If you were going to tell the story of the Messiah, where would you start? Genesis 1, at the creation of the world? My husband said he would start with the Gospel of John, "In the beginnig was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,...and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us."
Mr. Jennens (who chose the Scriptures for Handel to use in his oratorio, The Messiah) chose to start with sinful mankind desperately in need of a Savior.
A tenor voice announces, "Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God; speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem; and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God."
That is a prophecy from the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 40:1-3) who lived and prophecied a few years before the Israelites went into captivity in Babylon. It is written in old English because Mr. Jennens used the King James Version of the Bible. It's not that hard to follow and it sings well.
The tenor follows with, "Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight, and the rough places plain."
The chorus answers with "And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." (These last two are also from Isaiah 40, verses 4 and 5.)
This then is the initial announcement of the fulfilling of many prophecies in the Old Testament. Messiah will come. God's promises are sure.
You may be surprised at what comes next, and may think we've completely lost track of where we are going. Hang in there. It lays a wonderful foundation for the coming of Messiah.
Merry Christmas,
Paulita
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