This year for my Christmas blog post I’m going to quote from my favorite Christmas hymns. The only Christmas songs I really like are hymns (just personal preference), so don’t expect me to quote anything modern. I hope you will enjoy these lyrics and I hope you have a Merry Christmas.
As usual for Christmas, here are links to the Christmas story, Matthew 1-2 and Luke 1-2.
The first Christmas hymn up is “God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen”. The whole Christmas season is summarized, basically, in the first verse,
God rest you merry, gentlemen,
let nothing you dismay,
remember Christ our Savior
was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan's pow'r
when we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.
Next is “Angels from the Realms of Glory”. I’m going to quote the original final stanza, which isn’t included in some hymnals. It might sound gloomy to some people, however, it completes the narrative of the song. The narrative goes from the Angels song, in the first stanza one, leads to the Shepherds’ adoration, stanza two, and to Sages’ gifts, in the third stanza, and to Saints’ praise in heaven, stanza four, and lastly, to the Sinners’ repentance on earth.
Sinners, wrung with true repentance,
Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
Justice now revokes your sentence,
Mercy calls you; break your chains.
“I Saw Three Ships” is up next. The original song is about the ships that took the supposed skulls of the wise men to Cologne cathedral in Germany. The version I’ve quoted, which is the most common version now, is about Mary and Jesus traveling to Bethlehem. I couldn’t decide which stanza to highlight, so here’s the whole song.
I saw three ship come sailing in,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
I saw three ship come sailing in,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And what was in those ships all three?
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And what was in those ships all three?
on Christmas Day in the morning.
Our Saviour Christ and His lady,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
Our Saviour Christ and His lady,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And where they sailed those ships all three?
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And where they sailed those ships all three?
on Christmas Day in the morning.
All they sailed in to Bethlehem,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
All they sailed in to Bethlehem,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And all the bells on earth shall ring,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And all the bells on earth shall ring,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And all the angels in heaven shall sing,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And all the the angels in heaven shall sing,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And all the souls on earth shall sing,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And all the souls on earth shall sing,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
And let us all rejoice again,
on Christmas day on Christmas day.
And let us all rejoice again,
on Christmas Day in the morning.
“Good Christian Men, Rejoice” is another good Christmas hymn. This song was originally written in German and Latin with the title of “In dulci jubilo”. It dates back to at least 1328. This is the third stanza,
Good Christian friends, rejoice
with heart and soul and voice;
now ye need not fear the grave:
Jesus Christ was born to save!
Calls you one and calls you all
to gain his everlasting hall.
Christ was born to save!
Christ was born to save!
Next I have “Hark! The Herald Angels sing”. This hymn was written in 1739 by Charles Wesley, the brother of John Wesley, as “Hymn for Christmas-Day”. Then in 1754, George Whitefield changed some wording in the the first verse and renamed it "Hark! the Herald Angels sing". I’m going to quote the third stanza,
Hail the Heav'n-born Prince of Peace
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and Life around he brings,
Ris'n with Healing in his Wings.
Mild he lays his Glory by,
Born that Men no more may die;
Born to raise the Sons of Earth,
Born to give them second Birth.
Now, last but not least is “Silent Night”. “Silent Night” was written in 1816 by a Catholic priest named Josef Mohr from Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. The original name was “Stille Nacht” and it was a poem written to commemorate the coming of peace after the Napoleonic Wars.
Two years later the river Salzbach flooded into Mohr's parish church of Saint Nicholas damaging the organ. Just days before Christmas Eve, Mohr contacted asked Franz Xaver Gruber, schoolmaster and organist in the nearby village of Arnsdorf, to compose a melody and guitar accompaniment for the Christmas Eve mass. Gruber composed the melody in an afternoon.
I’m going to quote the last stanza,
Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love's pure light;
Radiant beams from thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.
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