The moon shines bright and the stars give a light
A little before the day:
Our mighty Lord He looked on us,
And bade us awake and pray.Awake, awake, good people all,
Awake, and you shall hear,
The Lord our God died on the cross
For us He loved so dear.
O fair, O fair Jerusalem,
When shall I come to thee?
When shall my sorrows have an end,
Thy joy that I may see?
The fields were green as green could be,
When from His glorious seat,
Our blessèd Father watered us,
With His heavenly dew so sweet.
And for the saving of our souls
Christ died upon the cross;
We ne’er shall do for Jesus Christ
As He hath done for us.
The life of man is but a span,
And cut down in its flower,
We’re here today, tomorrow gone,
The creatures of an hour.
Instruct and teach your children well,
The while that you are here;
It will be better for your soul,
When your corpse lies on the bier.
Today you may be alive and well,
Worth many a thousand pound;
Tomorrow dead and cold as clay,
Your corpse laid underground.
With one turf at thine head, O man,
And another at thy feet;
Thy good deeds and thy bad, O man,
Will altogether meet.
My song is done, I must be gone,
I can stay no longer here;
God bless you all, both great and small,
And send you a joyful new year!
