Good King Wenceslas

Representative Text

1 Good King Wenceslas looked out on the Feast of Stephen,
When the snow lay round about, deep and crisp and even.
Brightly shone the moon that night, though the frost was cruel,
When a poor man came in sight, gath’ring winter fuel.

2 “Hither, page, and stand by me, if you know it, telling,
Yonder peasant, who is he? Where and what his dwelling?”
“Sire, he lives a good league hence, underneath the mountain,
Right against the forest fence, by Saint Agnes’ fountain.”

3 “Bring me food and bring me wine, bring me pine logs hither,
You and I will see him dine, when we bear them thither.”
Page and monarch, forth they went, forth they went together,
Through the cold wind’s wild lament and the bitter weather.

4 “Sire, the night is darker now, and the wind blows stronger,
Fails my heart, I know not how; I can go no longer.”
“Mark my footsteps, my good page, tread now in them boldly,
You shall find the winter’s rage freeze your blood less coldly.”

5 In his master’s steps he trod, where the snow lay dinted;
Heat was in the very sod which the saint had printed.
Therefore, Christian men, be sure, while God’s gifts possessing,
You who now will bless the poor shall yourselves find blessing.

Timeless Truths

Author: John Mason Neale

John M. Neale's life is a study in contrasts: born into an evangelical home, he had sympathies toward Rome; in perpetual ill health, he was incredibly productive; of scholarly tem­perament, he devoted much time to improving social conditions in his area; often ignored or despised by his contemporaries, he is lauded today for his contributions to the church and hymnody. Neale's gifts came to expression early–he won the Seatonian prize for religious poetry eleven times while a student at Trinity College, Cambridge, England. He was ordained in the Church of England in 1842, but ill health and his strong support of the Oxford Movement kept him from ordinary parish ministry. So Neale spent the years between 1846 and 1866 as a warden of Sackvi… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Good King Wenceslas looked out on the feast of Stephen
Title: Good King Wenceslas
Author: John Mason Neale (1853)
Meter: 13.13.13.14
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Timeline

Media

The Cyber Hymnal #1968
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)

Instances

Instances (1 - 35 of 35)

A School Service Book #d56

A Treasury of Hymns, the Best-Loved Hymns, Carols ... #d86

Anglican Hymns Old and New (Rev. and Enl.) #267

Carols of Christmas #7a

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Carols Old and Carols New #415

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Children's Praise #67

Christmas Carols #d8

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Christmas Carols and Hymns #14

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Christmas Carols and Hymns #14

Christmas Carols New and Old (First Series) #X

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Christmas Carols New and Old #10

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Christmas Carols New and Old #10

Christmas Carols together with Certain Familiar Hymns and Songs #d16

Christmas in Song #43

TextPage Scan

Common Praise (1998) #145

TextPage Scan

Complete Anglican Hymns Old and New #242

Hymns Old and New #183

Hymns, Carols and Chants for the Sunday School Children of St. Ignatius' Church #d25

Sing Noël #24

Songs for Service Men #d18

St. Francis Hymnal and Choir Manual #d104

The Book of Common Praise #746

Page Scan

The Christian Life Hymnal #139

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The Church School Hymnal with Tunes #22

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The Concord Hymnal #27

TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #1968

Page Scan

The Golden Hymn Book #385

The Hymnal #252

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The Hymnary with Tunes #80

The International Book of Christmas Carols #17

The Joy of Christmas #28

The Singing Choir #d48

The St. Alban Hymnal #d127

TextAudio

Timeless Truths #329

Text

Worship in Song #323

Exclude 27 pre-1979 instances
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