Arthur Quiller-Couch, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse: 1250–1900.
RORATE coeli desuper! | |
Hevins, distil your balmy schouris! | |
For now is risen the bricht day-ster, | |
Fro the rose Mary, flour of flouris: | |
The cleir Sone, quhom no cloud devouris, | 5 |
Surmounting Phebus in the Est, | |
Is cumin of his hevinly touris: | |
Et nobis Puer natus est. | |
|
Archangellis, angellis, and dompnationis, | |
Tronis, potestatis, and marteiris seir, | 10 |
And all ye hevinly operationis, | |
Ster, planeit, firmament, and spheir, | |
Fire, erd, air, and water cleir, | |
To Him gife loving, most and lest, | |
That come in to so meik maneir; | 15 |
Et nobis Puer natus est. | |
|
Synnaris be glad, and penance do, | |
And thank your Maker hairtfully; | |
For he that ye micht nocht come to | |
To you is cumin full humbly | 20 |
Your soulis with his blood to buy | |
And loose you of the fiendis arrest— | |
And only of his own mercy; | |
Pro nobis Puer natus est. | |
|
All clergy do to him inclyne, | 25 |
And bow unto that bairn benyng, | |
And do your observance divyne | |
To him that is of kingis King: | |
Encense his altar, read and sing | |
In holy kirk, with mind degest, | 30 |
Him honouring attour all thing | |
Qui nobis Puer natus est. | |
|
Celestial foulis in the air, | |
Sing with your nottis upon hicht, | |
In firthis and in forrestis fair | 35 |
Be myrthful now at all your mycht; | |
For passit is your dully nicht, | |
Aurora has the cloudis perst, | |
The Sone is risen with glaidsum licht, | |
Et nobis Puer natus est. | 40 |
|
Now spring up flouris fra the rute, | |
Revert you upward naturaly, | |
In honour of the blissit frute | |
That raiss up fro the rose Mary; | |
Lay out your levis lustily, | 45 |
Fro deid take life now at the lest | |
In wirschip of that Prince worthy | |
Qui nobis Puer natus est. | |
|
Sing, hevin imperial, most of hicht! | |
Regions of air mak armony! | 50 |
All fish in flud and fowl of flicht | |
Be mirthful and mak melody! | |
All Gloria in excelsis cry! | |
Heaven, erd, se, man, bird, and best,— | |
He that is crownit abone the sky | 55 |
Pro nobis Puer natus est! | |