It was written in 1870 by Church of England minister and hymnologist, John Ellerton (1826–1893).
With meter 9.8.9.8, tunes that it has been set to include:
- ST. CLEMENT (Scholefield) - composed for the text by Clement C. Scholefield (1839-1904), and published in Arthur S. Sullivan's 1874 hymnal, Church Hymns with Tunes - the most-commonly used tune for this hymn by far.
- LES COMANDEMENS DE DIEU which is attributed to French composer Louis Bourgeois (1510-1561)
- RADFORD by Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1810-1876).
It has been used at a number of English civic events, including Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897, the Hong Kong handover ceremony in 1997, and Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in 2022.
Downloads
This section may contain affiliate links: I earn from qualifying purchases on these. Free downloads are provided where possible (eg for public domain items).
Examples
Large choir with organ:
Mased choir, with orchestra:
Close-harmony quartet with organ - modernised words:
Choir and congregation with organ, recorded live at a civic church service:
Unaccompanied, with words on-screen:
Soloist and choir, with small orchestra:
Instrumental - bagpipes:
Instrumental - organ:
Lyrics
Traditional language
The day thou gavest, Lord, is ended;The darkness falls at Thy behest;
To Thee our morning hymns ascended,
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest.
We thank Thee that Thy church unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.
As o'er each continent and island
The dawn leads on another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent,
Nor dies the strain of praise away.
The sun that bids us rest is waking
Our brethren 'neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Thy wondrous doings heard on high.
So be it, Lord! Thy throne shall never,
Like earth's proud empires, pass away;
Thy kingdom stands, and grows for ever,
Till all Thy creatures own Thy sway.
Modern English
1 The day you gave us, Lord, is ended,the darkness falls at your request;
to you our morning hymns ascended,
your praise shall sanctify our rest.
2 We thank you that your Church, unsleeping
while earth rolls onward into light,
through all the world her watch is keeping
and never rests by day or night.
3 As over continent and island
each dawn leads to another day,
the voice of prayer is never silent,
nor do the praises die away.
4 The sun that bids us rest is waking
Our people 'neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Your wondrous doings heard on high.
Our people 'neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Your wondrous doings heard on high.
5 So be it, Lord! Your throne shall never,
like earth’s proud empires, pass away;
your kingdom stands and grows forever
until there dawns your glorious day.
No comments:
Post a Comment