Following the composition of Five Mystical Songs in 1911, Vaughan Williams began to compose a smaller scale piece, which was completed in 1914. However, World War I delayed the presentation of the song cycle until 1920. In setting the four hymns to music, Vaughan Williams chose poems by Jeremy Taylor, Isaac Watts, Richard Crashaw, and Robert Bridges (a translation from the Greek).

This piece has 4 songs:

I. "Lord, Come Away!", penned by Jeremy Taylor, is notable for shifts in dynamics relative to the poetic content.
II. "Who is this fair one?", written by Isaac Watts, features notable interplay between the solo tenor and solo viola, the two instruments communicating.
III. "Come Love, Come Lord", by Richard Crashaw, among the shortest in the cycle, and perhaps the most mysterious.
IV. "Evening Hymn", translated from the Greek by Robert Bridges, is a contrapuntal composition, and features two themes, the viola and tenor melody with the bell-like basso ostinato accompaniment.