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The Third Song of Isaiah (Surge, illuminare)

Isaiah 60:1-3, 11a, 14c, 18-19.

Contemporary (Canticle 11)

Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 87

Arise, shine, for your light has come, *

and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.

For behold, darkness covers the land; *

deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.

But over you the Lord will rise, *

and his glory will appear upon you.

Nations will stream to your light, *

and kings to the brightness of your dawning.

Your gates will always be open; *

by day or night they will never be shut.

They will call you, The City of the Lord, *

The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Violence will no more be heard in your land, *

ruin or destruction within your borders.

You will call your walls, Salvation, *

and all your portals, Praise.

The sun will no more be your light by day; *

by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.

The Lord will be your everlasting light, *

and your God will be your glory.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

History

Isaiah 60 speaks to Jerusalem after the exile. Its light has come, and the nations will walk by it, bringing gold and frankincense. Christians have long heard the Magi in it, and the first reading at the Eucharist on the Feast of the Epiphany comes from this chapter. The canticle sets a few of its verses, and first appeared in an American prayer book in 1979.

Sources: Book of Common Prayer (1979), Lectionary, Year A; Book of Common Prayer (1979), Morning Prayer: Rite Two.

When it is sung

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