sometimes misattributed to Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956) and from Volkslieder (Folksongs)
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
Language: English
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John Bless the bed that I lie on. Before I lay me down to sleep I give my soul to Christ to keep. Four corners to my bed, Four angels round my head; One to watch and one to pray And two to bear my soul away. I go by sea, I go by land, The Lord made me with his right hand. If any danger come to me, Sweet Jesus Christ deliver me. He is the branch and I'm the flow'r, Pray God send me a happy hour, And if I die before I wake, I pray that God my soul will take.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- sometimes misattributed to Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956)
- from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "Before sleeping" [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Richard Rodney Bennett (1936 - 2012), "A Song at Evening", 2009 [ voice and piano ], confirmed with a CD booklet [sung text checked 1 time]
Set in a modified version by Gordon Crosse, Gustav Holst.
Set in a modified version by Benjamin Burrows, John Rutter, CBE.
Researcher for this page: Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2018-02-11
Line count: 16
Word count: 108