What Child Is This?

Third Day's reading keeps William Chatterton Dix's question-and-answer structure, but adds a verse that most recordings of this carol leave out: "nails and spear shall pierce Him through, the cross be born for me, for you." Where other versions stay in the manger, this one names the destination early.

That addition changes the whole carol's weight. "Hail, hail, the Word made flesh, the Babe, the Son of Mary" gets sung in the same breath as a direct reference to the crucifixion, refusing to let the infancy story stand alone without what it was leading toward.

The final verse returns to the magi's gifts — "so bring Him incense, gold, and myrrh" — and answers the title's opening question with the largest possible claim: "the King of kings salvation brings." By naming the cross this early, Third Day's version makes the connection between manger and Calvary explicit rather than leaving it for the listener to supply on their own.