The Advent Season is here and Christmas is upon us! Everyone’s calendars seem to fill up so quickly in December and the pace of the season often feels out of our control. I don’t want to add to the noise or give you one more email to skip. So, I pray the December Newsletter is a simple invitation to pause for a few minutes to focus your heart on Christ and that what you find below adds warmth, depth, and beauty to your Christmas traditions. 

Each week in December we will look briefly at the background and theology of a different Christmas hymn and find intentional ways to celebrate and worship our Savior.

An Expectant Heart & the Story of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”

The Story

The song, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” is one of the most ancient Christmas songs we sing, with early versions dating back to medieval times. The lyrics developed without the chorus for use during Advent, so it is the perfect song for us to discuss during the first week of Advent. The song we have today was translated into English in 1851 and then two additional stanzas were translated in the twentieth century.

Note how each stanza focuses on a different name of Christ: Emmanuel (“God with Us”), Rod of Jesse; Dayspring; Key of David; Lord of might; Wisdom; and Desire of the nations.

THE SONG

(translated to English by John Mason Neale, 1851)

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
And drive away the shades of night
And pierce the clouds and bring us light!
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times once gave the law
In cloud, and majesty, and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

Additional Verses translated into by H.S. Coffin, 1916:

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
And order all things, far and nigh;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And cause us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind;
Bid envy, strife and quarrels cease;
Fill the whole world with heaven’s peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

The Message

I love how John Piper explains how each name points to the hope that Jesus brings. Piper says:

• “As Emmanuel (Isaiah 8:8) — “God with us” — he will pay the ransom that only a God-man can pay.
• As Rod of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1), springing from a dead stump, he will free his people, by death and resurrection, from Satan’s tyranny, and make them free forever.
• As the Day-spring (Luke 1:78) — the dawn of God’s kingdom — he will be the light of the world, and banish the hopelessness of darkness.
• As the Key of David (Isaiah 22:22), he rescues us from hell, locks the door behind us, unlocks the door of heaven, and brings us home.
• And as the Desire of nations (Haggai 2:7), he will draw the ransomed from every people and make them a kingdom of peace.”

This beautiful hymn longs for Jesus to come redeem us and bring us his salvation, peace, and life. It reflects his nature and his mission all in one and teaches us how our Savior meets our every desire and need. We may know the Christmas story so well that we lose our eagerness and longing for our Savior. But as we wait for Christmas Day and the Second Coming of Christ, let’s embrace an expectant heart that yearns for Him (O Come! O Come!) with hopeful praise (Rejoice! Rejoice!) for who He is, what He’s done, and all He is going to do.

Further Bible Reading: 

Read how Zechariah awaited his Savior: Luke 1:57-79

Read how Simeon & Anna awaited the Savior: Luke 2:25-38

How did these three embody the longing and praise of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”?