Christmas and Advent Hymns and their Story

“Now Sing We, Now Rejoice”

According to a legend, the angels sang this to a 14th century Dominican Friar and mystic Heinrich Seuse. He recorded this event to add to an auto-biography, and book he wanted to produce [hhhmmm]. The strange thing, among many, is that some verses have lines composed in both Latin, and German – seriously.
For us, in verse 1, the singer calls for us to rejoice by raising our voices in song. The listener is reminded that our joy is centered only in Christ, who has embraced humanity by becoming a man. The second verse begs Christ to come down to us, since we cannot rise up to Him, and His coming brings joy to our troubled lives. It is through Christ’s merit that grace is extended to us. The third verse concerns the Father, who has given His Son for our salvation as verse four takes the Christmas account and brings it into an end time focus, encouraging us, as singer and listener, to look forward to our heavenly salvation.
While strangely pieced together with a story that is, well, not true; it still takes us to rejoice in Jesus as our Manger-born King.

Now sing we, now rejoice, now raise to heav’n our voice;
He from whom joy streameth poor in a manger lies;
Not so brightly beameth the sun in yonder skies.
Thou my Savior art! Thou my Savior art!

LSB 386