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.
Isaac Watts
Watts published “Joy to the World” in a book of poetry in 1719. Each poem was based on a psalm, in this case Psalm 98. One of the most famous Christmas carols wasn’t written as a song, but a poem about Christ’s role as King! It wasn’t until over a century later that a portion of it was put to music.
Psalm 98 is a declaration of recognition and praise of God as universal King. He has made known His salvation in the sight of the nations (v. 2), the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of God (v. 3). The whole earth will make a joyful song and sing praises (v. 4), including the seas (v. 7), the rivers, and hills (v. 8).
Both Psalm 98 and “Joy to the World” have come to be associated with Christmas. When we think about the Christmas story, we tend to emphasize His role as Savior (and rightly so!) and put less emphasis on His role as universal King. But it was Christ the King that encouraged the people of His time and brought concern to Herod and later the religious leaders (we will read more about that later this week).
Remember Isaiah 9?
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this. Isaiah 9:6–7
The prophet Isaiah told the people of God to expect the birth of a King. He would establish and uphold the throne of David with justice and righteousness. That’s what the Jews were waiting for and what Christ established in His time on earth. But His kingdom doesn’t know geographical boundaries, it is universal! The increase of His government knows no end. The seas and hills sing for joy and clap their hands.
What I love about “Joy to the World” (and Psalm 98) is it celebrates Christmas and Christ’s first advent, but it also looks forward to His return. The kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:15), but it won’t be complete until Christ’s return. When that happens we can truly 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!
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of his righteousness
And wonders of his love!”
Family Discussion
What is joy? Is it the same as being happy?
Who is someone you know that is always joyful? How do you know?
