The Grace Collective – Oh Holy Nights

The Grace Collective is a duo consisting of Matthew Carpenter and Joel Arcieri.  Carpenter previously released his EP Light and Dark in 2019, while Arcieri previously hosted a podcast called Theology of Music and served as a lead Worship Pastor.

The Grace Collective released four albums, including:

• Gracious Father (2019)
• Kingdom of Your Son (2020)
• This Is Not the End (2021)
• Come and See (2023)

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.

1. What message does the song communicate?

The opening stanzas of this song will be familiar to many.  Verse 2 veers off course, focusing on additional nights that are also holy, as well as a few days: the night Jesus was betrayed, the day He was slain for our sins, the night He was buried, and the day He rose from the grave.  Finally, His rulership is eternal and His return is imminent, much to the praise and adoration of His followers.

Score: 10/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

The entire song perfectly reflects God’s inspired Word.

Lyrics posted with permission.*

[Verse 1]

O Holy Night, the stars are brightly shining
it is the night of our dear Saviors’ birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
’till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn

Duplicates the opening lines of Adolphe Adam’s O Holy Night.

[Chorus 1]

Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night, O holy night, O night divine

Almost of of this copies the Chorus of Adolphe Adam’s O Holy Night, except for the mid-section of the third line.  The Grace Collective explicitly states again that Jesus’ birth is a holy night, which repeats the opening line of Verse 1.

[Verse 2]

Oh Holy Night He prayed inside the garden;

The scene quickly shifts from the familiar Christmas account to the garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed to the Father (Matthew 26:36-44, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46, and John 18:1-11).

sweat drops of blood for the wrath He would bare

This detail is explicitly stated in Luke 22:44.

Soon he would die, His death would be our pardon,
to satisfy all the judgment we owned
The prince of peace, was sentenced as a traitor;
the Lamb of God, led silent to the cross

Christ, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) would be slain for our lawbreaking as the sacrificial, unblemished Lamb of God (Isaiah 53:7, John 1:29, John 1:36, Acts 8:32, 1 Peter 1:19, Revelation 5:6-8, Revelation 5:12-13, Revelation 6:1, Revelation 7:9-17, Revelation 12:11, Revelation 13:8, Revelation 14:1-10, Revelation 15:3, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:7-9, and Revelation 21:9).

[Chorus 2]

There on that cross Our Savior paid our ransom

He paid the penalty for our sin on the cross (Isaiah 53:1-12, Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, John 1:29, John 3:16, John 19:30, Acts 4:12, Acts 20:28, Romans 5:6-10, Romans 6:23, 1 Corinthians 1:30, 1 Corinthians 6:20, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 1:3-4, Galatians 3:13, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 2:14, 1 Timothy 2:6, Titus 2:14, Hebrews 9:12, Hebrews 9:15-26, 1 Peter 1:17-21, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 1:7, 1 John 2:1-2, and Revelation 5:9).

Forever we’re free from our sin and penalty

Describes the freedom we have in Christ (Psalm 119:45, Isaiah 58:6, Isaiah 61:1, John 3:16-21, John 8:31-36, John 10:10, Acts 13:38-39, Romans 6:1-23, Romans 8:1-4, Romans 8:20-21, 1 Corinthians 6:12, 1 Corinthians 7:21-23, 2 Corinthians 3:17, Galatians 2:4, Galatians 3:13, Galatians 3:22, Galatians 5:1, Galatians 5:13, Colossians 1:21-23, Hebrews 2:14-15, and 1 Peter 2:16).

Oh Praise, the Lamb who bled at Calvary

The Grace Collective invites us to praise Him.

Also known as Golgotha or “the skull”, Calvary is where Jesus was crucified (Matthew 27:33, Mark 15:22, and John 19:17). The English name “Calvary” derives from the Vulgate Latin “Calvariae”, which means “skullcap”.

[Verse 3]

Oh holy night the Light was laid in darkness;
the weary world left to wonder and wait
Is He the one? Has Jesus’ promise faltered?

Jesus, who is the light (John 1:1-8, John 8:12, and Ephesians 5:14), was dead.  His followers were unsure if His promise of return after three days would come true (Matthew 16:21, Matthew 26:61, Matthew 27:40, Mark 14:58, and Mark 15:29).

Three nights have passed as the new dawn arrives
He starts to breathe; His blood inside him coursing
The stone is moved; He walks out from the grave

While nobody witnessed Jesus leave His grave, several women were the first witnesses of the empty tomb, including Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James (Mark 16:1-4, Matthew 28:1-4, Luke 24:1-2, and John 20:1).

[Chorus 3]

Christ is alive! Our hope, in Him forever

He rose from the dead (Matthew 28:1-20, Mark 16:1-20, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-29, Acts 1:3, Acts 3:15, Acts 4:33, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-8).  He is our source of hope (Matthew 11:28-30, Romans 5:1-8, Romans 8:24-39, Romans 15:13, 1 Corinthians 15:54-58, and 1 Peter 1:3-6).

He reigns in pow’r He’ll return to bring us home
He reigns! He reigns! He reigns forever more!

As prophecied in Matthew 1:33.  He will come again for His bride, the church (Matthew 24:43, Acts 1:9-11, 1 Corinthians 11:26, 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4, 2 Peter 3:10, Revelation 16:15, and Revelation 19:11-16).

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

I mentioned in section 1 that the song’s opening lines will be familiar.  This is also true for those who do not yet know Jesus, pegging this song as a Christmas song.  The sudden shift to Easter events will be a surprise, yet, easily understood.  The Grace Collective’s language is mostly everyday, with a smattering of Christianese as needed to communicate the Gospel in a way unbelievers can catch.

Score: 10/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies Jesus by retelling key events in Jesus’ life that are Biblically accurate.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

The Grace Collective’s Oh Holy Nights is brilliant.  Much to my delight, it takes a Christmas classic and transforms it into the Gospel message, which covers His birth, suffering, death, resurrection, and return, bringing Him glory.  Unbelievers will find interpretation easy.

I highly recommend this song for corporate worship.

Final Score: 10/10

Artist Info

Track: Oh Holy Nights (listen to the song)

Artist: The Grace Collective

Album: Come & See

Genre: Contemporary Christian Music (CCM)

Release Year: 2023

Duration: 5:20

Agree?  Disagree?  Don’t be shy or have a cow!  Calmly and politely state your case in a comment, below.

*Copyright © 2023 Matthew Carpenter and Joel Arcieri.  All rights reserved.  Used with permission.