On the day when death will knock at thy door

Josef Alexander

On the day when death will knock at thy door,

what wilt thou offer to him?

Oh, I will set before my guest the full vessel of my life;

I will never let him go with empty hands.

All the sweet vintage of all my autumn days and summer nights,

all the earnings and gleanings of my busy life,

will I place before him at the close of my days

when death will knock at my door.