Earth Has Many a Noble City
Composer
Difficulty
Moderately Easy
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Season
Voicing(s)
Instruments
Collections
Instrumental Only?
No
Description
SATB and organ. Second and fourth verses are canonic. Broad and noble and a great setting for Epiphany in the English style.
Audio
Lyrics
Earth has many a noble city;
Bethl’hem, thou dost all excel;
Out of thee the Lord from heaven
Came to rule His Israel.
Fairer than the sun at morning
Was the star that told His birth,
To the world its God announcing
Seen in fleshly form on earth.
Eastern sages at His cradle
Make oblations rich and rare;
See them give, in deep devotion,
Gold and frankincense and myrrh.
Sacred gifts of mystic meaning:
Incense doth their God disclose,
Gold the King of kings proclaiming,
Myrrh His sepulcher foreshows.
Jesus, whom the Gentiles worshiped
At thy glad Epiphany,
Unto thee, with God, the Father,
And the Spirit glory be.