Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning

Representative Text

1 Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
dawn on our darkness and lend us your aid.
Star of the east, the horizon adorning,
guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.

2 Cold on his cradle the dewdrops are shining;
low lies his head with the beasts of the stall.
Angels adore him in slumber reclining,
maker and monarch and Savior of all.

3 Shall we yield him in costly devotion
rarest of fragrances, tribute divine,
gems of the mountain and pearls of the ocean,
myrrh from the forest and gold from the mine?

4 Vainly we offer each ample oblation,
vainly with gifts would his favor secure.
Richer by far is the heart's adoration,
dearer to God are the prayers of the poor.

5 Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
dawn on our darkness and lend us your aid.
Star of the east, the horizon adorning,
guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.


Source: Christian Worship: Hymnal #373

Author: Reginald Heber

Reginald Heber was born in 1783 into a wealthy, educated family. He was a bright youth, translating a Latin classic into English verse by the time he was seven, entering Oxford at 17, and winning two awards for his poetry during his time there. After his graduation he became rector of his father's church in the village of Hodnet near Shrewsbury in the west of England where he remained for 16 years. He was appointed Bishop of Calcutta in 1823 and worked tirelessly for three years until the weather and travel took its toll on his health and he died of a stroke. Most of his 57 hymns, which include "Holy, Holy, Holy," are still in use today. -- Greg Scheer, 1995… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Brightest and best of the sons of the morning
Title: Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning
Author: Reginald Heber (1811)
Meter: 11.10.11.10
Language: English
Refrain First Line: Brightest and best
Copyright: Public Domain

Notes

Brightest and best of the sons of the morning. Bp .R. Heber. [Epiphany.] First published in the Christian Observer, Nov. 1811, p. 697, in 5 stanzas of 4 lines (the last being the first repeated); and again in his posthumous Hymns, &c, 1827, p. 25. Few hymns of merit have troubled compilers more than this. Some have held that its use involved the worshipping of a star, whilst others have been offended with its metre as being too suggestive of a solemn dance. Cotterill gave it in the 8th edition, 1819, of his Selection and omitted it from the 9th, 1820; and Elliott, following the example in detail, had it in his 1st edition Psalms and Hymns, 1835, and dropped it from the 2nd, which others have done much the same. It has, however, survived these changes, and has become one of the most widely used of the Bishop's hymns. In the American Presbyterian Psalms & Hymns for the Worship of God, Richmond, 1867, No. 69, it is given in an altered form as "Hail the blest morn! see the Great Mediator," and attributed in the Index to Tate and Brady. The Rev. R. Bingham has given a Latin rendering in his Hymnologia Christiana Latina, 1871: "Stella, micans coelo nitido magis omnibus una."

-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

Timeline

Media

You have access to this FlexScore.
Download:
Are parts of this score outside of your desired range? Try transposing this FlexScore.
General Settings
Stanza Selection
Voice Selection
Text size:
Music size:
Transpose (Half Steps):
Capo:
Contacting server...
Contacting server...
Questions? Check out the FAQ

A separate copy of this score must be purchased for each choir member. If this score will be projected or included in a bulletin, usage must be reported to a licensing agent (e.g. CCLI, OneLicense, etc).

This is a preview of your FlexScore.
The Cyber Hymnal #630
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)
Worship and Rejoice #235

Instances

Instances (801 - 900 of 905)

The Sacred Lute #d40

The Sacred Melodeon #d10

The Saint John's Church Sunday School Hymn Book #d8

Page Scan

The Sanctuary Hymnal, published by Order of the General Conference of the United Brethren in Christ #140

The Sanctus #d29

The School Hymn and Tune Book #d21

Page Scan

The School Hymnal #57

Page Scan

The School Hymnal #62

Page Scan

The School Hymnary #213

The School Psalter #d34

Page Scan

The Scottish Hymnal #32a

Page Scan

The Scottish Hymnal #32b

The Service of Song for Baptist Churches #d104

The Service of Praise #d31

The Service of Song for Baptist Churches #d60

TextPage Scan

The Seventh-Day Adventist Hymn and Tune Book #298

Page Scan

The Shining Star #108

The Singing Choir #d14

Page Scan

The Social and Sabbath School Hymn-Book. (5th ed.) #46

Page Scan

The Social Psalmist #29

The Soldier's Manual of Devotion, or Book of Common Prayer 2d ed. #d5

The Southern Psalmist #d97

The Southern Psalmist. New ed. #d105

Page Scan

The Spirit of Praise #161

The St. Alban Hymnal #d44

Page Scan

The Standard Sunday School Hymnal #7

The Student Hymnary #d43

Page Scan

The Students' Hymnal #238

Page Scan

The Students' Hymnal #32

Page Scan

The Students' Hymnal #32

Page Scan

The Sunday School Chant and Tune Book #48

Page Scan

The Sunday School Hymnal #12

The Sunday School Hymnal #d30

Page Scan

The Sunday School Hymnal #51

AudioPage Scan

The Sunday School Hymnal #51

Page Scan

The Sunday School Hymnary #189

The Sunday School Liturgy #d7

The Sunday School Serial No.1 #d2

Page Scan

The Sunday School Service and Tune Book #20

Page Scan

The Sunday-School Hymnal and Service Book (Ed. A) #231

The Tabernacle #d38

The Tabernacle Chorus #d20

Page Scan

The Tabernacle Chorus (Trinity ed.) #21

The Temple Harp #d44

The Thanksgiving #d27

Page Scan

The Tribute of Praise and Methodist Protestant Hymn Book #567a

Page Scan

The Tribute of Praise #567

Page Scan

The Tribute of Praise #565

The Union Harp and Revival Chorister. Rev ed. #d45

Page Scan

The University Hymn Book #90

The Vestry Hymn Book #d54

Page Scan

The Vestry Singing Book #224

The Victory #d46

Page Scan

The Virginia Selection of Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs #229

Page Scan

The Voice of melody #136

The Voice of Praise, a new collection #d20

Page Scan

The Voice of Thanksgiving No. 4 #220

The Wayside Hymnal #d8

Page Scan

The Wesleyan Methodist Hymnal #66

Page Scan

The Westminster Abbey Hymn-Book #76

Page Scan

The Winchester Hymn Supplement #52

Page Scan

The Woman's Hymnal #104

Page Scan

The World's Best Hymns #9

Page Scan

The World's Best Hymns #16

Text

The Worshipbook #318

TextFlexScoreAudioPage Scan

The Worshiping Church #182

The Young People's Chorus #d6

Page Scan

The Young People's Hymnal #149

Text

Together in Song #310a

Text

Together in Song #310b

TextPage Scan

Total Praise #219

TextPage Scan

Trinity Hymnal #167

TextPage Scan

Trinity Hymnal (Rev. ed.) #206

TextAudioPage Scan

Triumphant Songs No.2 #222

Page Scan

Triumphant Songs Nos. 1 and 2 Combined #419

Page Scan

Twenty Hymns #14

Page Scan

Twenty-Four English Hymns #6

Union Hymns #d60

Union Hymns. Rev. #d49

Union Hymns. Rev. #d51

Union Prayer Meeting Hymns #d34

Union Prayer Meeting Hymns #d36

Unitarian Service Book, and Hymns for Church and Home. Abridged ed. #d50

Universalist Hymn Book #d65

Page Scan

University Hymns #59

Page Scan

University Hymns #96

Victory of Song #d6

Virginia Selection of Psalms #d63

TextPage Scan

Voices of Praise #61

TextPage Scan

Wartburg Hymnal #152

Page Scan

Waters' Choral Harp #155b

Page Scan

Waves of Glory #230

Page Scan

Waves of Glory No. 2 #399

TextScoreAudioPage Scan

Worship and Rejoice #235

Page Scan

Worship and Song #88

Page Scan

Worship and Song Edition B #ad34

Page Scan

Worship and Song. (Rev. ed.) #90

Worship in Song #d34

Pages

Exclude 843 pre-1979 instances
Suggestions or corrections? Contact us