Scripture References:
st. 1 = Ps. 24:8, Isa. 7:14
st. 2 = Matt. 4:23
st. 3 = Isa. 53:12
st. 4 = 1 Cor. 15:57, John 14:2
ref. = Ps. 24:7, Ps. 67:4
Catholic priest Willard F.Jabusch (PHH 210) wrote this text in five stanzas in 1965 in Niles, Illinois, for use by the parish folk-music ensemble of St. Celestine's Roman Catholic Church in Elmwood Park, Illinois. The text was published in Hymnal for Young Christians (1966), one of the first English Roman Catholic hymnals published in the United States after Vatican II.
Stanza 1 and the refrain are based on Psalm 24:7-8; stanzas 2 and 3 recall Jesus' ministry and his death to atone for sin; stanza 4 confesses Christ's victory over death and the coming of his kingdom. The original third stanza was not included.
Liturgical Use:
Epiphany; Advent; Palm Sunday, or anytime; a great processional hymn at the beginning of a worship service.
--Psalter Hymnal Handbook
