God rest ye merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay, For Jesus Christ our Savior Was born upon this day, To save us all from Satan’s power When we were gone astray. Refrain: O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy; O tidings of comfort and joy! In Bethlehem in Jewry This blessed babe was born, And laid within a manager Upon this blessed morn: The which His mother Mary Did nothing take in scorn. Refrain. From God our heavenly Father A blessed angel came, And unto certain shepherds Brought tidings of the same, How that in Bethlehem was born The Son of God by name. Refrain. The shepherds at those tidings Rejoiced much in mind, And left their flocks afeeding In tempest, storm, and wind, And went to Bethlehem straightway, The blessed babe to find. Refrain. Now to the Lord sing praises, All you within this place, And with true love and brotherhood Each other now embrace; This holy tide of Christmas All other doth deface. Refrain. This Carol was first published in 1827, but even then it was introduced as “an ancient carol, sung in the streets of London.” In fact, old London had municipal watchmen who were licensed to perform certain tasks, including the singing of Christmas carols. This was one of their songs. In A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Ebenezer Scrooge hears this song sung joyously in the street and tells the singer he’ll hit him with a ruler unless he stops singing. Of course that was not the intended response to this carol. The point is that joy reigns on Christmas Day because of God’s great gift of His Son, Jesus Christ. We can “rest merry” in the knowledge that Christ has paid our penalty for going astray and has set us free from the power of evil.
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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. Refrain: Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Born is the King of Israel.... They looked up and saw a star Shining in the east, beyond them far, And to the earth it gave great light, And so it continued both day and night. Refrain. And by the light of that same star Three wise men came from country far; To seek for a king was their intent, And to follow the star wherever I went. Refrain. This star drew nigh to the northwest, O’er Bethlehem it took its rest, And there it did both stop and stay, Right over the place where Jesus lay. Refrain. Then entered in those Wise Men three, Full rev’rently upon their knee, And offered there in His presence Their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense. Refrain. Noel is a French word that may come from the Latin natalis, meaning “birth,” or from the Latin novella, meaning “new.” In one sense Noel refers to the whole Christmas season; in another it refers to the good news that Jesus Christ has come. The first Noel, this song says, was sung by an angel to poor shepherds. The chorus rings out like a corner paperboy – “News! News! News! Hear all about it! King of Israel born today!” Early folk carols such as this one often had a memorable chorus and many stanzas, each presenting some ne aspect of the story. An individual or group could sing a stanza, perhaps one newly made up, and the whole crowd would join in the refrain. “The First Noel” was first published in its present form by William Sandys in 1833. Angels, from the realms of glory, Wing your flight o’er all the earth; Ye who sang creation’s story Now proclaim Messiah’s birth: Refrain: Come and worship, come and worship Worship Christ, the newborn King. Shepherds, in the field abiding, Watching o’er your flocks by night,... God with man is now residing; Yonder shines the infant light. Refrain. Sages, leave your contemplations; Brighter visions beam afar; Seek the great Desire of nations; Ye have seen His natal star. Refrain. All creation, join in praising God, the Father, Spirit, Son, Evermore your voices raising To the eternal Three in One. Refrain. James Montgomery, a newspaperman in London, had been imprisoned twice for his controversial editorials, but there was no controversy when he ran this poem in his newspaper column on Christmas Eve, 1816. Other than Isaac Watts and Charles Wesley, probably no writer has contributed more to the development of Christian hymns than this unique journalist who championed the cause of the poor and downtrodden, as well as foreign missions. It is fitting that the music was composed by a blind organist, Henry Smart, the designer and builder of some of England’s finest organs and one of the outstanding musicians of his day. In writing this hymn, Montgomery referred not only to the Gospel accounts of Christ’s birth, but also to the messianic prophecies of the old Testament, where the Messiah is called the desired of all nations (Haggai 2:7), who world come suddenly to His temple (Malachi 3:1). |
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