As we enter the Advent season and begin preparing our souls for the coming (adventus) of Jesus, we meditate on Who Jesus is, and on what He means to us. The ancient hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel has been sung to welcome the advent of Christ for at least 1300 years in Christian churches. Each of the seven verses begins with a title of Jesus and tells us something about Him.
O Come, Wisdom From on High
Jesus is the Wisdom of God; the Word that he speaks to the world and to each one of us, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn 1:1). Jesus is the Word that God speaks from all eternity. In Genesis, God spoke and created the light, the world, and humanity, and God spoke that word through His Son, Jesus Christ. Later John writes, “And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son, full of grace and truth” (1:14).
O Come O Come, Our Lord of Might
Jesus is the Lord, Adonai, Who lead His people out of slavery in Egypt, gave the law to Moses, and protected Israel from her enemies. He is born now to give us the new law of love and to redeem us from death through the forgiveness of our sins. When we call Jesus Lord, we accept His will for our lives. We bow before Our Lord, no longer in slavery, because He has freed us.
O Come, O Branch of Jesse's Stem
Jesse was the father of King David, whose descendants sat as king in Jerusalem for over 400 years. When the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem, the line of David was thought to be cut off, as a tree is cut down, and his kingdom destroyed and people scattered, but the prophet Isaiah foretold that a stem would sprout from the stump of Jesse. Jesus is that stem; Jesus is the descendant of David. Even when everything seems hopeless, like there is nothing left but death, we should always remember Jesus brings light into the darkness to show us the way to life.
O Come, O Key of David
Speaking of this key, the Prophet Isaiah said, “I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open (22:22).” Jesus is the Key of David, he wields the authority of King David. As King David protected the people from the Canaanites and Philistines and made the land prosperous and wealthy, so Jesus protects us from the powers of evil and gives us the light of life. When we are imprisoned in sins, Jesus opens the door and sets us free. By His death on the cross and ascension to heaven, he opens the gates of heaven to all of us.
O Come, O Day-spring From on High
The Day-spring is the sun, the morning star, rising in the East to begin the day. The Hebrews expected the Messiah to come from the east and to enter Jerusalem through the Eastern Gate, so, when Jesus entered Jerusalem before His passion and crucifixion, He used the Eastern Gate. Just as the sun rises in the east and brings light into the darkness of night, so Jesus, the Son of God, was born of the Virgin Mary, brought His Divine light into the world, and scattered the darkness of sin. Let us pray that He may also shine His light in our hearts and fill them with His love.
O Come, O Desire of the Nations
When Abraham showed his faith in God, God made three promises to him: that he would have many descendants, that they would possess the Promised Land, “and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing (Gn. 22:17-18).” Jesus is the fulfillment of this final blessing; He is a descendant of Abraham and His message of love is meant for all of the nations. Jesus was born as a Jewish man, but some of the first people to pay Him homage were the wise men, foreigners. Jesus was born for all people, and He wants all of us to know how much He loves us and for all of us to grow in His love.
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Emmanuel means “God with us.” At His birth the angels rejoiced and the choirs of heaven sang His praises, for a miracle had taken place, God became man! Our God had humbled Himself to become one of us. It is a greater condescension that God became man, than for a man to become an insect. This is the great exchange, the admirabile commercium, when He was born of the Virgin Mary in a manger, God humbled Himself to become a man, and all of humanity was elevated to be like God. So...
Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel, to thee shall come Emmanuel!