O Come O Come Emmanuel, 15th century hymn
Misery likes company The old Latin hymn, “O Come O Come Emmanuel” is a song about misery and company. It oscillates between pain and hope, loneliness and fellowship. It is a song of dread and joy… O come, O come, Emmanuel And ransom captive Israel The song recalls the time Israel were carted into exile, strangers in a strange land, longing for home, singing by the rivers of Babylon. Yep, that's their song, not Boney M's. Will they ever make it back? Yes. Even more so, God will accompany them on the way home... Make safe the way that leads on high And close the path to misery Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel She can rejoice amidst her misery knowing Emmanuel is with them. They have company. So they waited, longing for things to be made well. Fast forward to that first Christmas eve, an angel repeated the promise to a waiting people… The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and they will call him Immanuel, which means, “...