Wake, Awake, the Night is Dying

The Brightness of Eternity

Wake, Awake, the Night is Dying is a 1966 translation by Fr. Melvin Farrell S.S. (1930-1986) of the original 1599 Lutheran hymn by Philipp Nicolai (1556-1608) with later harmonizations added by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). Nicolai wrote both words and music to Wach­et auf, ruft uns die Stimme (Wake, Awake, for Night is Flying) when serving as a pastor in Westphalia, 1300 of his parishioners died during an epidemic. It is based on the Parable of the Ten Virgins found in Matthew 25:1–13. There are a number of English translations of the text using Wachet Auf including Wake, Awake and Sleep No Longer which is sung in the following video. In the Liturgy of the Hours, Wake, Awake, the Night is Dying is used during Advent.