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.
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!
Benjamin Russell Hanby’s 1866 song starts with a Baby in a stall. But we watch as the Baby becomes a Man. What kind of a Man is He?
Who is He the people bless For His words of gentleness? Who is He to whom they bring All the sick and sorrowing?
I don’t know what Hanby had in mind when he wrote about Jesus’ “words of gentleness”. In the Bible, the word gentleness is related to Jesus’ humility. He is long-suffering and patient with our faults and sins.
Gentleness is, of course, part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Jesus described Himself as gentle or meek in Matthew 11:29 –
Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Matthew 11:28-29
The people knew that Jesus was compassionate – which is one reason why they brought the sick to Him. We read in Matthew 14:14, “And when He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick.”
Early in Jesus’ life, he was teaching in a synagogue. The people called His teaching “gracious”. Maybe this is the story Hanby had in mind. Jesus had just read from the Isaiah scroll:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”
Luke 4:18-19
Jesus then started to teach: “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:21)
Jesus Himself came to bring freedom.
It’s interesting to note here the other song that Hanby is famous for. Not a Christmas song, not a religious song, but a ballad entitled Darling Nelly Gray.
The song is written from the point of view of a man longing for his darling, who has been “taken away”. As the song goes on, you discover what has actually happened:
I went to see her, but “she’s gone!” the neighbors say The white man bound her with his chain; They have taken her to Georgia for to wear her life away, As she toils in the cotton and the cane.
It was a love ballad that was also an anti-slavery song. Hanby looked to the freedom promised in Christ, and saw the evils in his own time, and wanted to do something about it. His father, a pastor, also wanted to see an end to slavery in the United States.
Darling Nelly Gray was written ten years before Who Is He in Yonder Stall?. We can look to Christ and His teaching as the answer to the oppression in this world.
But there is more to the story, because Nelly was a real person. We’ll learn more about her in a future post.
Benjamin was 33 years old when he wrote this song. By this time he was probably living in Chicago, but he had moved there from his home state of Ohio.
Although it could be argued that this song is not a Christmas song, it is often sung at Christmas. It fits into a category of songs that go through the life of Christ, such as “O Sing a Song of Bethlehem”.
But two years earlier, Benjamin had written a Christmas song.
His actual Christmas song revived when it hit the charts in 2005, sung by Kimberley Locke. But it was popular long before that, and is still well known today. And it holds the historic distinction of being the first modern song about – Santa Claus!
42 years earlier, the modern age of Santa was born with the poem, “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (also called “The Night Before Christmas”). This work had a huge impact on the celebration of Christmas in the United States and around the world. Varied traditions about Saint Nicholas were common. But the tradition that he arrived on Christmas Eve? The names of the reindeer? These ideas, and even the popularity of gift-giving and a focus on children took off like Santa’s sleigh.
Upon the house, no delay, no pause Clatter the steeds of Santa Claus; Down thro’ the chimney with loads of toys Ho for the little ones, Christmas joys.
O! O! O! Who wouldn’t go. O! O! O! Who wouldn’t go, Upon the housetop, click! click! click! Down thro’ the chimney with good St. Nick.
The most disturbing verse is about “Lazy Jim”, whose stockings are filled with bran, and a new “rattan” – a stalk used for spanking! Why, Ben, did you have to use the name “Jim”?
Anyway, two years after writing his song popularizing the identity of Santa Claus, he wrote a song about the identity of Someone else. St. Nick could not compare with the Baby in the manger. The song began:
Who is He in yonder stall At whose feet the shepherds fall?
And that’s the only part about Christmas, as the story continues:
Who is He in deep distress, Fasting in the wilderness?
Who indeed? Then the praise breaks out in the chorus:
’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!
What fictional story could compare with the True Story – the Lord! The King of Glory!
Our worldly perspective misses the truth. The rulers of the first century did not truly realize what they were doing when they put Jesus to death, as Paul explains:
…we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the wisdom which has been hidden, which God predestined before the ages to our glory, which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
1 Corinthians 2:7-8
Paul explains that the natural man – the unsaved, unregenerate – cannot understand spiritual truths, “because they are spiritually examined” (1 Corinthians 2:14). They come from the Spirit, through the Apostles, to the Church. The revelation from God can never be reached by building a stepladder to heaven – God had to reveal the big picture to us.
After all, who could have believed that this newborn Baby, who relied on His mother to be fed, who did not even have a proper bed – who could have guessed that this Baby was the Lord of glory?
His fame is worldwide, and has endured for more than 2000 years. And so we are right to ask – who is He?
He is the One deserving the crown of the universe.
But Benjamin is not leaving us at the manger for long. Now Jesus is a grown man, not far off the age of the song’s author. He is fasting, praying, facing temptation in the wilderness. This doesn’t seem to be a great beginning for the Lord of all. But the story isn’t over. Let’s take a closer look over the next few weeks.
