#379: Now the Green Blade Rises

[lutheranhymns]

I'm not sure if this one qualifies as a classic, but it should be, it's one of those I've always liked for some reason. The rhymes are kind of a stretch, but the commitment to repeating the "grain/lain/pain/slain, again/been, seen/green" motif is impressive, and the extended metaphor between Jesus as a seed extending to "fields of our hearts" is lovely. The tune is minor-ish, which is incongruous for an Easter song, but that's one of the reasons it stands out. (Actually it's not strictly minor; it ends on the 2nd note of the scale.) It might be better known as a Christmas song--the French melody "Noël nouvelet," or "Sing We Now of Christmas."