O COME, LET US SING UNTO THE LORD; an Epiphany hYmn, 11 February 2025 Anno Domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

 

¹ O come, let us sing unto the Lord: Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. ² Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, And make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. ³ For the Lord is a great God, And a great King above all gods. ⁴ In his hand are the deep places of the earth: The strength of the hills is his also. ⁵ The sea is his, and he made it: And his hands formed the dry land. ⁶ O come, let us worship and bow down: Let us kneel before the Lord our maker. ⁷ For he is our God; And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, ⁸ Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, And as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: ⁹ When your fathers ^qtempted me, Proved me, and saw my work. ¹⁰ Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, And said, It is a people that do err in their heart, And they have not known my ways: ¹¹ Unto whom I sware in my wrath That they should not enter into my rest.   Psalms 95:1-11

 

            This is hymn # 131 in the Korean Protestant Hymnal and is a paraphrase of the 95^th Psalm using an Irish tune. It is also repeated responsively in the daily Morning Prayer of the Book of Common Prayer (the Venite, exultemus Domino). The Psalm, and this paraphrase, emphasizes the importance of reverence and dignity before the Lord in both Song and Worship, and is included in the Scottish Psalter of 1650.

                               

O COME, LET US SING UNTO THE LORD

1. O come, let us sing to the Lord,
To Him our voices raise;
With joyful noise let us the Rock
Of our salvation praise.

2. Let us before His presence come
With praise, and thankful voice;
Let us sing psalms to Him with grace,
And make a joyful noise.

3. For God's a great God, and great King;
Above all gods He is.
The depths of earth are in His hand;
Our heights of hills are His.

4. O, come, and let us worship Him;
Let us bow down, withal,
And on our knees before the Lord,
Our Master, let us fall.
Amen.

 

1. O come, let us sing to the Lord, To Him our voices raise; With joyful noise let us the Rock Of our salvation praise.This is the great epitome of worship and praise of His creatures. It is our greatest form of worship directed to the greatest Being, Almighty God. True worship is joyful – not because of who is performing it, but the One to whom our worship is directed. It is not man-centered entertainment, but god centered worship in word and Song. He is that great Immovable Rock of our Salvation. The Christian bears a strong relation to God – he is a chip (or stone) off that Great Rock bearing a likeness and similar nature in the composition of that Rock. Being sons and daughters, the Christian must be mindful of that Sovereign Father to whom he has vowed his love and allegiance.

2. Let us before His presence come With praise, and thankful voice; Let us sing psalms to Him with grace, And make a joyful noise. Does the modern-day worshipper realize that attending worship in our churches is coming before the Presence of the Lord? If it is His House, it is where His Presence is most closely felt. Gratitude is evidence of true-hearted worship – gratitude in all things and circumstances. Our singing should reflect reverence and dignity, not the mellow, sensuous pabulum of man-centered songs that reflect little Holy Scripture and less spirit. Coming before His Presence will cause our unbecoming yokes to be lifted and bring joy.

3. For God's a great God, and great King; Above all gods He is. The depths of earth are in His hand; Our heights of hills are His. He is the Great God and King of the Universe and distant stretches beyond the limits of deep space. His presence is on the mountain heights and in the very depths of the sea and earth. He made all. All of the natural world and its laws obey Him. 

4. O, come, and let us worship Him; Let us bow down, withal, And on our knees before the Lord, Our Master, let us fall. Amen. The appeal is from worshipper to another – O, come, and let us worship Him. We should be mindful of our fellow Christians and of their importance to attend to their duties of worship at church. Let us bow down before the Lord, not only in physical pose, but in our heart of hearts. We fall down before Him by rejecting our own selfish desires and lust and taking His Will upon us to obey. He is our Maker, and He is our Bridegroom to whom the Church is Bride. “For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.” Isaiah 54:5