O COME, O COME, EMMANUEL

Words

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 vict’ry o’er the grave.

O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death’s dark shadows put to flight.

O come, thou Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery.

O come, O come, thou Lord of Might,
who to thy tribes on Sinai’s height
in ancient times didst give the Law
in cloud and majesty and awe.

Seven antiphons were sung in the medieval Roman Church at Vespers before and after the Magnificat, just prior to Christmas (starting on 17 December).  Each of these began with the word ‘O’ and so they were called the ‘Great’ or ‘O’ antiphons.  The word antiphon means a psalm or anthem.

The Biblical references to the five that are included in this hymn are

Emmanuel                   Isaiah 7 v 14
Root of Jesse               Isaiah 11 v 10
Dayspring                    Malachi 4 v 2
Key of David                Isaiah 22 v 22
O Lord (Adonai)    Exodus 3 v 15

The refrain ‘rejoice, rejoice’ was added.  The hymn is thought to date from the twelfth century.  The text was translated by John Mason Neale (1818 - 1866).  Neale was ordained into the Anglican ministry in 1841, but poor health and Catholic leanings (he was influenced by the Oxford movement) prevented him from gaining a parish ministry.  He was appointed instead as the director of Sackville College, a home for elderly men.  This was ideal for him as he was a compassionate man, but also a scholar in need of time for research and writing.  He also wrote or translated other hymns including ‘Good King Wenceslas’, ‘Good Christian men, rejoice’ and ‘All glory, laud and honour’.  The tune ‘Veni Emmanuel’ is from a French missal.

A modern hymn, based on the ‘O’ Antiphons, is ‘O Wisdom, source of harmony’ (found at Liturgical Hymns Old and New 566).  The words are by Damian Lundy.  They are set to the folk tune ‘O Waly Waly’, but could also be sung to ‘Old 100th’ (the tune for ‘All people that on earth do dwell’).