Savior of the Nations, Come
Savior of the Nations, Come is a hymn text. Found in CW21 301, CW93 2, elw 263, gather4 459. Sung to NUN KOMM, DER HEIDEN HEILAND.
Hymnal Appearances
- Christian Worship: Hymnal — 301
- Christian Worship — 2
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 263
- Gather 4th Edition — 459
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 28
- Lutheran Service Book — 332
- Lutheran Worship — 13
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 95
Stanza Arc
The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Christological proclamation: Christ's miraculous Incarnation (stanzas 1-3), soteriological work and return (stanza 4), doxological affirmation of Trinitarian glory (stanza 5)
Background Research
Luther's 'Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland' (Erfurt Enchiridion, 1524), a close German version of Ambrose of Milan's 4th-c. 'Veni redemptor gentium', with a doxology added as st. 8. The melody is adapted from the plainchant into an A-B-C-A shape. For centuries the chief hymn of the First Sunday in Advent, i.e. the first hymn of the church year. Bach: Advent cantatas BWV 61 and 62, Orgelbüchlein and the Great Eighteen chorale preludes. Source: Wikipedia 'Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland'.
In the Church Year
Hymn of the Day (Lutheran Service Book) for: Advent 1
Suggested in the one-year series
- Advent 1 (7×)
- Advent 4 (2×)
- Presentation of Our Lord (2×)
- Christmas Day (1×)
Suggested in the three-year series
- Advent 1 (8×)
- Advent 4 (6×)
- Christmas 1 (1×)
- Christmas Eve (1×)
- Maundy Thursday (1×)
- Presentation of Our Lord (1×)
- Proper 14 (1×)
From LCMS Worship's published hymn suggestions, 2014–2026. The count is how many of those yearly lists suggested this hymn for that day.
Overview
One of the oldest hymns sung in the church, written by Ambrose of Milan in the fourth century to teach the full divinity and full humanity of Christ against the Arians. Luther translated it as the chief Advent hymn of the Reformation, and it has opened the Lutheran church year ever since. The text is a compact creed of the incarnation: the virgin birth (st. 1-3), the whole journey of the Son from the Father and back again (st. 4), his victory and kingdom (st. 5), the light of the manger kept by faith (st. 6), and a Trinitarian doxology (st. 7). Its tone is wonder rather than sentiment.
Central theme: The incarnation of the eternal Son, born of a virgin, as the beginning of his saving journey
Structure
Short four-line stanzas in Ambrosian style. St. 1-3 the birth; st. 4 the 'giant's course' of the Son (descent, death, descent to hell, return); st. 5 victory; st. 6 the manger's light applied to faith; st. 7 doxology.
Law & Gospel Shape
Almost entirely Gospel and doxology. The Law appears briefly in st. 6 ('Let not sin o'ercloud this light').
Confessional Connections
Nicene Christology: true God from true God, incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary. St. 4 echoes the Apostles' Creed sequence (descended, rose, ascended). Luther's Small Catechism, Second Article, is a good companion.
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
First Sunday in Advent (traditional Hymn of the Day); Advent generally; Christmas Eve; Annunciation (March 25).
Historical Notes
Ambrose wrote hymns for his congregation in Milan during a standoff with the Arian empress Justina (386). Luther's German version appeared in 1524 with the tune NUN KOMM, DER HEIDEN HEILAND adapted from the chant melody. Bach built two cantatas (BWV 61, 62) and several organ chorales on it.
About the Tune
NUN KOMM, DER HEIDEN HEILAND — modal, austere, adapted from plainsong; its minor-mode gravity suits the mystery of the text.
Scripture References
Isa 7:14 John 1:14 Luke 1:35 Ps 19:5-6 Eph 4:8-10 John 16:28 John 1:5 Matt 1:18-23
Stanza by Stanza
A prayer for the Savior of all peoples to come as the Virgin's Son, and a call for heaven and earth to marvel at the birth God chose.
The opening petition joins Advent longing with mission: he is Savior 'of the nations' (Latin gentium, German der Heiden — the Gentiles), not of Israel alone (Isa 49:6; Luke 2:32). 'Virgin's Son' places the virgin birth at the head of the hymn (Isa 7:14). Ambrose's point is that the manner of Christ's birth reveals who he is: one who comes from God, not merely a great man. The call for heaven and earth to 'marvel' sets the tone of the whole hymn — the incarnation is something to be adored, not explained away.
- Scripture
- Isa 7:14, Isa 49:6, Luke 2:30-32, Gal 4:4
- Imagery & language
- Heaven and earth as a cosmic audience; a dwelling or home.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — Advent petition.
- Connection to previous
- Opening petition.
The Word became flesh not by human generation but by the Holy Spirit, as the woman's promised offspring.
A precise doctrinal statement of the conception by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35; Matt 1:20). 'Not by human flesh and blood' echoes John 1:13. 'Was the Word of God made flesh' quotes John 1:14 — the eternal Word took on a real human nature. 'Woman's Offspring' recalls Gen 3:15, the first Gospel promise: the seed of the woman who would crush the serpent. 'Pure and fresh' signals that Christ was conceived without original sin. Ambrose wrote against the Arians, so this stanza insists the child's origin is divine, not merely human.
- Scripture
- John 1:13-14, Luke 1:35, Matt 1:20, Gen 3:15
- Imagery & language
- Flesh and blood vs. the Spirit; the promised seed.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — the promise fulfilled.
- Connection to previous
- Explains how the birth of st. 1 came about.
A cry of wonder at the birth and the Child of a pure virgin, who though rejected by the world is still enthroned in heaven.
Repeated 'wondrous' turns doctrine into doxology. 'Though by all the world disowned' recalls John 1:10-11 ('his own people did not receive him') and anticipates the cross; there was no room at the inn. 'Still to be in heaven enthroned' states that the Son did not stop being God when he became man — the classical teaching that the Word was fully incarnate yet not contained or diminished (Lutherans speak of the personal union, FC VIII). The contrast of rejection and enthronement is a first glimpse of the theology of the cross: glory hidden in lowliness.
- Scripture
- John 1:10-11, Luke 2:7, Phil 2:6-7, Col 2:9
- Imagery & language
- Contrast of earthly rejection and heavenly throne.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — wonder at the incarnation.
- Connection to previous
- Responds to the doctrine of st. 2 with wonder.
Christ comes from the Father and returns to him, leading death and hell captive along the way, and the song of triumph rises.
This is Ambrose's famous summary of the Son's entire mission, sometimes called the 'giant's course' after Ps 19:5-6 (the sun running its course like a strong man). The original Latin traces the path from the Father to the virgin's womb, down to hell, and back to the throne of God. 'From the Father forth He came / And returneth to the same' paraphrases John 16:28. 'Captive leading death and hell' draws on Eph 4:8-10 and Ps 68:18 and points to Christ's descent into hell as victory (FC IX treats the descent as triumph, not suffering). Advent thus already looks to Easter and the Ascension.
- Scripture
- John 16:28, Ps 19:5-6, Eph 4:8-10, Ps 68:18, 1 Pet 3:18-19, Col 2:15
- Imagery & language
- A journey out and back; a victory procession leading captives.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — victory.
- Connection to previous
- Widens the view from birth to the whole saving journey.
The only Son of the Father has won the victory over sin; his kingdom will be without limit, and the church longs to see its glory.
'The Father's only Son' (John 1:14, 18; 3:16) confesses Christ's eternal sonship — Ambrose's anti-Arian point that the Son is begotten, not made. 'Hast o'er sin the victory won' names the purpose of the incarnation. 'Boundless shall Thy kingdom be' echoes Luke 1:33 ('of his kingdom there will be no end') and the Nicene Creed. The closing question, 'When shall we its glories see?', expresses the double Advent: Christ has come, yet the church still waits for his return in glory.
- Scripture
- John 1:14, 18, Luke 1:32-33, 1 Cor 15:57, Rev 11:15, Titus 2:13
- Imagery & language
- Kingdom without boundary; a question of longing.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — victory and hope.
- Connection to previous
- Applies the victory of st. 4 and turns toward the future.
The manger shines with divine light; the singers pray that sin will not darken that light and that their faith will stay bright.
Light imagery (John 1:4-9) is applied to the manger itself — the place of lowliness becomes the place of glory. The prayer 'Let not sin o'ercloud this light' is the hymn's only note of Law and repentance, fitting for Advent as a penitential season. The final line ties the light to faith: the light is objective (Christ himself) but it must be received and kept by faith, which God sustains. Ambrose's original says the night shall not darken the light because faith shines continually.
- Scripture
- John 1:4-9, John 8:12, Isa 9:2, 2 Cor 4:6
- Imagery & language
- Shining manger; clouds covering light.
- Law / Gospel
- Brief Law (sin darkens) within Gospel (light of Christ).
- Connection to previous
- Applies the mystery to the believer's faith.
A Trinitarian doxology giving eternal praise to Father, Son, and Spirit.
Ambrosian hymns customarily end with a doxology, and in an anti-Arian context this is pointed: equal praise to each person confesses their equal divinity. The Son is named 'our King,' linking back to the kingdom of st. 5. The doxology also reminds the singers that the incarnation is the work of the whole Trinity — the Father sends, the Son becomes flesh, the Spirit overshadows the virgin (st. 2).
- Scripture
- Matt 28:19, 2 Cor 13:14, Rev 5:13
- Imagery & language
- Liturgical doxology.
- Law / Gospel
- Doxology.
- Connection to previous
- Closes the hymn in praise.