Come, Thou precious Ransom, come, Only Hope for sinful mortals!
Come, O Savior of the world! Open are to Thee all portals.
Come, Thy beauty let us see; Anxiously we wait for thee.

Enter now my waiting heart, Glorious King and Lord most holy.
Dwell in me and ne’er depart, Tho’ I am but poor and lowly.
Ah, what riches will be mine When Thou art my Guest Divine! 

My hosannas and my palms Graciously receive, I pray Thee;
Evermore, as best I can, Savior, I will homage pay Thee,
And in faith I will embrace, Lord, Thy merit thro’ Thy grace.

Hail, hosanna, David’s Son! Help, Lord, hear our supplication!
Let Thy kingdom, scepter, crown, Bring us blessing and salvation,
That forever we may sing: Hail, hosanna! to our King.

(The Lutheran Hymnal #55)

This is the first hymn in the section that has the heading “Advent” in this hymnal. It was written in 1664 “auf Deutsch” and translated into English in 1923. “The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal” published in 1942 says “The hymn has long been a favorite Advent hymn in the Lutheran Church.

It was based on Matthew 21:5-9, Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The one who was hailed as king on Palm Sunday was the king who was born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger, the one of whom the Magi asked, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews.”

Since Advent means “coming,” it is appropriate that this hymn begins with the invitation, “Come, Thou precious Ransom, come, Only Hope for sinful mortals.”  The one whose birth we are preparing to celebrate was just that: our only hope. We could not atone for our sin, but He could and would and in fact did!  His purpose in coming to earth was to be the “Ransom” that would set us free from sin and death and guarantee our forgiveness.

The second stanza should be our fervent prayer, imploring Him to enter and abide in our hearts so that we can enjoy the riches He came to earn for us:  forgiveness, redemption, life and eternal salvation.

We should indeed forever sing and shout “Hosanna”, which means “Lord, save us,” because we know Jesus is the only one who can do so.