Christmas carol · 1740s
O Come, All Ye Faithful
The words, with the Bible verse behind each line
O Come, All Ye Faithful is not a Bible text, but its call is the shepherds’ own: “Let’s go to Bethlehem” (Luke 2:15). The angels’ “Glory to God in the highest” is Luke 2:14, and “Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing” is John 1:14. One verse borrows the words of the Nicene Creed.
- 13 of 14 lines draw on a verse
- 13 passages
- 4 lines go beyond the Bible
The wordsBeyond the BibleIts story
The words, line by line
Luke 2:14 the verse a line draws on. Tap it to read the verse.Beyond where the line goes past the Bible.
Verse 1
- O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphantLuke 2:10The angel told them, “Do not be afraid, for look, I am proclaiming to you good news of great joy that will belong to all the people:
- O come ye, O come ye to BethlehemLuke 2:15After the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Come, let us make our way to Bethlehem and see this event that has taken place, which the Lord has revealed to us.”
- Come and behold him, born the King of angelsHebrews 1:6And again, when he brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”
Refrain
- O come, let us adore himPsalm 95:6Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before Yahweh our Maker.
- O come, let us adore him
- O come, let us adore him
- Christ the LordLuke 2:11this very day in David’s city a Savior has been born for you. He is the Messiah, the Lord.
Verse 2
- God of God, Light of LightJohn 1:4Life was in him, and this life was the light of humankind.Beyond These words are from the Nicene Creed, which draws on John 1.
- Lo, he abhors not the Virgin’s wombMatthew 1:23“Look, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel,” which means “God with us.”
- Very God, begotten, not createdJohn 1:3Everything came to be through him, and apart from him not one thing came to be that has come to be.Beyond “Begotten, not created” is also the creed’s phrase.
Verse 3
- Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultationLuke 2:13All at once there was with the angel a vast crowd of heaven’s army, praising God and saying,Beyond Luke says the angels were praising God and “saying.”
- Sing, all ye citizens of heaven abovePhilippians 3:20For our citizenship is in heaven, and from there we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Glory to God in the highestLuke 2:14“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among people in whom he delights!”
Verse 4
- Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morningBeyond The Gospels give no hour for the birth. Luke places the angels at night.
- Jesus, to thee be glory givenRevelation 5:12and they were saying in a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”
- Word of the Father, now in flesh appearingJohn 1:14The Word became flesh and pitched his tent among us. We looked on his glory, glory like that of the one and only from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Words: Latin, “Adeste Fideles,” 1740s, probably John Francis Wade. English by Frederick Oakeley, 1841. Music: Probably John Francis Wade, 1740s. In the public domain. The 4 verses most churches sing. Other translations add more. Verses are from the Lumin Translation.
Where it goes beyond the Bible
- “God of God, Light of Light” and “begotten, not created” are from the Nicene Creed (325 and 381), not the Bible. The creed puts John 1 into short phrases.
- Nothing in the Gospels says Jesus was born in the morning. Luke places the angels at night.
The story of the carol
The oldest copies of “Adeste Fideles” are signed by John Francis Wade, an English Catholic who copied music for a living in Douai, France, in the 1740s. Most scholars think he wrote both the words and the tune. Others have been named, and no one can prove it either way.
Frederick Oakeley, an Anglican priest in London who later became Catholic, made the English version in 1841 for his chapel. His opening line, “O come, all ye faithful,” is the one that stayed.
The refrain, “O come, let us adore him,” is sung three times and grows louder each time in many churches.
- Words
- Latin, “Adeste Fideles,” 1740s, probably John Francis Wade. English by Frederick Oakeley, 1841
- Music
- Probably John Francis Wade, 1740s
Questions
Is O Come, All Ye Faithful in the Bible?
O Come, All Ye Faithful is not a Bible text, but its call is the shepherds’ own: “Let’s go to Bethlehem” (Luke 2:15). The angels’ “Glory to God in the highest” is Luke 2:14, and “Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing” is John 1:14. One verse borrows the words of the Nicene Creed.
Who wrote O Come, All Ye Faithful?
Words: Latin, “Adeste Fideles,” 1740s, probably John Francis Wade. English by Frederick Oakeley, 1841. Music: Probably John Francis Wade, 1740s.
What does O Come, All Ye Faithful add to the Bible?
“God of God, Light of Light” and “begotten, not created” are from the Nicene Creed (325 and 381), not the Bible. The creed puts John 1 into short phrases. Nothing in the Gospels says Jesus was born in the morning. Luke places the angels at night.