O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
Translated by JM Neale
This hymn sits in the context of the Hebrew scripture and history. Israel long awaits the coming of Emmanuel “God is with us” (Isaiah 7:10-16) for the transformation to a reign of peace.
O Come, O Come Emmanuel feels like an invitation to Jesus’s Birth Birthday Party, but it’s addressed to Jesus. This isn’t an ordinary birthday party. The infant Christ is the giver at this party (‘We Three Kings’ has to wait until Epiphany) The approaching date on the calendar shouldn’t be a rush to mail Jesus his birthday card or buy him a present; it’s to prepare the soil of our souls to receive the life of Jesus, the meaning of the life of Jesus, and allow the meaning of Jesus’s life to change my life. Advent is a time to prepare the soil so that the seed can break forth in my life and thrive. ‘to us the path of knowledge show and teach us in its ways to go’
Hope is the emotion that permeates this hymn. The coming of Emmanuel is to fulfill the promises of the Hebrew scripture; to free us from tyranny, misery, gloom, fear of death and the grave,
Jesus, the God made man, the desire of nations, will be the light and presence with us. He will be our King of Peace.
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