Once in Royal David’s City
Lyrics by Cecil Frances Alexander and Music
by Henry John Gauntlett
Once
in royal Davids city,
Stood
a lowly cattle shed,
Where
a mother laid her Baby,
In
a manger for His bed:
Mary
was that mother mild,
Jesus
Christ, her little Child.
He
came down to earth from heaven,
Who
is God and Lord of all,
And
His shelter was a stable,
And
His cradle was a stall:
With
the poor, and mean, and lowly,
Lived
on earth our Saviour holy.
For
He is our childhood's pattern;
Day
by day, like us, He grew;
He
was little, weak, and helpless,
Tears
and smiles, like us He knew;
And
He cares when we are sad,
And
he shares when we are glad.
And
our eyes at last shall see Him,
Through
His own redeeming love;
For
that Child so dear and gentle,
Is
our Lord in heaven above:
And
He leads His children on,
To
the place where He is gone.
