God Is With Us

The LORD spoke to Ahaz: Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, "I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!" Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore, the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall name him Emmanuel. (Isaiah 7:10-14)

I admit I usually don’t remember a hymn or carol beyond the first verse.  Today’s reading from Isaiah has been used as the backbone for our “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”  Here are all the lyrics. 

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 o'er the grave.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel

Shall come to thee, O Israel.

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.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel

Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come

And open wide our heav'nly 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, 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.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel

Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Apart from not remembering these lyrics, most of us don’t understand what we sing with great reverence.  Here is what I have read.

(begin) Quite unusually for a Christmas carol still commonly performed, there are all sorts of arcane words and expressions littered throughout…The distinctly biblical feel of the lyrics differ from the more overtly celebratory tone of most carols (there’s no herald angels harking nor flocks being watched by night, for example), and the actual nativity narrative doesn’t feature in any meaningful way.

The Emmanuel of the title refers to the Hebrew ‘Immanuel’ which appears in the Book of Isaiah in the Old Testament more as a sign of God’s protection than an actual person, whereas in the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament the name Emmanuel refers specifically to Jesus Christ.

The meaning here is that the exile will last until the great son in the House of David is born in Bethlehem. Then will come deliverance. Then will come the end of exile. Then will come the return of lost humanity to the presence of God. 

The opening verse summarizes the tri-fold Advent longing: Come again, You who have come before, and are with us now [Immanuel = God is with us]. Shall come again and with us ever dwell. The refrain repeats the Advent hope for the coming of God to live directly among God's people. (end)

Yes, God is with us.  It’s a belief that helps us deal with the darkest time of the year and to disperse the gloomy clouds of night putting death's dark shadows to flight. It helps us make safe the way that leads on high and close the path to misery.  Thank God!  We all need that hope enabling us to rejoice.

Deacon David Pierce