"Eat This Bread"

Back in April, I transcribed "Eat This Bread" (which I don't think I've ever sung in a church service), and I noticed a small feature in the third verse.

The hymn's tune is also titled "Eat This Bread," and each verse has its own melody.  The third verse is "Eat His flesh and drink His blood, and Christ will raise you up on the Last Day," sung to this melody:

The second half of the melody ascends, musically representing Christ's "rais[ing] you up on the Last Day."

LSB #439 "O Dearest Jesus, What Law Hast Thou Broken"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 23:20-24; Isaiah 53:4-6; John 10:11, 14-15; Romans 12:1

Luke 23:20-24:  "20 Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, 21 but they kept shouting, 'Crucify, crucify him!'  22 A third time he said to them, 'Why, what evil has he done?  I have found in him no guilt deserving death.  I will therefore punish and release him.'  23 But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified.  And their voices prevailed.  24 So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted."

Isaiah 53:4-6:  "4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.  6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned - every one - to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all."

John 10:11:  "'I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.'"

John 10:14-15:  "14 'I am the good shepherd.  I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.'"

Romans 12:1:  "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."

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The text is public domain:

O dearest Jesus, what law hast Thou broken
That such sharp sentence should on Thee be spoken?
Of what great crime hast Thou to make confession,
What dark transgression?

They crown Thy head with thorns, they smite, they scourge Thee;
With cruel mockings to the cross they urge thee;
They give Thee gall to drink, they still decry Thee;
They crucify Thee.

Whence come these sorrows, whence this mortal anguish?
It is my sins for which Thou, Lord, must languish;
Yea, all the wrath, the woe, Thou dost inherit,
This I do merit.

What punishment so strange is suffered yonder!
The Shepherd dies for sheep that loved to wander;
The Master pays the debt His servants owe Him,
Who would not know Him.

The sinless Son of God must die in sadness;
The sinful child of man may live in gladness;
Man forfeited his life and is acquitted;
God is committed.

There was no spot in me by sin untainted;
Sick with sin's poison, all my heart had fainted;
My heavy guilt to hell had well-nigh brought me,
Such woe is wrought me.

O wondrous love, whose depth no heart hath sounded,
That brought Thee here, by foes and thieves surrounded!
All worldly pleasures, heedless, I was trying
While Thou wert dying.

O mighty King, no time can dim Thy glory!
How shall I spread abroad Thy wondrous story?
How shall I find some worthy gifts to proffer?
What dare I offer?

For vainly doth our human wisdom ponder -
Thy woes, Thy mercy, still transcend our wonder.
Oh, how should I do aught that could delight Thee!
Can I requite Thee?

Yet unrequited, Lord, I would not leave Thee;
I will renounce whate'er doth vex or grieve Thee
And quench with thoughts of Thee and prayers most lowly
All fires unholy.

But since my strength will nevermore suffice me
To crucify desires that still entice me,
To all good deeds O let Thy Spirit win me
And reign within me!

I'll think upon Thy mercy without ceasing,
That earth's vain joys to me no more be pleasing;
To do Thy will shall be my sole endeavor
Henceforth forever.

Whate'er of earthly good this life may grant me,
I'll risk for Thee; no shame, no cross, shall daunt me.
I shall not fear what foes can do to harm me
Nor death alarm me.

But worthless is my sacrifice, I own it;
Yet, Lord, for love's sake Thou wilt not disown it;
Thou wilt accept my gift in Thy great meekness
Nor shame my weakness.

And when, dear Lord, before Thy throne in heaven
To me the crown of joy at least is given,
Where sweetest hymns Thy saints forever raise Thee,
I, too, shall praise Thee.

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The hymn's first verse comes from the Luke text, specifically part of verse 22: "'Why, what evil has he done?  I have found in him no guilt deserving death.'"

The next four verses are drawn primarily from the Isaiah text, although any of the Passion accounts could also be cited for the second verse.  "They give Thee gall to drink" is a detail from Matthew 27:34.  "The Shepherd dies for sheep that loved to wander" in the fourth verse combines Isaiah 53:6 ("All we like sheep have gone astray") and the two selections from John where Jesus says, "'The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.'"

The tenth through fourteenth verses seem to come from and expand upon "present[ing] your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God" from Romans 12:1.

"Stuttgart" (TLH #83)

"Dives and Lazarus"

Last year, one of the songs that Roger McGuinn did for his Folk Den project was "Dives and Lazarus," based on Luke 16:19-31 (and sung to the tune "Kingsfold").  In the Bible, the rich man isn't named, but yester-day, I discovered why he's called Dives in the song.

As part of my self-assigned Latin homework, I lookt up the word divitias (riches) for a sentence I was translating.  Among the adjacent glossary entries was dives, an adjective that means rich or wealthy.  In the song, this adjective is used as a substantive:  the "rich [man] and Lazarus."

LSB #438 "A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Isaiah 53:1-12, Exodus 12:5, John 1:29

Isaiah 53:1-12:  "1 Who has believed what he has heard from us?  And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?  2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.  3 He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.  4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.  6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned - every one - to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

"10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.  12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors."

Exodus 12:5:  "Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old.  You may take it from the sheep or from the goats..."

John 1:29:  "The next day he [John the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, 'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!'"

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All three of the cited texts refer to a lamb, and this is also the image used in the hymn:  "A Lamb goes uncomplaining forth, / The guilt of sinners bearing."

The verse from Exodus appears in the second half of the first verse:  "That spotless life to offer."

John 1:29 and parts of Isaiah 53 (especially part of verse 6: "the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all") appear in "And, laden with the sins of earth" in the first verse.

Of the three cited texts, Isaiah 53 is referred to most often.  "A Lamb goes uncomplaining forth" and "To slaughter led without complaint" in the hymn's first verse come from verse 7: "like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth."  "He bears the stripes, the wounds, the lies, / The mockery..." in the hymn's first verse comes from Isaiah 53:3-5.

The remaining three verses of the hymn elaborate and reflect on what's described in the first verse and don't seem to incorporate these Bible passages any further.

"Gladness" (TLH #82)

I wasn't familiar with this tune, so I might have taken it a bit too fast, but it was fun to play.

"Here, O My Lord, I See Thee Face to Face"

Way back in April, I transcribed "Here, O My Lord, I See Thee Face to Face" and noticed a small feature in the sixth verse.  The first line is "Too soon we rise; the vessels disappear," sung to this phrase from the tune "Farley Castle":

"Too soon we rise" is sung to an ascending group of notes (C E F G), musically representing that "ris[ing]."

LSB #437 "Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 27:45-50; Romans 5:6-12, 12:1; 1 Peter 2:24

Matthew 27:45-50:  "45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.  46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'  47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, 'This man is calling Elijah.'  48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink.  49 But the others said, 'Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.'  50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit."

Romans 5:6-12:  "6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.  7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die - 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.  10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.  11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

"12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned..."

Romans 12:1:  "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."

1 Peter 2:24:  "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.  By his wounds you have been healed."

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The text is public domain:

Alas! And did my Savior bleed,
And did my sov'reign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I?

Was it for crimes that I had done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity, grace unknown,
And love beyond degree!

Well might the sun in darkness hide
And shut his glories in
When God, the mighty maker, died
For His own creatures' sin.

Thus might I hide my blushing face
While His dear cross appears,
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,
And melt mine eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne'er repay
The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away:
'Tis all that I can do.

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Matthew 27:45-50 is the main referent.  Verse 50 is rendered as "He groaned upon the tree" in the second verse, and the darkness mentioned in verse 45 appears as "Well might the sun in darkness hide..." in the third verse.

Romans 5:6-12 is the basis for the questions in the first verse, and - in the same way - 1 Peter 2:24 is behind the question "Was it for crimes that I had done / He groaned upon the tree?" in the second verse.

"Present[ing] your bodies as a living sacrifice" from Romans 12:1 appears at the end of the hymn, in the line "Here, Lord, I give myself away."

"Gelobet seist du, Jesu" (TLH #80)

I'm going to skip #81 because it's in Eb major and because it's one of those tunes with phrases of irregular length (alternating between 12 beats and 16 beats per measure).

"Our Father Who Art in Heaven" (LSB #957)

In a church service earlier this year, I sang LSB #956 "Create in Me" (a setting of Psalm 51:10-12), and I noticed a small feature in LSB #957 "Our Father Who Are in Heaven" (a setting of the Lord's Prayer) on the opposite page.  "Forever and ever" is sung to this musical phrase (no title for the tune is provided):

"Ever" is sung with a melisma (G F F), and because the word is stretched out, there's something of a sense of the long period of time it describes.

LSB #436 "Go to Dark Gethsemane"

Biblical citations in the hymnal: Mark 14:32-38, 15:1-20; Luke 23:33-46; Matthew 27:33-50; John 20:1-18

Mark 14:32-38:  "32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane.  And he said to his disciples, 'Sit here while I pray.'  33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled.  34 And he said to them, 'My soul is very sorrowful, even to death.  Remain here and watch.'  35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prated that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.  36 And he said, 'Abba, Father, all things are possible for you.  Remove this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what you will.'  37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, 'Simon, are you asleep?  Could you not watch one hour?  38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.'"

Mark 15:1-20:  "1 And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole Council.  And they bound Jesus and let him away and delivered him over to Pilate.  2 And Pilate asked him, 'Are you the King of the Jews?'  And he answered him, 'You have said so.'  3 And the chief priests accused him of many things.  4 And Pilate again asked him, 'Have you no answer to make?  See how many charged they bring against you.'  5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

"6 Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked.  7 And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas.  8 And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them.  9 And he answered them, saying, 'Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?'  10 For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up.  11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead.  12 And Pilate again said to them, 'Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?'  13 And they cried out again, 'Crucify him.'  14 And Pilate said to them, 'Why, what evil has he done?'  But they shouted all the more, 'Crucify him.'  15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

"16 And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the governor's headquarters), and they called together the whole battalion.  17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on him.  18 And they began to salute him, 'Hail, King of the Jews!'  19 And they were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him.  20 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him.  And they led him out to crucify him."

Luke 23:33-46:  "33 And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.  34 And Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.'  And they cast lots to divide his garments.  35 And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, 'He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!'  36 The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine 37 and saying, 'If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!'  38 There was also an inscription over him, 'This is the King of the Jews.'

"39 One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, 'Are you not the Christ?  Save yourself and us!'  40 But the other rebuked him, saying, 'Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  41 And indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.'  42 And he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.'  43 And he said to him, 'Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.'"

"44 It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 while the sun's light failed.  And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.  46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, 'Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!'  And having said this he breathed his last."

Matthew 27:33-50:  "33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it.  35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots.  36 Then they sat down and kept watch over him there.  37 And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, 'This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.'  38 Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left.  39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, 'You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself!  If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.'  41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 'He saved others; he cannot save himself.  He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.  43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him.  For he said, "I am the Son of God."'  44 And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.

"45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.  46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'  47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, 'This man is calling Elijah.'  48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink.  49 But the others said, 'Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.'  50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit."

John 20:1-18:  "1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.  2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.'  3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb.  4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.  5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in.  6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb.  He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.  8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.  10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.

"11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.  12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.  13 They said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?'  She said to them, 'They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.'  14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.  15 Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?  Whom are you seeking?'  Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, 'Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.'  16 Jesus said to her, 'Mary.'  She turned and said to him in Aramaic, 'Rabboni!' (which means Teacher).  17  Jesus said to her, 'Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, "I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God."'  18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, I have seen the Lord" - and that he had said these things to her."

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The text is public domain:

Go to dark Gethsemane,
All who feel the tempter's pow'r;
Your Redeemer's conflict see,
Watch with Him one bitter hour;
Turn not from His griefs away;
Learn from Jesus Christ to pray.

Follow to the judgment hall,
View the Lord of life arraigned;
Oh, the wormwood and the gall!
Oh, the pangs His soul sustained!
Shun not suff'ring, shame, or loss;
Learn from Him to bear the cross.

Calv'ry's mournful mountain climb;
There, adoring at His feet,
Mark that miracle of time,
God's own sacrifice complete.
"It is finished!" hear Him cry,
Learn from Jesus Christ to die.

Early hasten to the tomb
Where they laid His breathless clay;
All is solitude and gloom.
Who has taken Him away?
Christ is ris'n!  He meets our eyes.
Savior, teach us so to rise.

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The first verse comes from Mark 14:32-38.  The second verse combines a few of the cited Biblical selections but is mostly from Mark 15:1-20, summarized in "Follow to the judgment hall, / View the Lord of life arraigned."  The gall is mentioned in Matthew 27:34, and "the pangs His soul sustained" seems to refer to the mocking by the soldiers, the passers-by, and the robbers in Mark 15:16-20, Luke 23:35-39, and Matthew 27:39-44.

The hymn's third verse summarizes Jesus' death.  From the cited verses, this is in Luke 23:46 and Matthew 27:46-50, but "It is finished" is only in John 19:30:  "When Jesus has received the sour wine, he said, 'It is finished,' and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit."

The last verse summarizes John 20:1-18.

"Wie schön leuchtet" (TLH #79)

I considered skipping this because it's in Eb major and has some weird rests, but it's "Wie schön leuchtet"!  I played it in E major, which is an easier key.  I couldn't have played some of the bass notes in Eb major anyway because they're below the range of standard tuning.

"Lord Jesus Christ, You Have Prepared"

During the Maundy Thursday service earlier this year, one of the hymns was "Lord Jesus Christ, You Have Prepared" (located in The Lord's Supper section of the hymnal).  I noticed a small feature about it.

The fifth line in the first verse is "As weary souls, with sin oppressed," sung to this musical phrase (from the tune "Du Lebensbrot, Herr Jesu Christ"):

The phrase generally descends, and it includes the lowest note in the entire tune (a B).  Both of these features musically represent the qualities mentioned in the text.  It's as if the tune itself sinks because of weariness and being oppressed by sin.