Is "Joy to the World" a Christmas song?

Hey, isn’t that a pretty dumb question? “Joy to the World” is one of our most traditional of Christmas carols. At least, that’s what most of us would say. But a quick look at the words reveals no mention of mangers, angels, shepherds, stars, or Christ as a baby. So what’s the song really about? I was intrigued to see the name “Isaac Watts” as the author of the lyrics. He’s known as the author of many famous hymns, including “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” and “Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past.” So it wouldn’t be surprising for him to have written about Christmas.

A little digging, though, shows that his lyrics are drawn from a collection he wrote titled Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament. His goal was to take a selection of Hebrew Psalms, in particular the ones attributed to David, and re-write them to fit into a singable meter and, more importantly to him, into Christian doctrine. Our supposed carol is actually the last half of Psalm 98. Here are the four verses of the song with relevant verses from that psalm and alo the book of Genesus:

Joy to the world! the Lord is come;
Let Earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. Sing unto the Lord with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King. (Ps. 98:4-6)

Joy to the world! the Saviour reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together. (Ps. 98:7-8)

No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found
Far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found.

And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. (Genesis 3:17-19)

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.

Before the Lord; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity. (Ps. 98:9)

Watts wrote his lyrics to refer specifically not to the first coming of Christ to earth but to the second, not to the humble birth in the stable but to the coming in triumph when “the Savior reigns.” When you realize the source of the song the words begin to make more sense. So the line, “While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plans/Repeat the sounding joy” might imply that the song of the angels to the shepherds was echoing all around the landscape. That’s what I’ve always vaguely thought, anyway. The psalm clearly refers, though, to God’s coming in judgment to set all things right, an event so joyous that even the “floods clap their hands.” (Isn’t that a great image?) God’s blessings will then flow as “far as the curse is found.” Watts is referring to the curse of sin put on humankind when Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, but we don’t typically stop and think, “What curse?” The last verse clearly portrays a world under the direct rule of God: He makes the nations prove (show the truth of) His glorious righteousness.

So how did this hymn become known as a Christmas carol? It’s not completely clear, but what we do know is that Lowell Mason, a leading American church musician, published it in 1839, adapting the words to an old hymn tune. I can’t tell from the information I have if Mason categorized it as a Christmas carol or if that came later. It’s understandable that the idea of joy at the Lord’s coming would connect the lyrics to the Christmas story, though, and now that it’s firmly established as a part of this season, who would want to do away with that idea? Understanding the original intent of its author can only enrich our enjoyment as we sing the beautiful words.

Here’s a performance of an arrangement by Dan Forrest, an active composer/arranger in the classical choral scene today:

I hope no one will be offended here if I give in to the impulse of including the Three Dog Night rock song “Joy to the World, ” which I love, and which has nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas or Bible doctrine. (In fact, one origin story says that the lyrics were simply placeholder lines that everyone liked so much that they left them in place.) Enjoy! (The 1970’s outfits alone are worth the watch. Those guys are having an absolute blast up there onstage. And please note the proper use of the subjunctive tense: “If I were the king of the world,” a situation contrary to fact, vs. the incorrect “If I was the king of the world.”)