Religion
O ye who seek the Lord, come nigh
Translated by John Brownlie (1896) · From Hymns of the Early Church (1896)
O ye who seek the Lord, come nigh,
To heaven uplift your reverent eyes,
The Royal Banner of our God
Is blazoned on the midnight skies.
Brighter than when the sun at noon
Pours forth its radiance on the earth,
See yonder star its glory sheds,
And tells to man the Saviour's birth.
O wisdom seeks the lowly stall,
And takes the guidance of the star,
To worship where the Incarnate lies,
And offer gifts from lands afar:
With incense, worships the Divine,
With gold, a kingly tribute pays,
And at the feet of God made Man,
The myrrh in sweet profusion lays.
O Bethlehem, city ever blest!
What honour more could come to thee?
The cradle of the Incarnate God,
Who came to set His Israel free!
O Jesus, to the world revealed!
To Thee let glory ever be,
To Father and to Holy Ghost,
From age to age eternally.
Codex Note
Latin: Quicumque Christum quæritis. Brownlie: part of the Epiphany portion of A solis ortus cardine; by some assigned to St. Ambrose, but by a majority of judges to Prudentius. A breviary cento of the Prudentian text, kept alongside Pope's full versions.
Cite this poem
MLA
Prudentius. “O ye who seek the Lord, come nigh.” Translated by John Brownlie. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/prudentius/14/.
Chicago
Prudentius. “O ye who seek the Lord, come nigh.” Translated by John Brownlie. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/prudentius/14/.
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