Jesse Tree — Day 20: O Key of David

The O Antiphons are Magnificat antiphons sung or recited at Vespers from December 17-23. Each antiphon is a name of Christ, one of his attributes mentioned in Scripture.

   

Day 19: O Root of Jesse

Symbols: key, broken chains

Medieval Limoges enamel of the Harrowing of Hell, by which the Risen Lord Jesus frees Adam and Eve and the patriarchs from the jaws of death. This piece is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Taken by Fr. Lawrence Lew O.P., some rights reserved

Isaiah 22:20-24
Revelation 1:18; chapter 3; 20:4-6, 13

O Key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel;
you open and no one can shut;
you shut and no one can open:
Come and lead the prisoners from the prison house,
those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.