God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
In 1833 the familiar Christmas carol God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen was first published in Britain. It became widely known in America in the late 1800s and is still popular today. Many people miss the meaning of the first line because they leave out the comma between "merry" and "gentlemen." This is not a song about "merry gentlemen," but rather an exhortation to godly men. It helps to know that the word "merry" originally meant strong or valiant, as in Robin Hood and his "Merry Men," meaning his strong, brave men. And the word "rest" meant to make. So the first line really means, "God make you strong and valiant, gentlemen." That explains the second line, "Let nothing you dismay." What is it that makes us strong in the face of the struggles of life and our own repeated failures? "Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day." The whole essence of the gospel is in the opening verse.
God rest ye merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day;
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.
I particularly love this line that explains why Christ came. "To save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone astray." We have all gone astray, often repeatedly and foolishly, and we have suffered because of it. Jesus came to save us from Satan's power that pulls us continually in the wrong direction.
We are not saved by our feelings but by Christ who died for us while we were yet sinners and who justified us while we were ungodly and who continues to save us despite our “poor performance” and our “splendid sins.”
No wonder the angel called it “good news of great joy” when Christ was born. Let all poor performers and splendid sinners rejoice at Christmastime. He came for us, too.
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You can find my daily weblog with the latest personal news, updates on Dudley (and Gary and Parker), links to interesting articles, commentary, travelogue and biking updates (940 miles YTD) at Keep Believing and also at Crosswalk. Ray Pritchard, Tupelo, Mississippi
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