Who is He in Yonder Stall? is a song of contrasts. We have a Baby in an animal’s feeding trough. We have a Man in the wilderness, weeping.
Then we have a Man who is sought after and admired for His compassion and gracious words.
But then He prays in the garden, and dies an agonizing death. So undeserved! Who is He?
The chorus is, of course, the contrast. But in the final verse, what has been wrong is made right. The suffering Man is no longer suffering. The misunderstood no longer misunderstood. The One who loves and heals takes the position that He deserves and we desire.
And it all starts when the dead comes to life:
Who is He that from the grave Comes to heal and help and save? Who is He that from His throne Rules through all the world alone?
Some people have questioned whether or not the Baby really was “the Lord”, as the chorus says. After all, wasn’t He “exalted” after the cross (Philippians 2:5-11; Hebrews 1:1-4)?
Well, certainly, He took a new position as the gracious Saviour, the One who triumphed over death and ascended to the Father, later on. And we still await His complete unopposed rule on the earth.
But Hebrews 1 actually answers the question, by applying Psalm 102 to the Son. “You, Lord (Yahweh), in the beginning founded the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands” (Hebrews 1:10). He was already Lord at the dawn of time. He was Lord on the cross (1 Corinthians 2:7-8). He was Lord when He ascended, and He is Lord today.
And if anyone has any doubt, He will be seen as Lord in the future and forever.
What does it mean that He is Lord? It means that He was in charge and in control when there was no room in the Inn in Bethlehem. He was in charge and in control when He was murdered by sinful men on a cross. And He is still in charge and in control. Which means that history has meaning, and purpose. And the seemingly strange contrast of a gentle, suffering Man who is Lord will be seen as a further reflection of His eternal glory.
We don’t always see, today, the purpose in history. But God does share with us the great panorama of His grand plan. The author of Hebrews says it well:
…For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him. But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels—Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings.
Hebrews 2:8-10
Benjamin Hanby recognized that the important thing was the identity of this Man, His characteristics. Powerful and compassionate – and Lord of all! Let this song remind you of that this Christmas, and into the new year.
’Tis the Lord! O wondrous story! ’Tis the Lord! the King of glory! At His feet we humbly fall, Crown Him! crown Him, Lord of all!
Even those unfamiliar with the Authorized Version (King James) of the Bible might know this archaic word. After all, even today many people know the story of the angels and shepherds in Old English:
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
Luke 2:8-9 (AV)
Lo! Another translation of the word has carried over into some modern translations, because it’s hard to find a more contemporary word that is as accurate – Behold!
“Lo!” may actually be a short form of “look!”. The idea is just that – “Look!” “Pay attention to this!” “Unbelievable, but true…”
The word appears often in the Christmas story. Here’s just a sample:
“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.” (Luke 1:31)
“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” (Matthew 1:23)
“But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people…'” (Luke 2:10)
“Now after hearing the king, they went their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, was going on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was.” (Matthew 2:9)
But the word also appears at the end of the story. When the resurrection happens, of course. But before that, when Jesus is talking about the cross. The fact that He, the Lord, would be betrayed and bound and crucified was in many ways “unbelievable but true”.
And He came the third time, and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough; the hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners…”
Mark 14:41
Hanby has been writing about the humility of the Saviour, the compassion of the Saviour. But – wait! Look! Sorrow, and pain – so undeserved.
Lo! at midnight, who is He Prays in dark Gethsemane? Who is He on yonder tree Dies in grief and agony?
The first shock of the song was that Jesus was born in humble circumstances. The second shock is that He dies in grief.
Often in New Testament Greek the cross is referred to as the “tree”. Some English translations make this clear, but others do not. A tree was a place of testing in the Garden of Eden. The Tree of Life was taken away because of the curse. (Genesis 3) The tree became a place of curse (Deuteronomy 21:22-23). Jesus became a curse for us on a tree (Galatians 3:13). Because of His death on a tree, the Tree of Life is restored to us (Revelation 2:7).
Now the tree represents new life for us. But most did not understand at the time, when Jesus was hung up on the “tree”, that this was the great “Lo!” of history – the moment that all must look to – the cursing that brought blessing. The grief that brought eternal joy (Hebrews 12:2).
And His obedience in His death leads to eternal worship.
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.
10 years ago today I had the privilege of sharing the gospel at our community centre closing program for the semester. The main theme was the message of the angels to the shepherds, but I started out talking about some Mexican and Canadian Christmas traditions. And, a big family tradition – belgium cookies!
Well, most of you probably know why you haven’t seen our November newsletter yet. It’s because Canada Post has been on strike for almost four weeks now!
If you normally get our newsletter, I tried sending you a note today – if you didn’t even get my email, that means we don’t have your current email address. So please drop us a line with your current one!
As I mention in the letter, we have a new project to raise funds for a place for our church to meet. As of this afternoon, we have the project all set up with Avant (our mission). Go to the normal donation page for your country, and you’ll find specific instructions about how to give to projects, as well as to our general ministry fund.
Thanks so much for your support! Here’s a picture of a Sunday morning, meeting under the tarps. We’re pretty packed in – a good problem to have, but still a problem! 🙂
When Who is He in Yonder Stall? was first published, every verse was a couplet of its own, making 10 verses, almost all starting with “Who is He”. 90 years later, in 1956, in the Worship and Service Hymnal, Donald Hustad combined two couplets for each stanza, giving the song the form it has today.
My Dad found the song rather repetitive, and gave this suggestion for congregational singing:
To relieve the monotony, you might try having part of the congregation sing one line of a stanza, and another part of the congregation respond with the other. Then all could join in singing the chorus. It would also work to have two soloists sing the stanzas, and the congregation answer with the refrain.
Robert Cottrill
This change in the form of the song is worth remembering, because the two couplets are not necessarily meant to come as a pair. Nevertheless, here’s the next section that we’re looking at –
Who is He that stands and weeps At the grave where Lazarus sleeps? Who is He the gathering throng Greet with loud triumphant song?
The resurrection of Lazarus was, of course, one reason for the crowds that came to see Jesus at His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. People had come to Lazarus’ home out of curiosity (in Bethany – John 12:9) and continued to talk about the event in Jerusalem (John 12:17).
Jesus’ compassion is on display again at the tomb of Lazarus, both in His tears and in His power to bring life. The story has been a comfort to believers ever since, because it’s a sign pointing to the future resurrection of all believers.
Last time we talked about Hanby’s famous song Darling Nelly Gray. Nelly was a real person.
Benjamin Hanby’s father was involved in the Underground Railroad, a network aiming to secretly get slaves to freedom in Canada. One former slave passed through the Hanby household – a man named Joseph Selby. Selby told the story of his lost love (Nelly), and his desire to go to Canada to earn enough to buy her freedom.
1892 edition of Nelly Gray, illustrated by George Brenneman
Benjamin’s father went into action to try to raise money for Selby. But, sadly, the escaping slave soon died of pneumonia, without ever seeing his love again. Nelly’s fate is unknown.
In this song, the resurrection of Lazarus is not mentioned – just Jesus’ tears. The real triumph of Christ comes later in the song. But in this verse – and in many ways still today – Jesus is as often misunderstood as He is praised.
And yet, Jesus is present in the suffering. The King is there by the grave. And we wait for a better day.
The slave in Hanby’s song looks forward to something better too:
Oh! my darling Nelly Gray, up in heaven there they say, That they’ll never take you from me any more, I’m a-coming — coming — coming, as the angels clear the way Farewell to the old Kentucky shore.
Whatever the current circumstance, however long we must wait for perfect justice and peace, Jesus’ identity is the same, as the chorus always reminds us. There is no doubt that the better day is coming, because of who Jesus is.
’Tis the Lord! O wondrous story! ’Tis the Lord! the King of glory! At His feet we humbly fall, Crown Him! crown Him, Lord of all!
