Latin hymn on the O Antiphons, printed 1710

Veni, Veni, Emmanuel — O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

The Advent hymn of the great O Antiphons

LatinEnglish

Veni, veni, Emmanuel,
captivum solve Israel,
qui gemit in exsilio,
privatus Dei Filio.
Gaude, gaude! Emmanuel
nascetur pro te, Israel.

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

Veni, o Iesse virgula,
ex hostis tuos ungula,
de specu tuos tartari
educ et antro barathri.
Gaude, gaude! Emmanuel
nascetur pro te, Israel.

O come, thou Rod of Jesse, free
thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
from depths of hell thy people save,
and give them victory o’er the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

Veni, veni, o Oriens,
solare nos adveniens,
noctis depelle nebulas
dirasque noctis tenebras.
Gaude, gaude! Emmanuel
nascetur pro te, Israel.

O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

Veni, Clavis Davidica,
regna reclude caelica,
fac iter tutum superum,
et claude vias inferum.
Gaude, gaude! Emmanuel
nascetur pro te, Israel.

O come, thou Key of David, come,
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

Veni, veni, Adonai,
qui populo in Sinai
legem dedisti vertice
in maiestate gloriae.
Gaude, gaude! Emmanuel
nascetur pro te, Israel.

O come, O come, thou Lord of might,
who to thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,
in ancient times didst give the law
in cloud and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.

SourceLatin hymn on the O Antiphons, printed 1710 · The Advent hymn of the great O Antiphons

The history of this prayer

The Veni, veni, Emmanuel is a metrical paraphrase of the “O Antiphons”, the seven antiphons the Church sings at the Magnificat at Vespers from 17 to 23 December, each opening with a title of the Messiah: O Wisdom, O Adonai, O Root of Jesse, O Key of David, O Dayspring, O King of the nations, O Emmanuel.

The antiphons are very old, but the Latin hymn first appears in print in 1710, in the Psalteriolum Cantionum Catholicarum of Cologne. Its familiar form has five stanzas and the refrain “Gaude, gaude”. In 1851 the Anglican John Mason Neale translated it into English, and his “O come, O come, Emmanuel” is the version sung throughout the English-speaking world.

The tune comes from a fifteenth-century French Franciscan processional, where it carries a different text. A good custom is to sing one stanza a day in the last days of Advent.

In Church Latin, “caelica” is said “CHAY-lee-kah”.

Frequently asked questions

What are the O Antiphons?

Seven Magnificat antiphons at Vespers from 17 to 23 December, each beginning with “O” and a title of the Messiah. The Veni, veni, Emmanuel turns them into verse.

Is O Come, O Come, Emmanuel medieval?

The antiphons are ancient, but the Latin hymn first appears in print in 1710, in Cologne; there is no proof that it is medieval.

What does Emmanuel mean?

“God with us” (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23).

More prayers: Hymns

← All the traditional prayers · Prayers and novenas