O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Israel's long wait gives the carol its shape. Nicole C. Mullen sings the old Advent text as the plea of a people who "mourn in lonely exile" and ask Emmanuel to "ransom captive Israel," while the refrain, "Rejoice, Rejoice," holds out the promise that God will come to them.

Each verse calls on Christ by a different title. The Rod of Jesse is asked to free his own from "Satan's tyranny" and give "victory over the grave," and the Desire of nations is asked to bind "the hearts of all mankind" and end "our sad divisions" as king of peace. Those names reach back to Isaiah's promises of a shoot from Jesse's stock and a child called Prince of Peace.

The final refrain changes a single word. Earlier the promise reads "Emmanuel shall come," and at the end it becomes "Has come to thee, O Israel!" The repeated last line turns longing into celebration, and Matthew 1:23 gives the name Emmanuel its meaning, God with us.