Words of Reflection
“It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” is a carol that, in my opinion, packs a bit of a surprise for the listener who pays attention. It starts off innocently enough with a tranquil picture of the first Christmas, with the still and solemn world hearing the familiar and comforting proclamation of the angels:
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
from heaven's all-gracious King.”
I’d guess that most people who know this carol are pretty much only familiar with that first verse, drawing comfort from that familiarity and the poetic beauty of such lines as “angels bending near the earth to touch their harps of gold.” The Christ child has come to a world who needs him desperately, and the carol captures that gift so well.
If that were all there was to the carol, it would be enough.
But if you pay attention to what comes next, it commands your attention and surprises you with its timeliness and prophetic impact. Suddenly in verse two, those same angels visit our world, which the author notes is still filled with chaos as “Babel sounds.” The weary world still needs the gift of Christmas, and if we have ears to hear we can still catch the angel song which proclaims the peace still offered to us.
If that were all there was to the carol, it would be enough.
But then the carol makes it personal: it’s not just the world that is weary, it’s you and me. Can you resonated with that truth? Do you feel “life’s crushing load” acutely? Hear the author call us to attention: Look now! The angels are still singing, and we’re invited to rest and take it in.
If that were all there was to the carol, it would be enough.
But there is still more for us to hear, isn’t there? Because the angel song doesn’t just point us to the peace which God provides in the midst of this current chaos. It also reminds us that there is a greater peace yet to come, a day seen by the prophets of old. The one who came as a child will come again in glory, and the peace we know in part now will be known in whole. And the transformed world, which has been comforted by the angel song these many years, will send it back for eternity.
The carol reminds us that there is more to come, and it will be enough.
Scripture for Meditation:
“I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth; do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”
—Isaiah 43:19 (NRSVUE)
“When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.”
—Colossians 3:4 (NRSVUE)
Song: It Came Upon a Midnight Clear (lyrics here)
(as is sometimes the case, different countries sing this carol to different tunes, so we have included both below)
Questions for Contemplation
What “Babel sounds” in the world today have the ability to distract you or even annoy and frustrate you? How might you invite the Holy Spirit to bring you peace even in the midst of their chaos?
Spend some time in prayer for yourself or others you know who are particularly aware of “life’s crushing load” right now. Ask that God would be real even in the midst of it, and that the song of the angels would still resonate even in the midst of worry, sorrow, and confusion.
Which movement of this carol speaks to you most powerfully today—the reminder of the Christmas story, the truth that the angels still sing their song over the world, the invitation to hear that song in the midst of your weariness, or the promise of how the song will resonate through all eternity? Or maybe they all speak to you in some way. Spend time in prayer and conversation with God about the ways the song of peace and the promise of the peace yet to come speak to you in this moment.