The Great Forerunner of the Morn

The great fore­run­ner of the morn

The her­ald of the Word

is born:

And faith­ful hearts shall nev­er fail

With thanks and praise his light to hail.

With heav­en­ly mes­sage Ga­bri­el came

That John should be that her­ald’s name

And with pro­phet­ic ut­ter­ance told

His act­ions great and ma­ni­fold.

John

still un­born

yet gave aright

His wit­ness to the com­ing light;

And Christ

the sun of all the earth

Fulfilled that wit­ness at His birth.

Of wo­man born shall nev­er be

A great­er pro­phet than was he

Whose migh­ty deeds ex­alt his fame

To great­er than a pro­phet’s name.

But why should mor­tal ac­cents raise

The hymn of John the Bap­tist’s praise?

Of whom

or e’er his course was run

Thus spake the Fa­ther to the Son?

Behold

My her­ald

who shall go

Before Thy face Thy way to show

And shine

as with the day-star’s gleam

Before Thine own eter­nal beam.

All praise to God the Fa­ther be

All praise

eter­nal Son

to Thee

Whom with the Spir­it we ad­ore

Forever and for­ev­er­more.