The Zone Gathering

I love Christmas carols. I enjoy listening to them performed, singing them, and hearing them as I walk through stores and other public places. But aside from being pretty and getting me into the holiday spirit, I love how so many Christmas carols communicate spiritual truth.

In honor of the advent season, the next few Bible Drills will examine the biblical truths revealed in four beloved carols: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” “Joy to the World,” “O Holy Night,” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”

O Come, O Come. Emmanuel

Originally written in Latin in the 12th century (author unknown), this carol was translated into English by John Mason Neale in 1851. While the lyrics are less familiar to us than more popular carols, the song contains many references to Scripture and prophetic words about the Jesus Christ, the Messiah, our Emmanuel (often rendered Emanuel or Immanuel).

O come, O come, Emmanuel
“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin shall be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Isa. 7:14)
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord has said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’—which means ‘God with us’.” (Matt. 1:23)
And ransom captive Israel
“just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt. 2:28; Mark 10:45)
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Several passages in the New Testament reveal Jesus Christ as the Son of God. One of my favorite’s is Peter’s affirmation: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matt. 16:16)
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit….In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious” (Isa. 11:1, 10)
“And again, Isaiah says, ‘The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; the Gentiles will hope in him.’” (Rom. 15:12)
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny.
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o’er the grave.
“He will swallow up death forever” (Isa. 25:8)
“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O death, is your destruction?” (Hos. 13:14)
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
The name of Christ as Day-Spring can also mean “Dawn of the East.”
“because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our fear into the path of peace” (Luke 1:78-79)
“But for you who revere My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.” (Mal. 4:2)
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:12)
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
“I will give place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.” (Isa. 22:22)
“These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.” (Rev. 3:7)
And open wide our heavenly home;
“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” (John 14:2-3)
Make safe the way that leads on high,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” (John 14:6)
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
“Behold, the Lord God will come with might” (Isa. 40:10a)
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” (Rev. 5:12
“Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” (Rev. 7:12)
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,
In ancient times did’st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
These three lines refer to God giving the Law (including the Ten Commandments) to Moses on Mount Sinai. See Exodus 19:16-24:3 and Deuteronomy 5.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 9:00 am and is filed under Bible Drills. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.