The Preacher and the Bear by Jerry Reed The preacher went out a huntin', it was on one Sunday morn' It was against his religion, but he took a shotgun along He got himself a mess a' mighty fine quail and one old scraggly hare And on the way home he crossed the path of a Great big grizzly bear Well the bear got down lookin' ready to charge The preacher never seen nothin' quite that large They looked each other right smack in the eye Didn't take that preacher long to say bye The preacher he run till he spotted a tree He said "up in that tree's where I auta be" By the time that bear made a grab for him The preacher was a sittin' on top a that limb Scared to death, he tuned about He looked to the sky and began to shout, Chorus; Hey lord, you delivered Daniel from the bottom of the lion's den You delivered Joana, from the belly of the whale and then, The Hebrew children from the fiery furnace so the good books do declare Hey lord, if you can't help me, for goodness sake don't help that bear Ya, look out preacher Well, about that time the limb broke off and the preacher came tumblin' down Had a straight razor out of his pocket by the time he lit on the ground He landed on his feet right in front a that bear and lord what an awful fight The preacher and the bear and the razor and the hair flyin' from left to right Well first they was up and then they was down, the preacher and the bear runnin' round n' round The bear he roared and the the preacher he groaned, he was havin' a tough time holdin' his own He said Lord if I get out a here alive, to the good book I'll abide No more huntin' on the Sabbath day, come Sunday I'm headin' to the church to pray Up to the heavens the preacher glanced, he said Lord won't you give me just one more chance So the preacher got away, he looked around seen a tree where he'd be safe and sound Jumped on a limb, turned about, looked to the sky and began to shout