Behold the Lamb of God begins Part 2 of Messiah, the Passion section. The first four choruses in Part 2 comprise some of the most profound and deeply moving choral works ever written.  Strangely, the text of Behold the Lamb of God is taken not from the section of scripture dealing with Christ's death on the cross, but rather Jesus' initial encounter with John the Baptist. In John 1:29 John sees Jesus walking toward him and proclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." But It is abundantly clear in the way Handel wrote the music for these words that he is intending them to be used

to take us on a spiritual journey to see a suffering Jesus, one whose life is being poured out for us in the process of taking away our sins.

Audio Practice Files

Soprano Prominent:

Alto Prominent:

Tenor Prominent:

Bass Prominent:

Take it to the next level!  See if you can sing your part without it played prominently! All parts played equally: