Silent Night

Matthew West sings the carol in its familiar pattern of short, hushed lines: "Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright." The first picture is Mary and the infant, a holy child "so tender and mild," with the repeated wish that He sleep in heavenly peace. Little is added to the old text, and the plainness is what the arrangement offers.

Further verses move from the manger to the fields. Shepherds quake at the sight, glory streams from heaven afar, and the heavenly hosts sing hallelujah to announce that "Christ the Savior is born." The last stanza names the child as the Son of God and "love's pure light," with radiant beams from His holy face and the dawn of redeeming grace.

Luke 2:8-14 supplies the shepherds and the angels' announcement, Isaiah 9:6 the promised child who is called Prince of Peace, and Titus 2:11 the grace that has appeared bringing salvation. The carol ties all three to a single quiet night.