Hymn: When Jesus came to Bethlehem there was no worse a day

When Jesus came to Bethlehem there was no worse a day,
they say a census had been called, there was no place to stay;
this baby who would shake the world, would first lay down his head,
not in a royal house or hall, but in a manger bed.

When Jesus went to Nazareth his father had a trade,
a carpenter now had a son and business plans were laid;
but soon within the temple courts, this lad would have his way,
dissenting from his parents' wish, they'd looked for him all day.

The path that he set out to tread from Jordan's crowded bank,
would take him him through a wilderness with neither power nor rank;
returning he would scourge the ones and verbally deride
a viper's brood, these hypocrites, who dressed themselves in pride.

Verses 4-8 follow

Tune: LINCOLNSHIRE POACHER (for the pace at which this could go, find on YouTube Chris Sarjeant, Lincolnshire Poacher; though verse 5 -7, perhaps require a more sombre treatment) For John Parry Pentecost;

 

Andrew Pratt (born 1948)

Words © 16/4/2012 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England, www.stainer.co.uk. 

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