This is my favorite Christmas song. I love it because it is the cry of the Old Testament. From the fall, we have been crying out for God to come be with us. In Jesus, God does just that. In Jesus, whose name is Emmanuel (God with us), God does come to be with us. He doesn’t just come to live with us, he comes to die for us.
As my wife and I were singing this song together yesterday, we were rejoicing in the hope we have, because Emmanuel did come. As we sat together we wrote the added verse (bolded):
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 Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
Come, O Children Come and Hear,
Let no more sin and sorrow near
From heaven he came and sought his own,
To spare us judgment from his throne
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Has come to us, O Israel
Merry Christmas, rest in knowledge that God has come in Jesus, not merely in the manger, but on the cross.
YAWPC 