Narration

(album: Johnny Cash Family Christmas - 1972)

Silent Night that means Christmas to some people
Here comes Santa Claus here comes Santa Claus
That means Christmas to some people
A lot of people from different parts of the country and all over the world
Have different ways of celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ
The prophets of old had foretold of his coming for four thousand years
And a lot of people say that the wise men from the East were probably astronomers
That may have studied the stars and knew that the new star that was gonna
To appear in the East the time of it was at hand
A lot of others of course say that they were told by God
That the star was about to appear so they could begin their long journey
From the East and where was the East
Some people say it could have been India some people speculate
That one of the wise men came from as far away as Korea all away cross Asia
And he must have been a coming for many months maybe
Maybe even years to get to the place where that new star
That was to hang over that manger in the town of Bethlehem
Ten miles from Jerusalem
Whatever the shepherds came in from the fields
And you know it's really something that a shepherd would leave his flock
To come in for anything because that was really about a crime for a man to do
That was shepherd to leave his flock of sheep
And come in for anything because the sheep were man's lively hood
The milk and the meat and the wool for the clothing
It really took something for a shepherd to leave a flock
And there were a lot of 'em that did it and came in to worship the new baby Jesus That was born in the manger
The wise men came bearing gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh
And they brought them and laid them at the foot of the manger where Jesus lay
And you know the voice of God so the scriptures say
According to the scriptures had been silent for four hundred years
There had not been a divinely inspired prophet for four hundred years
And all of a sudden you can imagine what kind of night it must have been
For a new star to suddenly appear out of the heavens
And shepherds to leave their flock and men
Wealthy looking strangers come in from the East
And all of a sudden on top of all that a heavenly choir to start to singing
Singing voices from heaven,singing words that they understood
Words like peace on Earth good will to men what a night it must have been