Taken from her Advent album, A Seed, A Sunrise, Caroline Cobb draws heavily from Isaiah and other Old Testament prophets as well as the gospel narratives, and explores the longing of Advent, the joy of Christmas, and the hope of Jesus’s return. This song, and the whole album, is rich with biblical imagery, artful arrangements, and poetic lyrics to help the Church rehearse and remember God’s Story.
Oh righteous branch from Jesse’s root, Please come and bring your kingdom. The lion dwelling with the lamb, Bring peace and life and freedom. Oh Son of David come to rule, And reign in us forever. Come write your law upon our hearts, And keep us like a shepherd.
Refrain Hallelujah, Jesus we wait for you Hallelujah, Jesus come soon come soon
Messiah come, your Spirit give, Turn stony hearts to flesh; Redeem us from captivity, The power of sin and death.
Refrain
At last, at last the morning comes, With healing in its wings; We’ll leap like calves loosed from their stalls, For you have done great things – Yes, you have done great things!
The words of this carol are translated from a Greek Christmas Eve service of worship used as early as the fourth or fifth century called the Liturgy of St. James. Some scholars believe this carol dates back to AD 60, the same time that Paul was writing Romans. This liturgy is believed to be perhaps the oldest liturgy developed for the church and is still used today in the Eastern Orthodox Church. It was translated into English in 1864.1 Below is a soulful version that aims to capture the awe and wonder of the incarnation.
Let all mortal flesh keep silence, And with fear and trembling stand; Ponder nothing earthly-minded, For with blessing in His hand, Christ our God to earth descendeth, Our full homage to demand.
King of kings, yet born of Mary, As of old on earth He stood, Lord of lords, in human vesture, In the body and the blood; He will give to all the faithful His own self for heav’nly food.
Rank on rank the host of heaven Spreads its vanguard on the way, As the Light of light descendeth From the realms of endless day, That the pow’rs of hell may vanish As the darkness clears away.
At His feet the six-winged seraph, Cherubim with sleepless eye, Veil their faces to the presence, As with ceaseless voice they cry: “Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Lord Most High!”
1page 38 – Leeman, D. and Leeman, B., 2022. Our Hymns, Our Heritage: A Student Guide to Songs of the Church
This modern Christmas song by Sovereign Grace is one of my favourites; seeping with so many scripture references and prophecies, its a blessing to sing of our Saviour who is a fulfilment of all God told us would come.
The prophets had glimpsed and Te angels had watched with awe; The unfolding plans of our Faithful, redeeming God. What they longed for we have seen; What was promised we believe.
Refrain Hope of the Ages, Isaiah’s great light Abraham’s offspring Blessing of Jacob, Judah’s might Hope of the Ages, David’s true Son Desire of nations, promised salvation God with us.`
The vision once clouded has now To our hearts appeared; Once shrouded in myst’ry, Redemption has been made clear. Our Messiah now has come; Word made Flesh, the saving One
Refrain
All hail the One now revealed to the world In Bethlehem born to a young virgin girl Lamb without blemish yet cruelly betrayed Who cried, “It is finished!” And rose from the grave. The Father’s great gift and The proof of His love; Hope of the Ages, our God here with us
This hymn, originally in Latin, takes us back over 1,200 years to monastic life in the 8th- or 9th-century. Seven days before Christmas Eve monasteries would sing the “O antiphons” in anticipation of Christmas Eve when the eighth antiphon, “O Virgo virginum” (“O Virgin of virgins”) would be sung before and after Mary’s canticle, the Magnificat (Luke 1:46b-55). The Latin metrical form of the hymn was composed as early as the 12th century. John Mason Neale (1818-1866), the famous architect of the Oxford movement, discovered the Latin hymn in the appendix of an early 18th-century manuscript, “Psalterium Cationum Catholicorum,” with a refrain. Neale, a translator of early Greek and Latin hymns, included it in his influential collection, Mediaeval Hymns and Sequences (1851)1.
O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appears.
Refrain 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 o’er the grave.
Refrain
O come, Thou Dayspring, from on high, And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh; Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain
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.
Refrain
O come, Adonai, Lord of might, Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height, In ancient times didst give the law In cloud and majesty and awe.
Resound Worship is a collective of British worship songwriters, established in 2006, seeking to resource the church with songs that engage heart, mind and soul – songs we love to sing, that deeply feed us1. I recently found this group and song, and love the chord progressions in the verses that really help tell the story of the earth waiting for it’s Redeemer.
All the earth was waiting, Long anticipating, For the true Messiah to come. In the chill of darkness, Light became incarnate: King of glory, cradled in straw.
Refrain (He is) Joy to the world, Peace on the earth; God has come to us, Immanuel.
Hope for all the doubtful, Mercy for the shameful, Healer for the wounded and worn. Jesus, our redeemer, Counsellor and keeper; Father’s gift of love now outpoured.
Refrain
Come to him, the Lord of lords, Bring your sorrow, bring your joy, Worship and adore the one ` The world was waiting for! Jesus will return to reign, Wiping every tear away; Death will be defeated, Earth and heaven will proclaim –
This modern song written by Sovereign Grace is one I usually have on repeat around Christmas time. The call to ‘prepare Him room’ is not only for the in-keeper as detailed in Luke’s Gospel, but the whole world, as the Messiah enters the world, changes our hearts, and saves us from our sin.
O behold, the mystery now unfolds. See the star shine on the virgin foretold. Angels sing and light up the sky, Hope rings out in a newborn’s cry; Swing wide, you ancient gates, For Christ is born today!
Refrain Prepare Him room Prepare Him room Let the King of glory enter in
God with us, the promise has come to be. This, the one the prophets were longing to see. In the darkness a blazing light, To the hungry the words of life; His kingdom now is near, For those with ears to hear.
Refrain
Oh, our hearts, as busy as Bethlehem. Hear Him knock, don’t say there’s no room in the inn. Through the cradle, cross, and grave, See the love of God displayed; Now He’s risen and He reigns, Praise the Name above all names!
This hymn was first published in 1744 in Charles Wesley’s Hymns for the Nativity of Our Lord, a little collection so popular that it was reprinted 20 times during Wesley’s lifetime. Published in two eight-line stanzas, this hymn is now generally sung in the Advent season rather than during the nativity of Christ as the title of the collection indicates. “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus” has the quality of a petition—a prayer that implores Christ to be among us. Imperative verbs are used six times in the two stanzas found in the hymnal: “Come, thou long-expected Jesus”; “From our fears and sins release us”; “Let us find our rest in thee”; “Now thy gracious kingdom bring”; “Rule in all our hearts alone”; “Raise us to thy glorious throne.” The cumulative effect of these petitions is a tone of supplication. Wesley succeeds in recalling the deep longing of ancient Israel for the Messiah—the Promised One1.
Come, thou long expected Jesus, Born to set thy people free; From our fears and sins release us, Let us find our rest in thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth thou art; Dear desire of every nation, Joy of every longing heart.
Born thy people to deliver, Born a child and yet a King, Born to reign in us forever, Now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal spirit Rule in all our hearts alone; By thine all sufficient merit, Raise us to thy glorious throne.
For those of you who may follow a liturgical church calendar in your church tradition, you may have already started enjoying the Advent season. For the rest of us, December is a great time to recenter our hearts on remembering the miracle and joy of the Messiah coming into the world. The whole of December will be dedicated to Christmas/Advent hymns and carols 🙂
We start off with “Of the Father’s Love Begotten”, which is a beloved Christmas hymn that poignantly expresses the eternality of the Son of God and his divinity and coequality with the Father and the Spirit. It serves as a reminder that Jesus is the promised and long-awaited for Messiah who brings redemption to the world. With clarity and beauty, this hymn expresses both the deity and humanity of Christ. It also gives the modern church a direct connection to the doxology of the ancient church, being originally written in the 4th Century by Marcus Aurelius Prudentius Clemens (commonly known as Prudentius) – it was then translated into English in the mid 19th Century1. I love this beautiful stripped back, piano only solo version to set the tone of how I hope Christmas will be this year for us all: meditative, climatic, and joyful.
Of the Father’s love begotten ‘Ere the worlds began to be, He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending he, Of the things that are, that have been, And that future years shall see, Evermore and evermore.
Oh, that birth forever blessed When the virgin, full of grace, By the Holy Ghost conceiving, Bore the Saviour of our race, And the babe, the world’s Redeemer, First revealed his sacred face, Evermore and evermore.
This is he whom seers and sages Sang of old with one accord, Whom the voices of the prophets Promised in their faithful word. Now he shines, the long-expected; Let creation praise its Lord, Evermore and evermore.
Let the heights of heav’n adore him, Angel hosts his praises sing, Pow’rs, dominions bow before him And extol our God and King. Let no tongue on earth be silent, Ev’ry voice in concert ring, Evermore and evermore.
Christ, to thee, with God the Father, And, O Holy Ghost, to thee Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving And unending praises be, Honor, glory, and dominion And eternal victory Evermore and evermore.
Approach, my soul, the mercy seat was first published in John Newton’s Olney Hymns, 1779. It came into early use in the hymnals and has attained to a foremost position as one of the most popular of Newton’s productions. In the Olney Hymns it is the second of two hymns headed, “The Effort.” The first hymn by Newton on this same subject begins:— “Cheer up, my soul, there is a mercy seat.”1
Approach, my soul, the mercy seat Where Jesus answers prayer; There humbly fall before his feet, For none can perish there.
Thy promise is my only plea; With this I venture nigh: Thou callest burdened souls to thee, And such, O Lord, am I.
Bowed down beneath a load of sin, By Satan sorely pressed, By war without and fears within, I come to thee for rest.
Be thou my shield and hiding place, That, sheltered near thy side, I may my fierce accuser face, And tell him thou hast died.
O wondrous love! to bleed and die, To bear the cross and shame, That guilty sinners, such as I, Might plead thy gracious name!
Although attributed to different writers, when John Rippon published this hymn in a hymnal called “A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors, Intended to be an Appendix to Dr. Watts’ Pslams and Hymns (1797)”, this was included and authored by an unknown “K”. With it also carried the title “Exceedingly Great and Precious Promises”1. I remember this hymn from a Spurgeon sermon I read recently. When preaching on Hebrews 13:5, Spurgeon (who also quotes this hymn) says “I have no doubt you are aware that our translation does not convey the whole force of the original, and that it would hardly be possible in English to give the full weight of the Greek. We might render it, “He hath said, I will never, never leave thee; I will never, never, never forsake thee”…what ground there is here for faith! Let us lean upon our God with all our weight. Let us throw ourselves upon his faithfulness as we do upon our beds, bringing all our weariness to his dear rest. Now, right on our God let us cast the burdens of our bodies, and our souls, for he hath said, “I will never leave thee; I will never forsake thee.”2
How firm a foundation you saints of the lord Is laid for your faith in his excellent word. What more can he say than to you he has said To you who for refuge to Jesus have fled.
Fear not I am with you, oh be not dismayed For I am your God and will still give you aid. I’ll strengthen you, help you and cause you to stand Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.
When through the deep waters I call you to go The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow. For I will be with you, your troubles to bless And sanctify to you your deepest distress.
When through fiery trials your pathway shall lie My grace all-sufficient shall be your supply. The flame shall not hurt you, I only design Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose I will not, I will not desert to His foes. That soul, though all hell should endeavour to shake I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.
1page 136 – Leeman, D. and Leeman, B., 2022. Our Hymns, Our Heritage: A Student Guide to Songs of the Church 2spurgeon.org/resource-library/sermons/never-never-never-never-never/#flipbook/
Hymn of the Day 