Did Christopher Walker really need to go 4/4, 6/8, 4/4 all through this song? Listen to the snippet and see whether it was worth it. If you need a setting for Ps 122 it’s a possibility I suppose but it is an oddity. The verse is in a different key to the chorus and when you add the rhythmic shifts it might just be too much. The tempo in my book is listed as 122!, which I suspect they thought was funny.
Refrain
I rejoiced when I heard them say:
“Let us go to the Lord’s house!
O my friends, O my friends,
Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
Verse 1
I rejoiced when I heard them say:
“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
And now we stand within the gates
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Refrain
Verse 2
Here the people of God rejoice;
Here they worship the name of the Lord.
Here justice reigns within your gates
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Refrain
Verse 3
Pray for peace in Jerusalem.
All who love you will never be lost.
May peace be here within your walls
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Refrain
Verse 4
For all you who give praise to God,
I will ask for the peace of the Lord.
May the love of God fill all your days
In Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Refrain
Verse 5
For the law of our God commands
That we always give thanks to our God;
That praise of God be on our lips
In Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Refrain
© Christopher Walker 1988.