The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him ‘Emmanuel’, which means ‘God with us.’ Matthew 1:23.
In the Middle Ages, monks observed Advent as a time of and serious consideration of The Secondmeditation This beloved hymn was penned almost 1200 years ago by an anonymous monk in Europe. It is said to have come from a set of Latin verses called the “O antiphons“, performed in monasteries in the 8th century. An antiphon just means that two choirs sat opposite each other, singing the verses alternately.
The verses each referred to titles of the Messiah, telling of His coming. The five mentioned in the song are:
Emmanuel (God with us)-Isaiah 7:14 NKJV. “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.“
Lord of Might-Exodus 19:16 NKJV. “Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.”
Rod (Branch) of Jesse-Isaiah 11:1 NIV. “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.” Isaiah 11:10. NIV. “In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.”
Dayspring (Morning Star)-Numbers 24:17 KJV. “I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.”
Key of David-Isaiah 22:22 KJV. “And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.”
In 1851, John Mason Neale translated it from Latin to English and called it Draw nigh, draw nigh, Emmanuel. Eventually it became known as we adore it today, O Come, O come, Emamnuel.
Today, we are cumbered about with many things during this blessed season. Sure, we have our Christmas music playing, some of it even includes beloved hymns. We attend church, if we aren’t quarantined, and hear about the coming of the Christ Child. Hopefully we take time as a family to reflect on the real meaning of Christmas. But seldom do we focus on The Second Coming during the Christmas season!
Wouldn’t it be good if, this year, we could not only look back at why Jesus came as an infant but we could look ahead at His ultimate promise?
The coming of the Lord for His Bride!
We can look around us and see how much things have changed in our world BEFORE 2020! This past year we can lay our newspaper (or tablet, etc.) alongside our Bible and be amazed as we watch prophecy unfold before our very eyes. Yet, we do not despair! We look up for we know our redemption draws closer every day.
We are blessed to have relationship with Him now, to know Him now, to celebrate His first coming…now.
This relationship is preparation for the coming of Christ, when we shall see Him face to face!
We invite Him to come!
I pray I won’t leave Jesus in the manger but realize His purpose in coming the first time was to conquer death, hell and the grave so He might come a SECOND TIME for us!
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.
O come, O Wisdom from on high,
who ordered all things mightily;
to us the path of knowledge show
and teach us in its ways to go. Refrain
O come, O come, great Lord of might,
who to your tribes on Sinai’s height
in ancient times did give the law
in cloud and majesty and awe.
O come, O Branch of Jesse’s stem,
unto your own and rescue them!
From depths of hell your people save,
and give them victory o’er the grave.
O come, O Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe for us the heavenward road
and bar the way to death’s abode.
O come, O Bright and Morning Star,
and bring us comfort from afar!
Dispel the shadows of the night
and turn our darkness into light.
O come, O King of nations, bind
in one the hearts of all mankind.
Bid all our sad divisions cease
and be yourself our King of Peace.
Thank you, Joe. And thank you for sharing this post with your readers! I pray it is a blessing.
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Beautiful!
I love how you have tied the second advent to the first…and shown how scripture does the same.
Thank you for sharing this!
I am being intentional in opening my heart this season for the coming of our Lord. I am in the choir for our church’s Christmas show and we sing “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” as we walk in and it is beseeching and at the same time preparing our hearts for Him. Blessings!
Beautiful, Heather! Blessings to you too!
One of my most favorite hymns! I remember we always had a special service during Advent where we sang the O antiphons from this hymn as part of the service – it was one of my mom’s favorites and a beautiful way to start Advent. Interesting that it was written as a focus on the 2nd coming – I always think about it as expectation of the coming baby Jesus at Christmas.
Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly! I’m ready! Blessings to you and yours this Christmas season, Nannette.