A Poor Brother's Hymnal
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
  The Day of Ressurection
“He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.” Matthew 28:7

Words: John of Da­mas­cus (675-749) (Αναστάσεως ήμέρα); trans­lat­ed from Greek to Eng­lish by John M. Neale, 1862.

Music: Lancashire, Hen­ry T. Smart, 1835 (MI­DI, score). Smart wrote this tune for a mu­sic fes­tiv­al in Black­burn, Lan­ca­shire, Eng­land, com­mem­o­rat­ing the 350th an­ni­ver­sa­ry of the Re­for­ma­tion in Eng­land. Al­ter­nate tunes:

  • Ellacombe, Würt­tem­berg, Ger­ma­ny: 1784; adapt­ed and har­mo­nized by Will­iam H. Monk, 1868 (MI­DI, score)
  • Herz­lich Tut Mich Er­freu­en, Jo­hann Wal­ther, Ein Schön­er Geist­lich­er und Christ­lich­er New­er Berck­re­yen, 1522 (MI­DI, score)
  • Rotterdam, Ber­thold Tours, 1875 (MI­DI, score)

John Neale de­scribed how ear­ly Greek Christ­ians sang this hymn:

As mid­night ap­proached, the arch­bi­shop, with his priests, ac­com­pa­nied by the king and queen, left the church and sta­tioned them­selves on the plat­form, which was raised con­sid­er­a­bly from the ground, so that they were dis­tinct­ly seen by the peo­ple. Ev­er­y­one now re­mained in breath­less ex­pec­ta­tion, hold­ing an un­light­ed ta­per in rea­di­ness when the glad mo­ment should ar­rive, while the priests still con­tin­ued mur­mur­ing their mel­an­cho­ly chant in a low half whis­per. Sud­den­ly a single re­port of a can­non an­nounced that twelve o’clock had struck and that Eas­ter Day had be­gun; then the old arch­bi­shop, ele­vat­ing the cross, ex­claimed in a loud, ex­ult­ing tone, “Christ­os anes­te!” “Christ is ris­en!” and in­stant­ly ev­ery sin­gle in­di­vid­u­al of all that host took up the cry…At that same mo­ment the op­press­ive dark­ness was suc­ceed­ed by a blaze of light from thou­sands of tap­ers which…seemed to send streams of fire in all di­rect­ions.


The day of resurrection! Earth, tell it out abroad;
The Passover of gladness, the Passover of God.
From death to life eternal, from earth unto the sky,
Our Christ hath brought us over, with hymns of victory.

Our hearts be pure from evil, that we may see aright
The Lord in rays eternal of resurrection light;
And listening to His accents, may hear, so calm and plain,
His own “All hail!” and, hearing, may raise the victor strain.

Now let the heavens be joyful! Let earth the song begin!
Let the round world keep triumph, and all that is therein!
Let all things seen and unseen their notes in gladness blend,
For Christ the Lord hath risen, our joy that hath no end.

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  Into The Dim Earth's Lower Parts Descending
“He…descended first into the lower parts of the earth.” Ephesians 4:9

Words: John of Da­mas­cus, 8th Cen­tu­ry (Κατήλθες έν τοίς κατωτάτοις); trans­lat­ed from Greek to Eng­lish by John M. Neale in Hymns of the East­ern Church (Lon­don: J. Hard­ing, 1862).

Music: Morn­ing Star, James P. Hard­ing, 1892 (MI­DI, score). Al­ter­nate tune:


Into the dim earth’s lowest parts descending,
And bursting by Thy might the infernal chain
That bound the prisoners, Thou, at three days’ ending,
As Jonah from the whale, hast risen again.

Thou brakest not the seal, Thy surety’s token,
Arising from the tomb Who left’st in birth
The portals of virginity unbroken,
Opening the gates of Heaven to sons of earth.

Thou, Sacrifice ineffable and living,
Didst to the Father by Thyself atone
As God eternal: resurrection giving
To Adam, general parent, by Thine own.

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  Let Us Rise In Early Morning
“Early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared.” Luke 24:1

Words: John of Da­mas­cus, 8th Cen­tu­ry (Ορθρίσωμεν όρθρου βαθέος); trans­lat­ed from Greek to Eng­lish by John M. Neale in Hymns of the East­ern Church.

Music: Cwm Rhondda, John Hughes, 1907 (MI­DI, score).

If you have ac­cess to a pho­to of John Hughes that we could put on­line, please click here.


Let us rise in early morning,
And, instead of ointments, bring
Hymns of praises to our Master,
And His Resurrection sing:
We shall see the Sun of Justice
Ris’n with healing on His wing,
Ris’n with healing on His wing.

Thy unbounded loving-kindness,
They that groaned in Hades’ chain,
Prisoners, from afar beholding,
Hasten to the light again
And to that eternal Pascha
Wove the dance and raised the strain,
Wove the dance and raised the strain.

Go ye forth, His saints, to meet Him!
Go with lamps in every hand!
From the sepulcher He riseth:
Ready for the Bridegroom stand:
And the Pascha of salvation
Hail, with His triumphant band,
Hail, with His triumphant band.

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  Thou Hallowed Chosen Morn of Praise
“Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.” 1 Corinthians 15:20

Words: John of Da­mas­cus, 8th Cen­tu­ry (Αὕτη ἥ κλητή κλητή καὶ ἁγία ἡμέρα); trans­lat­ed from Greek to Eng­lish by John M. Neale, 1862.

Music: Ei­sen­ach, Jo­hann H. Schein, 1628; har­mo­ny by Jo­hann S. Bach (1685-1750) (MI­DI, score).


Thou hallowed chosen morn of praise,
That best and greatest shinest;
Fair Easter, queen of all the days,
Of seasons, best, divinest!
Christ rose from death; and we adore
Forever and forevermore.

Come, let us taste the vine’s new fruit,
For heav’nly joy preparing;
Today the branches with the root
In resurrection sharing:
Whom as true God our hymns adore
Forever and forevermore.

Rise, Zion, rise! and looking forth,
Behold thy children round thee!
From east and west, from south and north,
Thy scattered sons have found thee;
And in thy bosom Christ adore
Forever and for evermore.

O Father, O co-equal Son,
O co-eternal Spirit,
In persons Three, in Godhead One,
And One in power and merit;
In Thee baptized, we Thee adore
Forever and for evermore.

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All my favorite hymns. Most of them are from before the Reformation.

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