O Emmanuel

The final O Antiphon is O Emmanuel (God is with us). One of the more well known of the names of the Messiah, taken from Isaiah 7:14. Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.

O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver,

the hope of the nations and their Saviour:

Come and save us, O Lord our God.

Maggi has an interesting piece about the hidden message of the O Antiphons worth looking at.

O Rex Gentium

The O Antiphon for 22nd December is O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations).

‘He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.’ Isaiah 2:4

I am constantly amazed at the breadth of Isaiah’s vision. The Messiah is for all the nations.

O King of the nations, and their desire,

the cornerstone making both one:

Come and save the human race,

which you fashioned from clay.

O Oriens

Today’s O Antiphon is O Oriens (O Rising Sun), sometimes translated as O Morning Star. This title of the Messiah is taken from Isaiah 9:2: The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, those who lived in a land of deep darkness - on them light has shined.

O Morning Star,

splendour of light eternal and sun of righteousness:

Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.

O Clavis David

Today’s O Antiphon is O Clavis David (O Key of David).

O Key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel;

you open and no one can shut;

you shut and no one can open:

Come and lead the prisoners from the prison house,

those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.

For commentary check Maggi’s blog.

O Radix Jesse

The third of the O Antiphons is O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse), another of the great names of Messiah taken from Isaiah and applied to Jesus.

O Root of Jesse, who stands for an ensign of the people,
before whom kings shall keep silence
and unto whom the Gentiles shall make supplication:
Come to deliver us, and tarry not.

For commentary on the O Antiphons check out Maggi’s blog.

O Adonai

The second O Antiphon is O Adonai (O Lord).

You might like to check out the post from Maggi Dawn for more about it’s meaning.



O Adonai and Ruler of the House of Israel,
who appeared to Moses in the fire of the burning bush
and on Mount Sinai gave him your law.
Come, and with outstretched arm redeem us.

O Sapientia

My Advent liturgical education continues. Apparently, today is the first of the ‘O Antiphons’. I’m grateful to Fr William Saunders for bringing me up to speed on what they are all about. He writes:

The “O Antiphons” refer to the seven antiphons that are recited (or chanted) preceding the Magnificat during Vespers of the Liturgy of the Hours. They cover the special period of Advent preparation known as the Octave before Christmas, Dec. 17-23, with Dec. 24 being Christmas Eve and Vespers for that evening being for the Christmas Vigil.

The exact origin of the “O Antiphons” is not known. Boethius (c. 480-524) made a slight reference to them, thereby suggesting their presence at that time. At the Benedictine abbey of Fleury (now Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire), these antiphons were recited by the abbot and other abbey leaders in descending rank, and then a gift was given to each member of the community. By the eighth century, they are in use in the liturgical celebrations in Rome. The usage of the “O Antiphons” was so prevalent in monasteries that the phrases, “Keep your O” and “The Great O Antiphons” were common parlance. One may thereby conclude that in some fashion the “O Antiphons” have been part of our liturgical tradition since the very early Church.

The importance of “O Antiphons” is twofold: Each one highlights a title for the Messiah: O Sapientia (O Wisdom), O Adonai (O Lord), O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse), O Clavis David (O Key of David), O Oriens (O Rising Sun), O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations), and O Emmanuel. Also, each one refers to the prophecy of Isaiah of the coming of the Messiah.

Today is O Sapientia and here’s a setting with relevant passages of scripture beneath.



O Wisdom, coming forth from the mouth of the Most High,
reaching from beginning to end,
ordering all things mightily and sweetly:
Come and teach us the way of prudence.

Isaiah had prophesied, “The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord, and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord.” (11:2-3), and “Wonderful is His counsel and great is His wisdom.” (28:29).

h/t Maggi Dawn for the translation and further commentary.

h/t Steven Maxon for the video clip.