Words: From an 11th Century Manuscript
Translator Unknown
Music: Hypo-Dorian Mode
Source: Carol 679, Rev. Charles Lewis Hutchins, Carols Old and Carols New (Boston: Parish Choir, 1916)
1. From church to church the bells' glad tidings run:
A Virgin hath conceived and borne a Son
In Bethlehem.
2. And angel hosts the midnight of His birth,
Sang "Glory be to God and peace on earth,"
In Bethlehem.
3. "Now go we forth, and see this wondrous thing"
The shepherds said, "and seek the new-born King"
In Bethlehem.
4. Then Herod sought the Royal Son to slay,
Who rather should have come to kneel and pray
In Bethlehem.
5. The star went leading on from East to West:
The Wise Men followed, till they saw it rest
In Bethlehem.
6. Their frankincense, and myrrh, and gold they bring,
To hail the God, the Mortal, and the King
In Bethlehem.
7. With threefold gifts the Threefold God then praise,
Who thus vouchsafed the sons of man to raise
In Bethlehem.
Sheet Music from Charles L. Hutchins
Sheet Music from George Ratcliffe Woodward, The Cowley Carol Book, First Series (London: A. R. Mowbray & Co., Ltd., 1902, Revised and Expanded Edition 1929), Carol #7, First And Second Tunes
First Tune: MIDI / Noteworthy Composer / PDF
Second Tune: MIDI / Noteworthy Composer / PDF
