She brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
Luke 2:7
Words: D. Rand Pierce, The Heavenly Pilgrim and Other Poems (Fitchburg, Massachusetts: D. Rand Pierce, 1909), pages 75–77.
Music: St. Columba ancient Irish tune (🔊 pdf nwc).
Alternate Tunes:
Of all the happy golden days,
The heav’nly Father gives us,
None can surpass for joy and praise,
The gladsome tide of Christmas.
How sad and dark the world became,
The blessèd Bible tells us,
Till in a stall, at Bethlehem,
Was born the baby Jesus.
Within the inn there was no room
To place the little Stranger,
So in a cattle cave of gloom
They laid Him in a manger.
How little dreamed that silent town
Of all the midnight wonder,
When Christ the Lord of Heav’n came down
To break sin’s bands asunder.
And to the shepherds, that same night,
An angel told the story,
And off they hastened with delight,
And found the Lord of glory.
And then a wondrous star had led
The wise men, too, to travel,
Far from the East, with weary tread,
To see this kingly marvel.
And when they found the Savior dear,
Within the lowly manger,
They worshiped Him, and presents rare
They gave the little Stranger.
We love to tell how Jesus came,
The blessèd Lord of glory,
For His is now the sweetest name
In any song or story.
And gifts are dearer when we know
That Jesus first was given;
For God did love this lost world so
He gave His Son from Heaven.
So let the whole wide world be glad
For all the joy it gives us,
For how could any one be sad
On such a day as Christmas!