Editor’s Note: Though we shared this with our reader’s last year, we thought the story is so revealing, and in these times uplifting, we decided to share it again this year!

JOY TO THE WORLD

By Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts (1674-1748), author of around 750 songs, is commonly called “The Father of Hymns” due to his popularity as the first English hymn writer. A few of his most well-known songs still sung today include: Come ye that Love the Lord; When I Survey the Wondrous Cross; At the Cross; and today’s post, Joy to the World.

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n, and heav’n, and nature 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,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

No more let sins 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.

Isaac Watts’ JOY TO THE WORLD is NOT about the FIRST Coming of Christ, but the SECOND Coming! Though most of us grew up singing JOY TO THE WORLD every December, assuming that it was written to announce the Birth of Christ, the reality is it is talking about the SECOND Coming of Christ! This is apparent when you examine some of the things that it refers to:

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And heav’n and nature 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,

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
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,

As you well know, none of these things happened as a result of the First Coming, and will only be manifested at the time of the Second Coming! Don’t cross JOY TO THE WORLD off your list of Christmas Carols, however, as is still a great sentiment, and a great announcement to the world today!