God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen
Read: Philippians 4:4-7 The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything. (vv. 5-6) To understand the message of this jaunty old English carol, the most important thing to do is to observe the comma in the title. It’s not “God rest you, merry gentlemen.” It’s “God rest you merry, gentlemen.” The gentlemen—and gentle […]
Good Christian Friends, Rejoice
Read: 1 Corinthians 15:51-57 O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? (v. 55) Here is a joyful invitation to celebrate the good news of the Christmas gospel. “Good Christian Friends, Rejoice” is another of the many hymns we owe to the linguistic and poetic gifts of John Mason Neale, a scholarly Anglican […]
Why I Read Through the Bible Every Year
Are you thinking about reading through the Bible this year? Words of Hope’s reading plan, Read the Bible in a Year, is a daily devotional that will take you through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Order your copy through Amazon, sign up for our free daily email, or download the Words of Hope app […]
Go, Tell It on the Mountain
Read: Isaiah 40:9-11 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation. (Isa. 52:7) “Go, Tell It on the Mountain” was first printed in a collection of spirituals published in 1907 by John Wesley Work, a professor at […]
We Three Kings
Read: Matthew 2:1-12 And they fell down and worshiped him. (v. 11) The first line of this familiar carol makes three claims about the magi, and of the three only one is certainly true: they were from the Orient. This doesn’t mean they came from China or Japan; the Latin word oriens is literally “the place […]
Let All Mortal Flesh
Read: Isaiah 6:1-6 Let all God’s angels worship him. (Heb. 1:6) With this Christmas hymn we are brought into the worship of the ancient church. “Let All Mortal Flesh” was originally written in Greek and is found in the Liturgy of St. James, which may go all the way back to the early church in […]
What Child Is This?
Read: Mark 4:35-41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (v. 41) One of the most beautiful old English tunes is “Greensleeves,” which dates at least to the Middle Ages and was mentioned by Shakespeare. In the 19th […]
Away in a Manger
Read: Romans 8:18-25, 28-30 Predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. (v. 29) No one really knows who wrote this carol, which began appearing in American hymnals in the late 1800s. It’s sometimes attributed to Martin Luther, perhaps because Luther loved Christmas and he loved children, and he wrote a lot of good […]
Angels We Have Heard on High
Read: Luke 2:1-14 Glory to God in the highest . . . ! (v. 14) Not surprisingly, angels figure prominently in a lot of Christmas carols. “Angels We Have Heard on High” is another one. This traditional French carol and tune has us once more reliving in song the familiar story of Luke 2, this time from the […]