O Come, Thou Key Of David

O COME, O COME, EMMANUEL

O come, O come, Emmanuel,

And ransom captive Israel,

That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appear.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,

Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,

In ancient times didst give the law

In cloud and majesty and awe.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free

Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;

From depths of hell Thy people save

And give them victory o’er the grave.

O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer

Our spirits by Thine advent here;

And drive away the shades of night,

And pierce the clouds and bring us light!

O come, Thou Key of David, come,

And open wide our heavenly home;

Make safe the way that leads on high,

And close the path to misery.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

TWELFTH-CENTURY LATIN HYMN, TRANSLATED BY JOHN M. NEALE

Psalm Link

Psalm 118:19

Open for me the gates where the righteous enter,

and I will go in and thank the LORD.

Each stanza in this twelfth-century Christmas carol begins with a different reference to the Messiah. The initial mention of Emmanuel (or Immanuel) comes from Isaiah 7:14, as the name of the child that will be born of a virgin. Matthew quotes this verse in his account of Jesus’ birth.

It would be worthwhile to trace the other references as well—Rod of Jesse, Dayspring, etc.—but one of the more interesting terms is in the last verse, “Key of David.” What’s that all about?

Isaiah 22 tells the story of a palace administrator in Jerusalem named Shebna. Isaiah spotted Shebna buying an impressive tombstone for himself on a prominent hill overlooking Jerusalem. At the time Shebna was involved in high-level negotiations with the enemy, and he may have been using his position to pad his own bank account, or at least to ensure his own legacy.

Isaiah said that God was going to pull Shebna down from his position and strip him of the key to David’s house. The key would be given to another, who would “open doors, and no one will be able to shut them; he will close doors, and no one will be able to open them” (Isaiah 22:22).

The New Testament identifies Jesus as the one who has the key of David (Revelation 3:7). He is also the door to eternal life. “No one,” he said, “can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Bible Networking

For the sources of some of the titles for Jesus in this hymn, read Isaiah 7:14; 8:8; 11:1; Matthew 1:23; and Luke 1:78.