"Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence"

Habakkuk 2:20

Zechariah 2:13

We've been studying the minor prophets at the end of the Old Testament in the "Come Follow Me" study manual these past few weeks. Last week I was reading in Habakkuk and came upon chapter 2 verse 20, which states "But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him." Immediately I thought of the hymn/Christmas song "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence" and said to myself "it's too bad I don't have that song prepared to sing this week." I didn't put much thought into it, though, since I already have several other songs I'm preparing for Christmas, but then this past week I read something extremely similar in Zechariah 2:13 - "Be silent, O all flesh, before the LORD: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation." I took it as a sign that I needed to look more into the hymn. I'd only ever heard it as a choral arrangement, so I wasn't sure if I could even find a solo version let alone find an accompanist who could play it for me. 

Musescore to the rescue! To my complete delight I found a solo version with a through-composed accompaniment that both sounds gorgeous and is easy enough for me to play! I was all hyped up by this fortunate find only to be disappointed to discover it was far too low for me to sing comfortably. Singing it up an octave would be a bit too high and would detract from the beautiful solemn setting of the piece. It then occurred to me that my new piano can transpose, so I set it to sound 8 half steps higher while I play it in the nice easy key of A minor. It came together so perfectly!

Here's a bit of the history behind the piece. It began as an ancient Greek chant used to prepare those about to partake in the communion. The cryptic lyrics summon the singer to experience the sense of going into the Holy of Holies and remind those listening of the weight of the burden Christ took on for us. Composer Ralph Van Williams popularized the hymn among modern Christian congregations by setting a poetic English version of the text to the tune of "Picardy," a French medieval folk melody. Below I've posted the poetic lyrics sung here and an English translation of the original Greek.

Lyrics

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly-minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heav'nly food.

Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the pow'rs of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.
"Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!"

English Translation of the Original Greek

Let all mortal flesh keep silent, and stand with fear and trembling, and in itself consider nothing earthly; for the King of kings and Lord of lords cometh forth to be sacrificed, and given as food to the believers; and there go before Him the choirs of Angels, with every Dominion and Power, the many-eyed Cherubim and the six-winged Seraphim, covering their faces, and crying out the hymn: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.