Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

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Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
Christian hymn
OccasionAdvent
TextCharles Wesley
Meter8.7.8.7
Melody
Published1744 (1744)

"Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" is a 1744 Advent and Christmas carol common in Protestant hymnals. The text was written by Charles Wesley. It is performed to one of several tunes, including "Stuttgart" (attr. to Christian Friedrich Witt),[1] "Hyfrydol" (by Rowland Prichard),[2] and "Cross of Jesus" (by John Stainer). The hymn is considered an enduring classic in Christian hymnody.[3][4]

History

In 1744, Charles Wesley considered Haggai 2:7 and looked at the situation of orphans in the areas around him. He also looked at the class divide in Great Britain.[5] Through this train of thought, he wrote "Come, Thou long expected Jesus" based upon Haggai 2:7 and a published prayer at the time which had the words:

"Born Your people to deliver, born a child and yet a King, born to reign in us forever, now Your gracious kingdom bring. By Your own eternal Spirit, rule in all our hearts alone; by Your all sufficient merit, raise us to Your glorious throne. Amen."[6]

Wesley adapted this prayer into a hymn in 1744 and published it in his "Hymns for the Nativity of our Lord" hymnal. Wesley wrote "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" with the intent for people to remember Advent and Christmas as commemorating the Nativity of Jesus and preparing for the Second Coming.[7][8]

Charles Wesley

"Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" was the first of a number of Wesley's hymns that became known as the "Festival hymns". These "Festival hymns" were published outside of

Second Coming of Jesus.[11]

The lyrics of "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" focus on God choosing to give a Messiah to the world in the form of Jesus. It also focusses on the Old Testament Israelites longing for the Messiah to come and take the burden of sins from them to take them upon himself. The last line of the first verse may have come from Wesley being inspired by 17th century philosopher; Blaise Pascal's claim that "There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every person that cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator."[11]

Music

"Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" has been set to a number of tunes. It is not known which tune Wesley originally intended for the hymn[

New English Hymnal) to the 4-line tune "Cross of Jesus", by John Stainer, which he wrote as part of his oratorio The Crucifixion.[12]

Lyrics

The original text by Charles Wesley has two stanzas of eight lines each. These may also be divided into four stanzas of four lines each.[13]

— Charles Wesley[14]

An additional 2 stanzas, by Mark E. Hunt, were inserted in the middle of the hymn and used in a version published in the 1990 Trinity Hymnal.[15]

Recorded versions

Brian Johnson also sang a version of "Come Thou Long Expected Jesus".[17] Fernando Ortega also recorded "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" on his 2011 album Christmas Songs.[18] Red Mountain Music has recorded a version of "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" which appears on their album Silent Night, and includes all four verses.[19] Meredith Andrews
also recorded "Come Thou Long Expected Jesus" on her 2017 Christmas album Receive Our King. In
Shane and Shane
recorded in 2018.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Stuttgart". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
  2. ^ "Evangelical Lutheran Worship 254. Come, thou long-expected Jesus". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
  3. ISBN 1-4574-4420-8
    .
  4. ISBN 978-1-60974-817-3
    .
  5. ISBN 0-310-26314-X
    .
  6. ^ David Baker (2014-10-03). "Reflection: Good news in a bad news world". Christian Today. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
  7. ^ a b c "Come, Thou long expected Jesus". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
  8. ^
    ISBN 978-1-4982-0682-2
    .
  9. ISBN 978-0-8007-3395-7
    .
  10. ^
    ISBN 1-4771-7651-9
    .
  11. ^ a b Brandon, Judy (2015-12-17). "Christmas' focus is that long wait is over". Clovis News Journal. Retrieved 2015-12-22.
  12. ISBN 978-1-4721-2645-0
    . Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  13. The Hymn
    . 49 (4).
  14. ^ Wesley, Charles (1989). "196. Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus". The United Methodist Hymnal. Nashville, TN: The United Methodist Publishing House.
  15. ^ "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  16. ISBN 978-1-935288-08-4
    .
  17. ^ "Love Divine: The Songs of Charles Wesley For Today's Generation on Apple Music". Apple Music (iTunes. Apple Inc. December 5, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  18. ^ "Fernando Ortega - Christmas Songs". Today's Christian Music. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  19. ^ "Silent Night - Red Mountain Music". Red Mountain Music. Retrieved 2016-01-05.

External links

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