"Come, Ye Thankful People, Come"

The words to this Thanksgiving hymn were penned in 1844 by Henry Alford (1810-1871). The music was written in 1858 by George Job Elvey (1816-1893), who was the boys' choirmaster and organist at St. George’s Cha­pel in Wind­sor, Eng­land, for almost 50 years.




Come, Ye Thankful People Come
(click here for hymn melody - no need to silence the blog music)

Come, ye thankful people, come, raise the song of harvest home;
All is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin.
God our Maker doth provide for our wants to be supplied;
Come to God’s own temple, come, raise the song of harvest home.

All the world is God’s own field, fruit unto His praise to yield;
Wheat and tares together sown unto joy or sorrow grown.
First the blade and then the ear, then the full corn shall appear;
Lord of harvest, grant that we wholesome grain and pure may be.

For the Lord our God shall come, and shall take His harvest home;
From His field shall in that day all offenses purge away,
Giving angels charge at last in the fire the tares to cast;
But the fruitful ears to store in His garner evermore.

Even so, Lord, quickly come, bring Thy final harvest home;
Gather Thou Thy people in, free from sorrow, free from sin,
There, forever purified, in Thy garner to abide;
Come, with all Thine angels come, raise the glorious harvest home.

(watercolor of St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle)