“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”  -Matthew 7:1-2, NIV
“But it isn't my fault, I was given those beans. You persuaded me to trade away my cow for beans. And without those beans, there'd have been no stalk To get up to the giants in the first place.”  -Into the Woods
Into the Woods doesn’t give much detail about why Jack’s father left the family, but the consequences are all too present. Poverty, hunger, and blight invade Jack’s everyday experience, and the results of his father’s choices call for desperate measures. Jack’s mother tells Jack he must sell Milky White, his beloved cow and only friend. Even the bond between a boy and his pet is not enough to overcome a growling stomach and a wounded heart.
During the turbulent second act of the musical, Jack and his fellow travelers in the woods sing one of the most challenging and difficult songs in the entire musical: “Your Fault.” In this song, the characters pass the blame musically as easily as we do in the everyday world. Blame is a direct consequence of sin. Returning to the scene in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve and even the snake himself turn to blaming others when confronted with their wrongs. When God asks Adam what he has done, Adam immediately points the finger at Eve: “The woman you gave me, she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate” (Genesis 3:12, CEB). When God confronts Eve, she immediately turns the blame on the serpent: “The snake tricked me, and I ate” (Genesis 3:13b, CEB). The serpent doesn’t even have a chance to respond and blame others before the Lord condemns him for his purposeful deception of Eve.
Placing blame happens when we are scared for ourselves. The spotlight has been shone on us, and we have an immediate desire to force the light on anybody else besides ourselves. During “Your Fault,” the fairy tale characters all do the same. The blame is passed along musically like children passing a ball. The Baker accuses Jack; Jack accuses Cinderella; Little accuses The Baker; and so on and so forth. Finally, the blame lands on the one character all the other characters can unite against: The Witch. She responds by singing a devastating ballad that shows each of the other characters for who they truly are. Blame will eventually land, but we best be aware of how our actions affect the situation before we thrust all responsibility on someone else.
The fear that drives blame comes from a reasonable place. As the Scriptures state, “All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory” (Romans 3:23, CEB). We should tremble before an all-righteous and holy God. He is perfect, and we should fear the wrath of God when we fall short of His expectations. Praise the Lord for our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ! Romans 3 continues, “...but all are treated as righteous freely by his grace because of a ransom that was paid by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24, CEB). Our sin is no longer counted against us when we are called to repentance through the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ has paid the ransom for our willful and deliberate disobedience. He has taken the blame that we so desire to cast off, and He has taken the blame upon Himself. He drinks the cup of God’s wrath so that we might drink deeply of the cup of God’s forgiveness. Unlike Sondheim’s characters in Into the Woods, those who place trust in Christ and His work have no need to pass the blame.
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