The way you related the "no code" ethos was good. I still feel that there is a certain 'code of ethics' touched upon throughout Bob Dylan's works - not to get weird about it!

I don't think Bob Dylan is any kind of messiah figure. He's an exceptionally talented entertainer. His themes have attracted moralists and thinkers of all sorts.
Maybe we indulge ourselves, at times, as fans, on this website. That's okay, too. I think Bob Dylan is worthy of a bit of constant discussion, throughout the interwebs. I think he's an exceptional human being. I don't want to
be him. Someone named "Hippie Cat", or whatever his name was, made a related remark on another thread. It's OK to admire people. But I'm through cross-threading after this post. I don't even know if that's against the rules.
When they start putting any of our faces on Cathedral statues of Michael the archangel, we might begin to know how Bob Dylan really feels or thinks. Bob Dylan has attracted a lot of attention over the past half-century+, and I believe that's a good thing.
So anyway, Faith without works is dead. Duquesne Whistle
feels like movement; feels like it's trying to provoke movement. I like the song a lot. I'm enjoying delving into the possible influences, as Johanna Parker has listed them on this thread. I feel that Bob has probably done a lot with his faith in subtle and private ways, and he's always moving around. Bob Dylan's faith is in motion. I like that he says he's not a "gambler" or "pimp" in this song. He could easily be the biggest pimp around if he wanted to be. They played DW way better last-tour than they did on the album. Just sayin'. I think DW is all about the "collected influences", in a way.