O come, O come, Emmanuel

1 O come, O come, Emmanuel,

and ransom captive Israel

that mourns in lonely exile here

until the Son of God appear.

Refrain:

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to you, O Israel.

2 O come, O Wisdom from on high,

who ordered all things mightily;

to us the path of knowledge show

and teach us in its ways to go. Refrain

3 O come, O come, great Lord of might,

who to your tribes on Sinai's height

in ancient times did give the law

in cloud and majesty and awe. Refrain

4 O come, O Branch of Jesse's stem,

unto your own and rescue them!

From depths of hell your people save,

and give them victory o'er the grave. Refrain

5 O come, O Key of David, come

and open wide our heavenly home.

Make safe for us the heavenward road

and bar the way to death's abode. Refrain

6 O come, O Bright and Morning Star,

and bring us comfort from afar!

Dispel the shadows of the night

and turn our darkness into light. Refrain

7 O come, O King of nations, bind

in one the hearts of all mankind.

Bid all our sad divisions cease

and be yourself our King of Peace. Refrain

The lyric for this hymn dates to the 8^th century.  It was a poem used as a call and response in the liturgy of the church during evening worship services (vespers, compline, evening prayer).  The poem formed the basis of the O Antiphons that many churches use in Advent liturgy.   In the Latin it formed the “reverse acrostic” ero cras that translates to “I will be with you on the morrow.”  It came to be associated with the season of Advent from its very early days.  The opening line of each stanza identifies a different title for Christ.  The poem was originally a chant that became plainsong that came to be sung to the current tune Veni Immanuel (composed by Thomas Helmore (1811 – 1890).