LSB #842 "Son of God, Eternal Savior"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Peter 1:20-23; Hebrews 7:25; John 13:34-35; 17:20-21

1 Peter 1:20-23:  "20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

"22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God"

Hebrews 7:25:  "Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them."

John 13:34-35:  "34 'A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another:  just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.'"

John 17:20-21:  "20 'I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.'"

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The text is public domain:

1 Son of God, eternal Savior,

Source of life and truth and grace,

Word made flesh, whose birth among us

Hallows all our human race,

You our Head, who, throned in glory,

For Your own will ever plead:

Fill us with Your love and pity,

Heal our wrongs, and help our need.

2 As You, Lord, have lived for others,

So may we for others live.

Freely have Your gifts been granted;

Freely may Your servants give.

Yours the gold and Yours the silver,

Yours the wealth of land and sea;

We but stewards of Your bounty

Held in solemn trust will be.

3 Come, O Christ, and reign among us,

King of love and Prince of Peace;

Hush the storm of strife and passion,

Bid its cruel discords cease.

By Your patient years of toiling,

By Your silent hours of pain,

Quench our fevered thirst of pleasure,

Stem our selfish greed of gain.

4 Son of God, eternal Savior,

Source of life and truth and grace,

Word made flesh, whose birth among us

Hallows all our human race:

By Your praying, by Your willing

That Your people should be one,

Grant, O grant our hope's fruition:

Here on earth Your will be done.

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1 Peter 1:20-21 seems to appear in the first half of the first verse (repeated as the first half of the fourth verse), although the hymn text bears a stronger resemblance to other Biblical passages, such as John 1:14 ("And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.") and John 14:6 ("Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.'").  1 Peter 1:22 is combined with John 13:34-35 at the beginning of the second verse:  "As You, Lord, have lived for others, / So may we for others live."

The intercession in Hebrews 7:25 is referred to in the first verse:  "Your our Head, who, throned in glory, / For Your own will ever plead."

John 17:20-21 is alluded to in the fourth verse:  "By Your praying, by Your willing / That Your people should be one."

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Perhaps just coincidentally, the line "Yours the gold and Yours the silver" in the second verse bears some resemblance to Haggai 2:8:  "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts."

The title Prince of Peace in the third verse comes from Isaiah 9:6:  "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

The line "Here on earth Your will be done" at the end of the fourth verse echoes Matthew 6:10:  "'Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.'"

"I Know That My Redeemer Lives"

I recently watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from 6 May.  The hymn was "I Know That My Redeemer Lives," and in it, I noticed yet an-other instance where a phrase starting with "all" is sung to notes of all different pitches, resulting in a sense of extent or entirety.

The fifth verse starts with the line "He lives to silence all my fears," sung to this phrase from "Duke Street":

The phrase "all my fears" is sung to the notes D C# B A.

LSB #841 "O Son of God, in Galilee"

Biblical citation in the hymnal:  Mark 7:32-37

Mark 7:32-37:  "32 And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him.  33 And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue.  34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 'Ephphatha,' that is, 'Be opened.'  35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.  36 And Jesus charged them to tell no one.  But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.  37 And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, 'He has done all things well.  He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.'"

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While it's obvious that the hymn is based on this passage from Mark 7, there are only a couple elements from the passage that are actually in the hymn text.  Part of verse 37 is the basis for the first three lines of the hymn ("O Son of God, in Galilee / You made the deaf to hear, / The mute to speak, the blind to see") and for the first half of the third verse ("The speechless tongue, the lifeless ear / You can restore, O Lord"), and the word ephphatha from verse 34 appears in the second half of the third verse ("Your 'Ephphatha,' O Savior dear, / Can instant help afford").

The line "O bid them cast on You their care" in the second verse bears some resemblance to the first part of Psalm 55:22 ("Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you") and 1 Peter 5:7 ("casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you").

"Come, Holy Ghost, Creator Blest"

A couple years ago, I noticed two small features in "Come, Holy Ghost, Creator Blest" (paired with the tune "Komm, Gott Schöpfer").

The fourth verse starts with the line "Your light to ev'ry thought impart," sung to this musical phrase:

The words "ev'ry thought" are sung to notes of all different pitches (spanning a fifth:  Eb F Bb), giving a sense of this extent.

The third verse ends with the lines "While You with tongues of fire proclaim / To all the world His holy name."  The second of these is sung to this musical phrase:

Similar to the above, the phrase "all the world" is sung to notes of all different pitches (again spanning a fifth:  Bb G Eb), lending some sense of the entirety of "all."

LSB #840 "Christ High-Ascended, Now in Glory Seated"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 28-18-20, Acts 1:8, Philippians 2:9-11, John 16:19-24

Matthew 28:18-20:  "18 And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'"

Acts 1:8:  "'But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.'"

Philippians 2:9-11:  "9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

John 16:19-24:  "19 Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, 'Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, "A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me"?  20 Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.  You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.  21 When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.  22 So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.  23 In that day you will ask nothing of me.  Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.  24 Until now you have asked nothing in my name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.'"

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Matthew 28:18-20 is paraphrased in the second verse, in the line "To win disciples out of ev'ry nation" in the third verse, and in the fourth verse.

Acts 1:8 appears in the line "We are His witnesses" at the end of each verse and in the line "Filled with His Spirit, love and pow'r receiving" near the end of the fifth verse.

The passage from Philippians 2 is referred to at the beginning of the first verse:  "Christ high-ascended, now in glory seated, / Throned and exalted, victory completed."

The passage from John 16 is the basis for the line "As at His parting, joy shall banish grieving" at the beginning of the fifth verse.

"Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord"

Last year, I noticed two instances in "Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord" (sung to the tune "Komm, heiliger Geist, Herre Gott") where phrases starting with "all" are sung to notes of all different pitches, lending a sense of extent or entirety, especially since both span the interval of a fifth.

In the first verse, the phrase "all Your graces" in the line "With all Your graces now outpoured" is sung to the notes D C G Bb in this musical phrase:

In the second verse, the phrase "all our might" in the line "In Him, our Lord, with all our might confide" is sung to the notes A G D in this musical phrase:

LSB #839 "O Christ, Our True and Only Light"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Isaiah 60:1-3, Luke 1:78-79, John 8:12, Ephesians 5:8-14

Isaiah 60:1-3:  "1 Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.  2 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.  3 And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising."

Luke 1:78-79:  "78 'because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.'"

John 8:12:  "12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'"

Ephesians 5:8-14:  "8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.  11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.  12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.  13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light.  Therefore it says, 'Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.'"

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The text is public domain:

1 O Christ, our true and only light,

Enlighten those who sit in night;

Let those afar now hear Your voice

And in Your fold with us rejoice.

2 Fill with the radiance of Your grace

The souls now lost in error's maze;

Enlighten those whose inmost minds

Some dark delusion haunts and blinds.

3 O gently call those gone astray

That they may find the saving way!

Let ev'ry conscience sore oppressed

In You find peace and heav'nly rest.

4 Shine on the darkened and the cold;

Recall the wand'rers to Your fold.

Unite all those who walk apart;

Confirm the weak and doubting heart,

5 That they with us may evermore

Such grace with wond'ring thanks adore

And endless praise to You be giv'n

By all Your Church in earth and heav'n.

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All of the cited passages mention light, which is the main image of the hymn, so it's difficult to say whether any given part of the hymn text comes from one passage rather than an-other.  John 8:12 is clearly the basis for the first line, however:  "O Christ, our true and only light."

LSB #838 "The Saints in Christ Are One in Every Place"

Biblical citation in the hymnal:  Philippians 1:1-21

Philippians 1:1-21:  "1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

"To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:

"2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

"3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.  6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.  7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.  8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.  9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

"12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.  14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

"15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.  16 The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.  17 The former proclaim Christ out of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment.  18 What then?  Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

"Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.  21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

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There's only one passage cited, so obviously, this is the main source for the hymn text.  More specifically, Philippians 1:6 is referenced in the line "The work that You began, You will complete" in the fourth verse, and Philippians 1:21 appears at the beginning of the third verse:  "To live is Christ, for us, to die is gain."

Incidentally, "rich and poor" in the line "Our joy to preach good news to rich and poor" in the third verse is a merism.

"Christ the Lord Is Risen Today"

I recently watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from 17 April.  The hymn was "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today," and I noticed some significance in the rhyme scheme.

The third verse begins with the lines "Vain the stone, the watch, the seal; / Christ hath burst the gates of hell."  "Seal" and "hell" exhibit a slant rhyme, unlike the perfect rhymes of all of the preceding couplets.  In a way, this lack of coherence illustrates the vanity, and the break from the established pattern matches the gates' being "burst."

LSB #837 "Lift High the Cross"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  John 12:32; Hebrews 13:12-15; Isaiah 11:10, 12; Matthew 16:24

John 12:32:  "'And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.'"

Hebrews 13:12-15:  "12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.  13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured.  14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.  15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name."

Isaiah 11:10:  "In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples - of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious."

Isaiah 11:12:  "He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth."

Matthew 16:24:  "Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.'"

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John 12:32 is referred to in the fourth verse:  "O Lord, once lifted on the glorious tree, / As Thou hast promised, draw us all to Thee."

The passage from Hebrews 13 appears in the fifth and sixth verses:  "Let ev'ry race and ev'ry language tell / Of Him who saves our lives from death and hell. // So shall our song of triumph ever be: / Praise to the Crucified for victory!"

Both passages from Isaiah 11 are alluded to at the beginning of the second verse ("Led on their way by this triumphant sign") and in the first line of the refrain ("Lift high the cross..."), and Isaiah 11:12 (specifically "gather the dispersed of Judah...") overlaps with John 12:32 in the fourth verse.

Matthew 16:24 is the basis for the first line of the first verse:  "Come, Christians, follow where our Captain trod."

"O Sons and Daughters of the King"

I wrote about a couple small features in "O Sons and Daughters of the King" last year, but I recently found an-other small point when it was the hymn in the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service on 16 April (specifically LSB #471, where the text is paired with the tune "O filii et filiae").

Here's the first musical phrase:

The second verse starts with the line "That Easter morn, at break of day."  "Break" is sung with a melisma (C Bb), giving a slightly more literal representation of its metaphorical meaning here.

LSB #836 "O God of Light"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 119:105, 1 Peter 1:10-12, Isaiah 51:4

Psalm 119:105:  "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

1 Peter 1:10-12:  "10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.  12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look."

Isaiah 51:4:  "'Give attention to me, my people, and give ear to me, my nation; for a law will go out from me, and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.'"

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Psalm 119:105 appears in the first verse, especially in the first and last lines:  "O God of light, Your Word, a lamp unfailing, / Shall... guide our footsteps to the perfect day."

The passage from 1 Peter 1 is the basis for the second half of the second verse and the third verse.

Isaiah 51:4 overlaps a bit with the light imagery in Psalm 119:105, but it also appears at the beginning of the third verse:  "Undimmed by time, those words are still revealing / To sinful hearts Your justice and Your grace."