Luke 2:14 is the song of the heavenly host to the shepherds on the night Jesus was born: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. It has two halves. The first gives glory to God in heaven for sending His Son. The second announces what that gift brings to earth: peace between God and people, and God's good will toward the human race. The peace is not first a truce between nations but peace with God, made through the Saviour who had just been born in the city of David (Luke 2:11).
Luke tells the Christmas story with great restraint. The birth itself takes one verse: Mary brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger. Then the scene moves to a field near Bethlehem, where shepherds are keeping watch at night. An angel appears, the glory of the Lord shines round about them, and they are sore afraid. The angel tells them not to fear and gives them the good tidings: a Saviour, Christ the Lord, is born, and they will find Him lying in a manger. Then, suddenly, the sky is full of angels praising God. Their song, Luke 2:14, is the first Christmas carol, and the church has sung it ever since as the Gloria in Excelsis, the Latin for its opening words. Note on wording: the KJV reads good will toward men, following the Greek text the translators used. Many modern versions follow other manuscripts and read peace among those with whom He is pleased. Both readings say that peace on earth comes from God's favor, not human effort. Below are 12 KJV passages that explain the song line by line.
Glory to God in the highest: the night the angels sang
1. Luke 2:14
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."
The song has a simple shape: glory and peace, heaven and earth, God and men. Glory to God in the highest means glory in the highest heaven, where the angels live, and also glory of the highest kind. The birth of Jesus is above all something God has done, and the first response is worship. On earth peace is what the birth means for us. Good will toward men tells us why: God is not reluctantly making peace with His enemies; He is acting out of kindness. Notice that the angels say nothing about what the shepherds must do first. The song is pure announcement. Christmas is news before it is advice.
2. Luke 2:10-11
"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
The angels' song makes sense only after the angel's message. Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. The good tidings are a person: a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. Saviour says what He came to do. Christ (Messiah) says He is the long-promised King. Lord is the title the Greek Old Testament uses for God Himself. All three are given to a newborn in a feeding trough. The joy is for all people, which is why the shepherds, poor men at the edge of society, hear it first. No one is too low for this news.
3. Luke 2:13
"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,"
Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God. A host is an army. The word usually describes the angels as God's troops, the armies of heaven. On this night the army does not come to fight. It comes to sing. That in itself is a picture of the peace the song announces. Psalm 148:2 calls on all God's angels and hosts to praise Him, and here they do so over a field in Bethlehem. Luke says the angels were saying their words; many carols say singing. Either way, heaven could not keep quiet about what God had done.
4. Luke 2:20
"And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them."
The shepherds went to Bethlehem, found the baby exactly as they had been told, and spread the news. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen. They pick up the angels' song. Glory that began in the highest heaven is now sung by working men walking back to their sheep. This is the pattern of Christian worship. God reveals what He has done, people come and see for themselves, and their lives become an echo of heaven's praise. The shepherds' circumstances had not changed. Their song had.
And on earth peace: the peace the Saviour brings
5. Isaiah 9:7
"Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this."
Seven centuries earlier Isaiah promised a child who would be called the Prince of Peace, and added: Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David. The angels' on earth peace is the beginning of that promise. The child born in the city of David is David's heir. His peace is not a short pause in a violent world. It is a kingdom that keeps growing until it fills the earth. Isaiah ends with the guarantee: The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. The same LORD of hosts sent His host to announce it. See our Isaiah 9:6 meaning.
6. Romans 5:1
"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:"
What kind of peace did the angels mean? Paul gives the clearest answer: being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The deepest problem in the world is not war between nations but the separation between people and God caused by sin. Christmas is the start of God's answer. The child in the manger would grow up to die for sinners and rise again, so that everyone who believes is declared righteous. Peace with God is not a feeling that comes and goes. It is a settled relationship, and it is the root from which every other kind of peace grows.
7. Colossians 1:20
"And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven."
Paul says God made peace through the blood of his cross, reconciling all things to Himself. The peace the angels announced at the manger was paid for at Calvary. Carols often join the two: the child is born that man no more may die. This keeps the Christmas message from becoming sentimental. Peace on earth is not achieved by goodwill alone. It cost the life of the Son of God. Notice the scope: things in earth and things in heaven. The angels' song links heaven and earth, and so does the cross. Bethlehem and Golgotha belong to one story.
8. John 14:27
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
On the night before He died, Jesus told His disciples, Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. The world's peace usually means the absence of trouble, and it depends on circumstances. Christ's peace is His own calm trust in the Father, given to His people even in trouble. The disciples were about to see their Master arrested and crucified, yet He could say, Let not your heart be troubled. This is the peace on earth of Luke 2:14 given to individual hearts. It is available at Christmas to people who are grieving, lonely or afraid.
Good will toward men: God's favor, and the song that goes on
9. Titus 3:4-5
"But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;"
Good will toward men is God's kindness in action. Paul writes, the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us. The word appeared is the word used for the dawn breaking, and it is the word behind Epiphany. At Christmas the love of God appeared in a human life. Notice the phrase toward man, almost the same as the angels' toward men. God's favor is not a reward for people who have earned it. It is mercy given to people who have not, and that is what makes it good news.
10. Luke 19:38
"Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest."
Thirty-three years later the angels' song came back, this time from human voices. As Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the crowd cried, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest. Luke clearly wants us to hear the echo of Luke 2:14. The same words of peace and glory frame the beginning and the end of Jesus' earthly life. But the order has changed: peace in heaven. Within a week the King would be rejected on earth, and the peace He made would be made first with heaven, through the cross.
11. Isaiah 6:3
"And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory."
The angels who sang over Bethlehem are the same company Isaiah saw in the temple, crying Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. Their constant theme is the glory of God. That helps us read the first line of Luke 2:14. When the angels sing glory to God in the highest at Christmas, they are not inventing a new song. They are singing what they have always sung, now with a new reason. The holy God whose glory fills the earth has come to earth in person. The Word was made flesh, and we beheld his glory (John 1:14).
12. Revelation 5:11-12
"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing."
The angels' song does not end in Bethlehem. In Revelation John hears ten thousand times ten thousand angels round the throne Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain. The baby born in Bethlehem is now the Lamb who was slain and is alive, and heaven's praise has grown. At His birth the angels sang glory to God. Now they ascribe power, riches, wisdom, strength, honour, glory and blessing to the Lamb. Every time Christians sing Glory to God in the highest at Christmas, they join a song that began over the fields of Bethlehem and will never end.
A short prayer
Glory to You, O God, in the highest. Thank You for sending Your Son, a Saviour who is Christ the Lord, born for all people. Thank You for the peace He made through His cross, peace with You that no trouble can take away. Let that peace rule in my heart this Christmas, and make me a peacemaker with others. Like the shepherds, help me to come and see, and then go out glorifying and praising You for all I have heard and seen. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Go deeper: a SOAP study prompt
Pick one verse above and write: - Scripture: copy the verse by hand. - Observation: what does it say? Who is speaking, to whom? - Application: what does it mean for you today? - Prayer: turn it into a two-line prayer.
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Frequently asked questions
What does Luke 2:14 mean?
Luke 2:14 is the song the angels sang to the shepherds when Jesus was born. Glory to God in the highest gives praise to God for sending His Son. On earth peace, good will toward men announces that through this Saviour God is making peace with people and showing them His favor. The peace is first of all peace with God (Romans 5:1).
Why does the KJV say good will toward men when other Bibles say on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased?
The difference comes from Greek manuscripts. The KJV translators followed a text that reads good will (eudokia), while many modern translations follow older manuscripts that read of good will (eudokias), meaning people of God's favor. Both readings teach that the peace announced at Christmas flows from God's grace, not human merit.
Who sang Glory to God in the highest?
A multitude of the heavenly host, that is, a great company of angels, sang (or said) it to the shepherds near Bethlehem, right after one angel announced the birth of the Saviour (Luke 2:8-14). The shepherds later repeated the praise as they returned, glorifying and praising God (Luke 2:20).
What hymns and carols are based on Luke 2:14?
The Gloria in Excelsis, one of the oldest Christian hymns, begins with Luke 2:14. Carols that quote or echo it include Angels We Have Heard on High (Gloria in excelsis Deo), Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, It Came Upon the Midnight Clear, While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks and I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
Related: Angels We Have Heard on High · While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks · The Christmas Story in the Bible · Hark! The Herald Angels Sing · Isaiah 9:6 Meaning · Christmas · Peace · Angels
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