Carol Contemplation: Away in a Manger

Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.

The cattle are lowing, the Baby awakes,
But little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes;
I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky
And stay by my cradle 'til morning is nigh.

Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray;
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,
And fit us for Heaven to live with Thee there.

Sweet little song, yes? I love both tunes to this carol, especially when it's a children's choir singing it. I'm a bit skeptical about the "no crying he makes" bit, because crying doesn't mean our perfect savior was being crabby–he was probably just exercising, as babies do. I don't know–maybe he didn't cry! The Bible doesn't get very specific there.

I did change one thing–the "new" lyrics for the last line of the third verse say "Take us to heaven," but I think the "fit us for heaven" is more appropriate. We can't get there without his fitness. If he didn't fit us for heaven, we'd still be lost and dead in our sinful natures. I think the change to "Take" weakens the message a lot, but the original words give credit to Christ's ultimate purpose in coming to earth: He came to save sinners.