Children, Go Where I Send Thee
"Children, Go Where I Send Thee" (alternatively "Children, Go Where I Send You" or variations thereof, also known as "The Holy Baby", "Little Bitty Baby", or "Born in Bethlehem") is a traditional African-American spiritual song.[1] Among the many different versions of the song, a defining feature is the cumulative structure, with each number (typically up to 12 or 10) accompanied by a biblical reference. Today, many Americans know it as a Christmas carol.[2]
Lyrics
Children, go where I send theeHow shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you one by one
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you two by two
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you three by three
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you four by four
Four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you five by five
Five the for gospel preachers
Four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you six by six
Six for the six that couldn't get fixed
Five the for gospel preachers
Four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty - baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
How shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you seven by seven
Seven for the seven that couldn't get to heaven
Six for the six that couldn't get fixed
Five the for gospel preachers
Four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
I said, how shall I send thee?
I'm gonna send you eight by eight
Eight for the eight that stood at the gate
Seven for the seven that couldn't get to heaven
Six for the six that couldn't get fixed
Five the for gospel preachers
And it's four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
He was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee
That's how the whole thing started
Way down in the manger
Eight for the eight that stood at the gate
Seven for the seven that couldn't get to heaven
Six for the six that couldn't get fixed
Five the for gospel preachers
Four for the four that stood at the door
Three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Born of the virgin Mary
Born, born, born in Bethlehem
Born, born, born in Bethlehem