Any Similar Revival

I heard the bells on Christmas day

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet the words repeat

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,

The belfries of all Christendom

Had rolled along the unbroken song

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head

Verse 1:

The first Noel the angel did say

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay–

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,

On a cold winter’s night that was so deep.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,

Born is the King of Israel!

Verse 6:

Then let us all with one accord

Sing praises to our heav’nly Lord,

That hath made heav’n and earth of naught,

And with His blood mankind hath bought.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,

Born is the King of Israel!.

This is an old English carol, in my hymnal, an English melody, with the words "before 1823" written next to the title.  I like this carol because it tells the story, almost like a ballad, of the birth of Christ and the Epiphany. I didn’t write all six verses here, but each one tells a part of the story. The shepherds, the star, the wise men seeing the star, the wise men journeying to Bethlehem and bringing their gifts. Then that last verse, bringing it to the point: let us sing the praises of the Lord who wrote the story. I love those last two pithy lines, summing up both the mysteries of creation and redemption in 15 words. And it rhymes too! Brilliant. I imagine people living several centuries ago who would know this carol by heart. Perhaps they couldn’t read or didn’t have access to books and Scripture. They would know the Christmas story though, because they knew this hymn. I like it for its homeliness, its simplicity, and its beautiful alto line. I can’t help it, I am an alto!

My favorite recording is an instrumental version from another obscure album called Piano Winterlude, by David Huntsinger. This album is completely worth hunting down and adding to your collection. Beautiful, beautiful arrangements.

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, O come, thou Dayspring,

Come and cheer our spirits

By Thine advent here;

O drive away the shades of night

And pierce the clouds to bring us light.

Rejoice! Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

12th Century Latin hymn (Veni, veni)

13th Century Plainsong.

This one is old. It’s also the first Christmas song listed in my hymnal. It has that sense of hushed expectation, the waiting, the hoping, the longing. One of my favorite versions of this carol is on an album called The Carol Album–Seven Centuries of Christmas Music by the Taverner Consort. They sing the Latin version, and it opens the album. At first, you think that something is wrong with your recording, because nothing seems to be happening. But then, very quietly, you hear "Veni, Veni, O Emmanuel. . ." They are singing it in procession, and you hear them coming towards you. In my mind’s eye, I see a torch-lit procession (almost like the funeral scene in much ado about nothing, but that is for another post), the singers lit with the golden glow of flame, and the song sneaking up on you, filling your ears like honey. Then it rings out, "Gaude! Gaude!" Rejoice, rejoice! I LOVE it.

Another picture comes to mind when I hear or sing this carol. A captive Israel, under the thumb of Roman rule, waiting for their Messiah. A young girl and her fiance, riding stony roads to Bethlehem. A baby born in poverty, in dirt and animal mess, in obscurity. God’s answer to our longings almost never comes the way we expect it to. Who would have dreamed up the night of Christ’s birth as the coming of the Messiah, the Savior of the world? 

Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,

Born to set Thy people free;

Israel’s Strength and Consolation,

Hope of all the earth Thou art;

Dear Desire of ev’ry nation,

Joy of ev’ry longing heart.

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 ev’ry nation,

Joy of ev’ry longing heart.

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.

Charles Wesley; Tune:  Hyfrydol

Is this my favorite? It just might be. My favorite recording of this song is on a little album called Winterlude, by John Darnell. It is an instrumental recording of carols, and we bought it years ago on clearance at Marc’s, of all places. It is probably my very favorite Christmas album. The harmony line in this recording is just beautiful, and when I get to sing this song in church, I sing that line. So, so beautiful.

My friend Sandhya, (Sandhya, where are you!!!???) and I once had a conversation about hymns. She said, "You know, if I were ever thrown in prison for my faith and wasn’t allowed to have the Bible, I’d be ok, because I know all these hymns by heart." She’s totally right. So many of these songs and carols are full of scripture, full of doctrine. In this carol, we have the majesty of Christ– both His divinity and his humanity. We also see our need of Him, declaring our helplessness in the face of sin and fear. Most importantly, it rejoices in His merit, and His merit alone, to save us. What a wonder: the message of the Gospel, shining through the loveliness of a Christmas carol. When I am in a store during the holidays, I listen to the music wafting through the air. And sometimes I smile to myself: all these traditional songs, usually bereft of their lyrics, playing in the secular world. I smile because I believe they still have the power to move in the hearts of the listener. They whisper to us in the midst of all the materialism and stress: Jesus, Jesus, it is ALL about Jesus. What comfort.

Because this carol shares the same tune as "Our Great Savior," I usually end up mixing the words to both songs together. But it works. Listen:

"Hallelujah! What a Savior! Hallelujah! What a Friend!

Saving, helping, keeping , loving

He is with me to the end."

We can still sing "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus" as a prayer. He is, after all, going to come back some day.

Let us find our rest in Thee.