As to His earthly parents' home

Composed by Dean Henry Alford in 1865, this Epiphany hymn was first published in his collection The Year of Praise (1867, No. 36) in four stanzas of four lines. Specifically appointed for the First Sunday after Epiphany, the text focuses on the hidden childhood years of Jesus Christ in Nazareth and His filial obedience to Mary and Joseph, presenting His youth as a model of humility and duty for young Christians. In 1879, the hymn was transferred without alteration into the Methodist Sunday School Hymn Book (No. 144). It also attained wider usage across denominational lines in both Great Britain and North America, appearing in American Episcopal collections including Hymns for the Church (1869, No. 130).