Joy To The World

Joy To The World

It may shock you to hear this, but a fifteen year old young man walked out of a church service and complained about the “atrocious” music.

Sound familiar? Trust me ... I’ve seen that happen more than once. On this particular occasion, though, the minister looked at the young man and challenged him by saying, “Give us something better.”

Young Isaac took the challenge and thus began a long career of hymn writing. He would write over 750 hymns in his lifetime. In case you think this is a recent story, let me tell you that you would be wrong. The year was 1689 and the young man was Isaac Watts who would one day write this week’s Christmas hymn, “Joy To The World.”

The hymn was a great success but the music was not added until later when someone pieced it together with the music of Handel. Although it is a favored Christmas carol, it is actually taken from the 98th Psalm which was written 1000 years before Christ was born. When read with an eye towards the coming of the Messiah, it makes perfect sense to place it among the great songs of Christmas.

Make sure you take the time to read Psalm 98 before you plunge into this musical wonder. Then listen to the masterpiece of joy that the lyrics and music of the young Isaac Watts bring to the Christmas season.

Psalms 98:4-8

“Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises. Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody. With trumpets and the sound of the horn shout joyfully before the King, the LORD. Let the sea roar and all it contains, the world and those who dwell in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy”

JOY TO THE WORLD

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 world! 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 sin and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His 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, wonders of His love.