![]() ![]() Tate’s paraphrase, though straying too far from Scripture for some, was closer to the wording found in the King James Version, an important qualification of earlier metrical versions. While humble shepherds watch’d their flocks The 1781 edition of this collection reflects the influence of Tate’s paraphrase but made some changes: This metrical paraphrase was included in the influential Scottish Translations and Paraphrases (1745) almost 50 years later. Tate (1700) indicates a slight loosening of the stranglehold of metrical psalmody by also including, in addition to this Christmas hymn, hymns for Easter and for Holy Communion. The Supplement to the New Version of Psalms by Dr. A worship leader would "line out" each line of the hymn that is, the leader would sing each line in advance so that the congregation could hear the melody and repeat it. The practice was based on those churches following the lead of John Calvin (1509-1564), whose Genevan Psalter (1551) provided congregations with all they needed for singing in public worship.įurthermore, the practice was to sing the psalms unaccompanied in unison. “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks” is unusual for its day in that it follows this practice, but rather than being based on a psalm, it is a metrical paraphrase of Luke’s account of the nativity. In those days, Tate would have been known, among other things, as the writer of metrical psalms - hymns that paraphrased a psalm directly from Scripture and placed it in a poetic form with rhyme and a specific meter - with the goal of neither adding nor deleting any content from the text of the psalm. Psalm singing was the usual practice during the era of Nahum Tate (c. In this day, singing a congregational song based on anything but the psalms was very unusual. King William III approved this “new version” for worship. The Supplement of 1700, a supplement to the “new version” in which our hymn appears, was bound with the Anglican Church's Book of Common Prayer, giving it an even greater influence for years to come. 1549) and John Hopkins (1520/1521-1570) titled The Whole Booke of Psalms that had been published in 1562, over 140 years earlier. This collection was the "new version" because it attempted to supplant the "old version" by Thomas Sternhold (d. With Nicholas Brady (1659-1726), a canon at Cork Cathedral in Ireland, Tate published A New Version of the Psalms of David in 1696. In some editions, the hymn is entitled, “Song of the Angels at the Nativity of our Blessed Saviour.” "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks," Nahum Tate's metrical version of Luke 2:8-14, offers us a way to sing the Christmas story virtually direct from Scripture. We sing many Christmas hymns and carols that offer a poet's personal or theological reflections on the season, but relatively few attempt to sing the biblical witness of the nativity verbatim. Any comparisons with changes in congregational song practice today are invited. In many ways, the story of this hymn from the late seventeenth and early eighteenth century is also about the transition between old ways of congregational singing giving way to new trends. The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.While shepherds watched their flocks by night,Ĭongregations sometimes have difficulty giving up a familiar older hymnal when a new one arrives on the scene. ![]() But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. Luke 2:15-20 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us." So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. Luke 2:14 "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased." Luke 2:13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Luke 2:12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2:11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them and they were terribly frightened. Luke 2:8-9 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. While shepherds watched their flocks by night, ![]()
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