Gloomy night em­braced the place
Wherein the no­ble In­fant lay:
The Babe looked up and showed His face;
In spite of dark­ness, it was day!
It was Thy day, sweet! and did rise
Not from the east, but from Thine eyes.

We saw Thee in Thy bal­my nest,
Young dawn of our eter­nal day!
We saw Thine eyes break from the east
And chase the trem­bling shades away;
We saw Thee, and we blessed the sight;
We saw Thee by Thine own sweet light.

Welcome, all won­ders in one sight!
Eternity shut in a span!
Summer in win­ter, day in night!
Heaven on earth, and God in Man!
Great lit­tle One! Whose low­ly birth,
Lifts earth to Heav’n, stoops Heav’n to earth.

To Thee, meek Ma­jes­ty! soft King
Of sim­ple grac­es and sweet loves;
Each one of us his lamb will bring,
And each his pair of sil­ver doves;
Till burnt in fire of Thy fair eyes,
Ourselves be­come our sac­ri­fice!