Isaiah 11:1-2: "There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD."
Matthew 1:20-21: "But as he [Joseph] considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.'"
Hebrews 2:14-15: "Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery."
Luke 2:1-18: "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
"And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!'
"When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.' And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them."
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The text is public domain:
Lo, how a rose e'er blooming
From tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse's lineage coming
As prophets long have sung,
It came, a flow'ret bright,
Amid the cold of winter,
When half-spent was the night.
Isaiah 'twas foretold it,
The rose I have in mind;
With Mary we behold it,
The virgin mother kind.
To show God's love aright,
She bore to us a Savior,
When half-spent was the night.
This flow'r, whose fragrance tender
With sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendor
The darkness ev'rywhere.
True man, yet very God,
From sin and death He saves us
And lightens ev'ry load.
O Savior, child of Mary,
Who felt our human woe;
O Savior, King of glory,
Who dost our weakness know:
Bring us at length we pray
To the bright courts of heaven,
And to the endless day.
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The image of the "rose e'er blooming" that's continued in the second and third verses seems to come from Isaiah 11's "There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit." The first verse has the same "Of Jesse's lineage coming," and the second verse mentions Isaiah's prophecy: "Isaiah 'twas foretold it." It's just that the specific plant is different; where Isaiah has "a shoot" and "a branch," the hymn has "a rose."
"It came, a flow'ret bright, / Amid the cold of winter" in the first verse and "She [Mary] bore to us a Savior, / When half-spent was the night" in the second refer to the Luke 2 text. "She bore to us a Savior, / When half-spent was the night" also seems to refer to Matthew 1, although the line "From sin and death He saves us" in the third verse is probably the more significant borrowing from Matthew 1.
"He himself likewise partook of the same things" from Hebrews 2 shows up in the last verse, specifically in the lines "Who felt our human woe" and "Who dost our weakness know."
The flower's "Dispel[ing] with glorious splendor / The darkness ev'rywhere" in verse three could probably have a number of Biblical referents. I first thought of the end of 1 Peter 2:9: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light," but because this hymn is in the Christmas section, Luke 1:78-79 is probably more relevant. As part of his prophecy about John the Baptist, Zechariah says, "The sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."
The last line of the third verse - He "lightens ev'ry load" - could possibly come from Matthew 11:28-30: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
"It came, a flow'ret bright, / Amid the cold of winter" in the first verse and "She [Mary] bore to us a Savior, / When half-spent was the night" in the second refer to the Luke 2 text. "She bore to us a Savior, / When half-spent was the night" also seems to refer to Matthew 1, although the line "From sin and death He saves us" in the third verse is probably the more significant borrowing from Matthew 1.
"He himself likewise partook of the same things" from Hebrews 2 shows up in the last verse, specifically in the lines "Who felt our human woe" and "Who dost our weakness know."
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The flower's "Dispel[ing] with glorious splendor / The darkness ev'rywhere" in verse three could probably have a number of Biblical referents. I first thought of the end of 1 Peter 2:9: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light," but because this hymn is in the Christmas section, Luke 1:78-79 is probably more relevant. As part of his prophecy about John the Baptist, Zechariah says, "The sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."
The last line of the third verse - He "lightens ev'ry load" - could possibly come from Matthew 11:28-30: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
