We Three Kings

We three Kings of Orient are,
Bearing gifts we traverse afar,
Field and fountain,
Moor and mountain,
Following yonder star.
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

(Melchior)
Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain,
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King for ever, ceasing never,
Over us all to reign.
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

(Casper)
Frankincense to offer have I,
Incense owns a Deity nigh,
Prayer and praising, all men raising,
Worship Him God most high.
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

(Balthazar)
Myrrh is mine, Its bitter perfume
Breathes a life of gathering gloom:
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying,
Sealed in the stone cold tomb.
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

Glorious now behold Him arise:
King, and God, and Sacrifice!
Aleluia, alleluia,
Heaven to earth replies:
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

We Three Kings was written and composed in 1857 by John Henry Hopkins Jr ( 1820-1891) for a private function. It’s original title was Three Kings of Orient and the five verses were scored for three voices, with one of the singers taking the role of one of the three kings in the second, third and fourth verses, with all singing the first and last verses and the choruses for each verse. Hopkins was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and went to theological college in New York. The song was written for an elaborate Christmas show at the college but was received with such acclaim that he included it in a book of carols in 1863. It’s popularity was immediate and it was the first American carol to be included in Christmas Carols Old and New in the UK in 1871.

The three kings, or the three wise men, or the magi, play an enigmatic role in the nativity story. The scriptural reference is a little vague as they are only mentioned in Matthew’s gospel, and although he refers to visitors from the east bringing gifts for the King of the Jews, there is no indication of how many there are and it seems to have been assumed that as there were three gifts, there must have been three visitors. The time of their arrival seems to be in question as well: classic images portray the magi at the crib with the shepherds on Christmas night, but other versions suggest they arrived on 12th Night, 6 January. It has even suggested that as Herod sought to eliminate Jesus by ordering the murder of all baby boys under the age of two, that the magi may have arrived up to two years after the birth with their news that a new king had been born.

Once you get into speculating what they were (kings? philosophers? astrologers?), where they were from (India? Arabia? Persia?), the purpose of their visit, the nature of the star that they were following, etc there is no end to the number of pages you could write. The three wise men are an interesting elaboration to embroider the story, but they aren’t an essential part of the theology. They’re a bit of a sideshow, but serve the useful purpose of offering children more roles to play in their annual nativity plays.

In seeking appropriate images to illustrate this post I decided to avoid some impressive images of silhouetted figures riding across a desert landscape as they looked too much like out-takes from Lawrence of Arabia. I hope these alternatives will suffice.

Merry Christmas

Header Photo : by Robert Thiemann on Unsplash