What Child Is This

What child is this who, laid to rest, on Mary's lap is sleeping

A carol structured as a series of rhetorical questions answered by the identity of Christ. The three stanzas address the identity of the sleeping child, the response of wonder and offering, and finally the call to bring him laud. The text's genius is the way it holds together the humility and majesty of the incarnation.

History & Background

Written by William Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) in 1865 during a severe illness, as part of a longer poem called The Manger Throne. Set to the English traditional melody GREENSLEEVES. The contrast between the humble manger and the royal identity of the child is the dramatic center of the text.

Hymnal Appearances

Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 296
Gather 4th Edition — 508
Lutheran Book of Worship — 40
Lutheran Service Book — 370
The Lutheran Hymnal — 80

Bulletin Note

What Child Is This — William Chatterton Dix, 1865

Preaching Connection

The mystery of the incarnation — the contrast between the humble manger and the King of kings.

Stanza Arc

The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Incarnational mystery (Stanza 1) → Soteriological purpose (Stanza 2) → Eschatological response (Stanza 3)

Themes

Christmas Incarnation Wonder Worship