Hymn 126 - Arise and Shine in Splendor

On January 6 the church has celebrated Epiphany, which brings the Christmas season to a close. Epiphany has been called "Christmas for the Gentiles" since the theme of Epiphany is about the Gospel (and salvation) being intended for all people. We see this in the account of the visit of the Wise Men, which is usually the Gospel reading for the festival of Epiphany. This week we study the Epiphany hymn "Arise and Shine in Splendor" (Hymn 126 in The Lutheran Hymnal), written by Martin Opitz in the seventeenth century. Martin was born and educated in Germany and was a professor of philosophy and literature. This is the only hymn in our hymnal that was written by him.  

You might notice something strange about this hymn. Although this is an Epiphany hymn which is about the revelation of God's glory in the person of Jesus, the name "Jesus" is not mentioned once in this hymn. Nor will you find the term Christ, Savior or any other familiar description for Jesus. The reason for this is that the hymn is based on Isaiah 60:1-6 which states: "Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising."

This hymn is written from the perspective of an Old Testament believer. The Old Testament believers would not have known the name "Jesus." This hymn is about the general work of the LORD (the Triune God) to shine the LIGHT of salvation in a world that was dying in DARKNESS. The language of this hymn is colorful and brings out the Biblical contrast between light and darkness and God's love of all people and desire that ALL people come to faith and are saved from sin and death. 

This hymn is not as Christological as many of our other hymns, but uses descriptive language to describe how God has given us all a natural knowledge that He exists, so that we might seek and find the true God in His revealed Word. It also reminds us of the joy that is ours when we come to know Jesus as our Savior. People of all "nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues" (Revelation 7:10) will be brought to faith and share in the Savior's joys in heaven. Thanks be to God!

Join us as we study this hymn about God's desire to save all people, Jew and Gentile alike, and the joy that is ours when we are brought into His Light of salvation!