Saturday, December 24, 2011

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Joy to the World

Always thought this was a beautiful hymn, but apparently like so many modern songs, not consistent with His Word: the Savior does not now reign or rule the world with truth and grace, and thorns still infest the ground!

Searching for the words on the internet tonight, discovered something strange. Found almost a dozen lyrics; each one different. Some politically-corrected the word men. Some changed the tense from is to was. Some deleted or added verses in entirety. The words below are from a disintegrating hymnal in the organ.

Searching further, discovered the name of this song is not Joy to the World, but rather The Messiah’s Coming and Kingdom! This is both the intended meaning and the name that author Isaac Watts originally pined.

Hope you will think about the words of this song, and of "the twinkling of an eye" when “heaven and nature” will LITERALLY sing for joy at His coming "while fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy": "For you will go out with joy, And be led forth with peace; The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, And all the trees of the field will clap their hands" (Isaiah 55:12).


The Messiah’s Coming and Kingdom

Joy to the world! The Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and heaven and nature sing.

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods
rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, Repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes and make the blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, and wonders of His love.