AH, DEAREST JESUS
For Christmas Eve
Words:
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her, Martin Luther, Joseph Klug's Gesangsbuch, 1535;Music:
"Von Himmel Hoch," from Valentin Schumann's Geistliche Lieder (Leipzig, Germany: 1539); harmony by Johann Sebastian Bach1. Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child,
Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled
Within my heart, that it may be
A quiet chamber kept for Thee.
2. My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep;
I, too, must sing with joyful tongue
That sweetest ancient cradle song.
3. Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given;
While angels sing with tender mirth,
A glad new year to all the earth.
Note: For notes and other translations, see Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her.