The messiah - Overture (Händel) Lyrics

OVERTURE





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Tenor) Comfort ye, comfort ye My

people, saith your God; speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem; and cry

unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is

pardoned. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness:

-Prepare ye the way of the Lord: make straight

in the desert a highway for our God.





AIR (Tenor) Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and

hill made low, the crooked straight and the rough places plain.





CHORUS And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh

shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Bass) Thus saith the Lord of Hosts:-

Yet once a little while and I will shake the heavens and the earth,

the sea and the dry land; and I will shake all nations; and the

desire of all nations shall come. The Lord, whom ye seek, shall

suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant,

whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts.





AIR (Bass) But who may abide the day of His coming? and who

shall stand when He appeareth? For He is like a refiner's fire.





CHORUS And He shall purify the sons of Levi, that they

may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.





RECITATIVE. (Alto) Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son,

and shall call his name Emmanuel, God with us.





AIR (Alto) and CHORUS O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get

thee up into the high mountain: O thou that tellest good tidings to

Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up,

be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah,

Behold you God! Arise, shine, for thy light is come,

and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Bass) For Behold, darkness shall

cover the earth, and gross darkness the people;

but the Lord shall rise upon thee, and His glory

shall be seen upon thee, and the Gentiles shall come

to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.





AIR (Bass) The people that walked in darkness

have seen a great light; and they

that dwell in the land of the shadow of

death, upon them hath the light shined.





CHORUS For unto us a Child is born, unto us

a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder;

and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor,

The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.





PASTORAL SYMPHONY





RECITATIVE. (Soprano) There were shepherds abiding in the field,

keeping watch over their flock by night.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Soprano) And lo!

the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of

the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid.





RECITATIVE. (Soprano) And the angel said unto thee,

Fear not; for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy,

which shall be to all people; for unto you is born this day

in the City of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Soprano) And suddenly

there was with the angel a multitude of

the heavenly host, praising God and saying:-





CHORUS Glory to God in the highest, and

peace on earth, goodwill towards men.





AIR. (Soprano) Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion Shout,

O daughter of Jerusalem! behold, thy King cometh unto thee!

He is the righteous Saviour and He shall speak peace unto the heathen.





RECITATIVE. (Alto) Then shall the eyes of the blind

be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped;

then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and

the tongue of the dumb shall sing.





AIR (Alto) He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: and He shall gather

the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead

those that are with young.





AIR (Come unto Him, all ye that labour and

are heavy laden, and He will give you rest. Take

His yoke upon you, and learn of Him,

for He is meek and lowly of heart,

and ye shall find rest unto your souls.





CHORUS His yoke is easy and His burthen is light.





*PART II*





CHORUS Behold the Lamb of God that

taketh away the sin of the world.





AIR (Alto) He was the most despised and rejected of men; a man

of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He gave His back to the

smiters, and His cheeks to them that plucked off

the hair: He hid not His face from shame and spitting.





CHORUS Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our

sorrows! He was wounded for our transgressions; He was

bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace

was upon Him. And with His stripes we are healed.





CHORUS All we like sheep have gone astray; we have

turned every one to his own way. And the Lord

hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Tenor) Thy rebuke hath

broken His heart; He is full of heaviness. He looked for

some to have pity on Him, but there was no man,

neither found He any to comfort Him.





AIR. (Tenor) Behold, and see if there be

any sorrow like unto His sorrow.





RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Soprano) He was cut off

out of the land of the living; for the transgression of Thy

people was He stricken.





AIR (Soprano) But Thou didst not leave His soul in hell;

nor didst Thou suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption.





CHORUS Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up,

ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in.

Who is the King of Glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord

mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up,

ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in. Who

is the King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of Glory.





RECITATIVE. (Tenor) Unto which of the angels said He at any time,

Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee?





CHORUS Let all the angels of God worship Him.





AIR. (Bass) Thou art gone up on high; Thou hast

led captivity captive, and received gifts for men,

yea, even for Thine enemies, that the Lord God

might dwell among them.





CHORUS The Lord gave the word, great was

the company of the preachers.





AIR. (Soprano) How beautiful are the feet of them that preach

the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things.





CHORUS Their sound is gone out into all lands,

and their words unto the ends of the world.





AIR (Bass) Why do the nations so furiously rage together,

and who do the people imagine a vain thing? The kings

of the earth rise up, and the rulers take counsel together

against the Lord, and against His Anointed.





CHORUS Let us break their bonds asunder,

and cast away their yokes from us.





RECITATIVE (Tenor) He that dwelleth in heaven shall

laugh them to scorn; the Lord shall have them in derision.





AIR (Tenor) Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;

Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.





CHORUS Hallelujah: for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.

The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord,

and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.

King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah!





*Part III*





AIR (Soprano) I know that my Redeemer liveth,

and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth;

and though worms destroy this body yet, in my flesh shall

I see God. For now is Christ risen from the dead,

the firs-fruits of them that sleep.



CHORUS Since by man came death,



CHORUS By man came also the resurrection of the dead.



CHORUS For as in Adam all die,



CHORUS Even so in Christ shall all be made alive



RECITATIVE. (Accompanied - Bass) Behold, I tell you a mystery;

We shall not all sleep; but we shall all be changed in a

moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.



AIR. (Bass) The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall

be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and

this mortal must put on immortality.



RECITATIVE (Alto) Then shall be brought to pass the

saying that is written; Beats is swallowed up in victory!



DUET (Alto and Tenor) O death, where is thy sting?

O grave! where is thy victory? The sting

of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law.



CHORUS But thanks be to God, who giveth

us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.



AIR (Soprano) If God be for us, who can be against us?

Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect?

It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth?

It is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again, who is

at the right hand of God, who makes intercession for us.



CHORUS Worthy is the Lamb that was slain,

and hath redeemed us to God by His blood,

to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and

strength, and honor, and glory and blessing

. Blessing and honour, glory and power, be unto

Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb,

for ever and ever. Amen.