Today I have another very popular carol, this one from France. Angels We Have Heard on High was a traditional French carol, translated to English by Bishop James Chadwick. Here are the words from the Hymns and Carols website.
Angels We Have Heard on High
1. Angels we have heard on high
Sweetly singing o’er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.
Refrain
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
2. Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song? Refrain
3. Come to Bethlehem and see
Him1 whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King. Refrain
4. See Him in a manger laid,
Whom the choirs of angels praise;
Mary, Joseph, lend your aid,
While our hearts in love we raise.2 Refrain
Notes
An alternate fourth verse:
See, within a manger laid,
Jesus, Lord of heaven and earth,
Lend your voices, lend your aid
To proclaim the Saviour’s birth! Return
