Depending on your church background and tradition, you may be familiar with the word “Advent,” which means “arrival.” It refers to Jesus’ birth, which we celebrate at Christmas, as well as His second coming in the future. It includes the concept of preparation for His arrivals as well.
My church has been focusing on Advent, which in several church traditions begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve; that means Advent has 25 days this year. One of my favorite Christmas hymns, “Come Thou Long-Expected Jesus,” is sometimes referred to as a hymn of Advent. It was written by Charles Wesley in 1744; two additional verses were written in 1978 by Mark E. Hunt. In this post, I will focus only on the two original verses, giving my own attempted exegesis of them.
Come, Thou long-expected Jesus, (Jesus, we’d been waiting for your prophesied arrival for a long time.)
Born to set Thy people free; (You came to Earth as a baby to set us free from sin.)
From our fears and sins release us, (You have released us from all our sin, including all of our fears.)
Let us find our rest in Thee. (In You, we have the peace we long for.)
Israel’s strength and consolation, (You were the Source of strength and comfort to your people Israel when You came, even though most didn’t recognize You.)
Hope of all the earth Thou art; (You were, and are, the Hope of not only Israel, but of all peoples of the whole Earth.)
Dear Desire of every nation, (You are the Savior we have needed and desired.)
Joy of every longing heart. (You are the Joy of everyone who has longed for You.)
Born Thy people to deliver, (You were born to deliver us from sin.)
Born a child, and yet a King, (Even though You were born as a baby, You were, and are, our King.)
Born to reign in us forever, (You came not just to be our Savior, but to be our Lord forever.)
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring. (Your kingdom is now present in the hearts of those who believe, and one day You will establish it physically and for all eternity.)
By Thine own eternal Spirit (By the Holy Spirit, which You sent us after You ascended to heaven)
Rule in all our hearts alone; (Teach us how to follow You as our Lord and King.)
By Thine all-sufficient merit (You are the only One worthy to receive our praise and worship.)
Raise us to Thy glorious throne. (One day, You will give eternal life in heaven to all who have trusted You.)
There are at least three different tunes to this hymn; I prefer the tune and the version by Maranatha, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a-wK5ecMoM It’s a solo and has an ethereal quality to it that I love. I also like the images and the added Bible verses in this video very much.
May this hymn bring peace and joy to your soul. Merry Christmas!
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If you’re interested in my previous posts related to Christmas, check these out:
https://keithpetersenblog.com/a-christmas-quiz/ (This is a Christmas quiz.)
https://keithpetersenblog.com/unpacking-the-theology-of-a-christmas-hymn/ (This is about the incredible theology packed into the hymn “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”)
https://keithpetersenblog.com/the-foolishness-of-christmas/ (This is about how the Christmas message is foolishness to non-Christians, but the saving power of God to Christians.)
https://keithpetersenblog.com/a-tale-of-two-christmas-light-extravaganzas (This is a comparison of two very different Christmas-light displays in my city a couple years ago.)
https://keithpetersenblog.com/2024/12/12/unpacking-the-theology-of-another-christmas-hymn/ (This is about the theology packed into the hymn “O Holy Night.”)
To the Remnant 
I’ve heard of the hymn “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” but I’m not familiar with the melody. My favorite Christmas hymns and carols are those that I’ve heard since childhood: “Joy to the World”, “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”, “O Come All ye Faithful”, “Silent Night”, “O Holy Night”, “What Child is This” and maybe “The First Noel”.
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Thanks, Tony. This hymn is somewhat less well-known than the ones that you mentioned, probably because it’s considered an “Advent hymn” rather than a “Christmas hymn.” It was in the hymnal that I grew up with (albeit with a different tune), but I can’t remember whether we usually sang it in early December or at various times of year.
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