Maid Mary sat at her cottage door
By the Lake of Galilee;
Tall and stately her lilies were,
But never was lily one-half so fair
Or half so pure as she.
( O Mary, Maid and Mother of God,
I pray you, pray for me. )
The shadows darkened along the shore
Of the Lake of Galilee;
What steps were those, as the twilight fell?
Lo, God's great angel, Gabriel:
“Hail, blessed of God!” spake he.
( O Gabriel, Prince of the hosts of God,
I pray you, pray for me. )
Maid Mary knelt on her cottage floor
By the Lake of Galilee;
And kneeling, dreamed strange dreams and sweet
Of baby fingers and dimpled feet,
And a Holy Thing to be:
( O Christ, the Virgin-born Son of God,
I pray You, pray for me. )
But she did not dream, as the night passed o'er
By the Lake of Galilee,
Of the weary ways that the feet should tread,
Of a thorny crown for a baby head,
Or a cross on Calvary.
( O Son of Mary, O thorn-crowned God,
I pray You, pray for me. )