By Jonathan Keller
Joy to the world; the Lord is come;
Let Earth receive her King;
Let ev’ry heart prepare him room,
And heav’n and nature sing.
Fun fact: did you know that this Christmas carol (“Joy to the World” by Isaac Watts) discusses the Second Coming of Jesus rather than His birth?
Over the next four weeks of Advent, I wanted to follow this line of thinking through four popular Christmas carols. I encourage you to look up the carols in a hymnal or on hymnary.org, pull up a recording of them, and sing along to all the verses. As you do, think both of how the carol looks to Jesus’ birth and to the hope of His second coming.
Advent and the Second Coming
Advent refers to the time of waiting for Christ to come on Christmas Day, readying our hearts during a dreary time of the year for the day when Light of Light Himself came down. But we often forget that, as the Israelites waited and longed for the Messiah to come in the future, we, too, are to look toward a future coming of Christ. We long for the day when Jesus will return, having readied the heavens for the coming resurrection of His people, and “no more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground!” What Christ began at Christmas through His righteous life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection He will finish at His second coming in glory, and many of our Christmas carols draw us to look beyond Christmas trees and presents to that day when our King will return.
Joy to the World and Christ’s Return
“Joy to the World” declares that the baby in the manger will come back as the King of the world, the One who will unite all nations in praising Him forever. He will cause all nations around the world to demonstrate the “glories of His righteousness and the wonders of His love.” They will shout with acclamation that this King is just and His ways are fruitful for humanity, and they will serenade each other with melodies of His great mercy toward former rebels. Orchestral settings of this hymn often decorate the grand melody with trumpet blasts and timpani beats. Notice also how the tune starts at the top of the scale (from where the Lord will descend), lands on the bottom of the scale (where humanity dwells in a mixed world of light and darkness), and carries the singers back up to the heavens (where Christ will meet His beloved in air at the end of all things).
Jesus will return one day, and the Advent of our whole lives looks forward to that glorious descent of our King. How does Christ’s return look to you in your mind? What will it be like for Him to come down, wipe away all evil and sin from the world, renew all things, and raise up His people? Ponder that as you listen to “Joy to the World” this week.