Lyrics Page
Arrival At The City
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Nov 7, 2026 updated
I Choose You album
Verified editorial review
Song Meaning
Spoken rather than sung, the track reads a passage from the closing pages of John Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress," where the pilgrims finally reach the Celestial City. The words come in archaic English ("Behold!", "rainment") and move through three scenes.
First, a company of the heavenly host and "the King's trumpeters" come out to meet the travelers "with ten thousand welcomes." Next, at the gate, each pilgrim hands in the certificate received at the start of the road. The King reads them and asks, "Where are the people?" When told they are standing outside, He commands the gate to be opened. In the last scene the narrator, "in my dream," watches the pilgrims go in and be transfigured, with raiment "that shone like gold," while "all the bells in the city rang again for joy."
The closing line, "Enter ye into the joy of our Lord," draws on Matthew 25:21, and the welcome to a prepared city matches Hebrews 11:16. Nothing here is argued. It is a closing picture of arrival and welcome, set to the weight of the old prose.
Lyrics Verified by Editorial Team
While they were thus drawing towards the gate
Behold! A company of the heavenly host came out to meet them
There came out also at this time several of the Kings trumpeters
Clothed in white and shining rainment
Who with melodious noises and loud
Made even the heavens to echo with their sound
These trumpeters saluted the pilgrams with ten thousand welcomes from the world
With shouting and sound of trumpet
Signifying how welcome they were into their company
And with what gladness they came to meet them
Now when they came to the gate
The pilgrams each handed in their certificate which they had received in the beginning
These therefore were carried into the King
Who when He had read them said "Where are the people?"
To Whom it was answered "They are standing outside the gate."
The King then commanded to open the gate
Now I saw in my dream
That these pilgrams went in at the gate
And as they entered they were tranfigured
And they had rainment put on that shown like gold
Then I heard in my dream, that all the bells in the city rang again for joy
And it was said within
"Enter ye into the joy of our Lord!"