The following version of this poem was used to create this guide: Milton, John. "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity." Saylor.Org. https://resources.saylor.org/wwwresources/archived/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/ENGL402-Milton-On-the-Morning-of-Christs-Nativity.pdf

Note that all parenthetical citations refer to the lines of the poem from which the quotations are taken.

This ode was written by the English poet John Milton in 1629. Milton lived during a tumultuous time in English history, when political and religious changes were common and often accompanied by violence. He was born in 1608 and attended Cambridge with the intention of becoming an Anglican priest. However, he struggled to adapt the rigid university curriculum, and began to pursue writing instead. He studied and traveled widely, publishing both poetry and political tracts at this time. Milton was a firm supporter of the Christian Bible, individual freedom, and of a republican form of government for England, a dangerous political position to occupy while the English monarchy still reigned. He had four daughters, some of whom helped him transcribe his poetry after he went blind. He was completely blind by the time he wrote this poem, and in the years afterward when he completed his magnum opus, Paradise Lost. Paradise Lost solidified Milton's recognition as one of the greatest poets of the English language. This is one of Milton's many poems interested in Christian themes, and it tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ.