Sent from high,
They are nigh,
And forbid our Fear.
2. News they bring us of Salvation,
Sounds of Joy
To employ
Every Tongue and Nation.
3. Welcome Tidings! to retrieve us
From our Fall,
Born for All,
CHRIST is born to save us.
4. Born his Creatures to restore,
Abject Earth
Sees His Birth,
Whom the Heavens adore.
5. Wrapt in Swaths th' Immortal Stranger
Man with Men
We have seen,
Lying in a Manger.
6. All to GOD's Free Grace is owing;
We are his
Witnesses,
Poor, and nothing knowing.
7. Simple Shepherds Us he raises,
Bids us sing
CHRIST the King,
And shew forth his Praises.
8. We have seen the King of Glory,
We proclaim
CHRIST his Name,
And record his Story.
9. Sing we with the Host of Heaven,
Reconcil'd
By a Child
Who to Us is given.
10. Glory be to GOD the Giver,
Peace and Love
From above
Reign on Earth for ever.
There is so much in this hymn! Though the stanzas are short, it is one of the longer hymns in the Nativity collection. I love the chiastic structure with he B and B' communicating such profound truths in short phrases: "From our Fall, Born for All," "Reconcil'd By a Child"...Amen!
Again, I am struck by the notion that Christ is "born" to save us. We hear all the time (especially during Holy Week, and rightly so) that Christ died (& rose again) to save us. But here, we see the important assertion that Christ was born to save us, affirming Christ's recapitulating "every stage of human life" in order to redeem it. This "born to save us" is not in the "BORN TO DIE!" sense that wants to move straight from the Manger to the Cross while ignoring Jesus' maturing, learning through obedience, teaching, healing, eluding, feeding, cleansing, and so on.
Stanza 8 resounds an important note: Christ is the King of Glory. Reminds me of Psalm 24:
1 The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the waters.
3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to an idol
or swear by what is false.
5 He will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from God his Savior.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek your face, O God of Jacob. (Selah)
7 Lift up your heads, O you gates;
be lifted up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates;
lift them up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is he, this King of glory?
The LORD Almighty---
he is the King of glory.
There is a command given before the entrance of the King. What a message for Advent!! Prepare the way! Make straight paths for him! Clean your hands and purify your hearts! Do not be afraid! For I bring you good tidings of GREAT JOY!!! On THIS DAY in the city of Bethlehem, a KING IS BORN, who is CHRIST THE LORD!! Go and see Him! Run! Lift up your heads and bow down! The King of Glory is coming! He is Mighty to Save...even as an Infant lying lowly in a Manger! There you will behold the face of the God of Jacob and you will receive blessing from the LORD!
No comments:
Post a Comment