First Line: The Lord at first had Adam made

The Lord at first had Adam made
Out of the dust and clay,
And in his nostrils breathèd life,
E’en as the Scriptures say.
And then in Eden’s paradise
He placèd him to dwell,
That he within it should remain,
To dress and keep it well.

Refrain

Now let good Christians all begin
A holier life to live,
And to rejoice and merry be,
For this is Christmas Eve.

And thus within the garden he
Was set, therein to stay;
And in commandment unto him
These words the Lord did say:
“The fruit which in the garden grows
To thee shall be for meat,
Except the tree in midst thereof,
Of which thou shalt not eat.”

Refrain

“For in the day thou shalt it touch
Or dost to it come nigh,
If so thou do but eat thereof,
Then thou shalt surely die.”
But Adam he did take no heed
Unto that only thing,
But did transgress God’s holy Law,
And so was wrapt in sin.

Refrain

Now mark the goodness of the Lord,
Which He to mankind bore;
His mercy soon He did extend,
Lost man for to restore;
And therefore to redeem our souls
From death and hell and thrall,
He said His own dear Son should be
The Savior of us all.

Refrain

Which promise now is brought to pass:
Christians, believe it well:
And by the death of God’s dear Son,
We are redeemed from hell.
So if we truly do believe,
And do the thing that’s right,
Then by His merits we at last
Shall live in Heaven bright.

Refrain

And now the tide is nigh at hand,
In which our Savior came;
Let us rejoice and merry be
In keeping of the same;
Let’s feed the poor and hungry souls,
And such as do it crave;
And when we die, in Heaven we
Our sure reward shall have.

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