Verse of the Day for December 11

Isaac Watts took this psalm and turned it into a carol the whole world now sings at Christmas, Joy to the World. He saw in it the coming of the King, and he was not wrong.

But notice where the noise begins. He hath remembered his mercy and his truth. The singing does not start with excitement. It starts with God remembering. Something he promised long ago, he has now done.

That matters after the excitement fades. The decorations come down, the guests go home, and January arrives with its bills. A joy built on a feeling will fade with the tinsel. A joy built on God remembering does not.

The psalmist even repeats himself: with the harp; with the harp. Some things are worth saying twice, like a choir going round the chorus again because once was not enough.

When the noise of a celebration has died down, in a kitchen full of dirty plates or a quiet car after a long day of visiting, sing the old song again. Not because you feel the thrill, but because God has remembered, and that has not changed.

The reason for the joy is older than the feeling of it.

Sing the chorus again, because it is still true.