics as a weak defense case, we see a stubborn murderer using his final breaths trying reconcile the bitter life he had.

When you're jailed and stripped of your freedom, you begin turn into the victim you murdered.

The song is about how one is always haunted by their incidents of bad karma.

My Interpretation