"Erschienen ist" (TLH #108)

"Who Are You Who Walk in Sorrow"

Last September, I watched the One LSB Hymn a Week video for "Who Are You Who Walk in Sorrow" and noticed a lot of features to write about.

The tune is "Jefferson," and all but one of the features I found are in the second phrase or the fourth phrase (which is just the second phrase repeated):

The second line of the first verse is "Down Emmaus' barren road," and the "Down" is sung to a descending pair of notes to reflect this musically.  The fourth line of the first verse is "Bent beneath grief's crushing load?" and the melody descends to portray the "Bent" (G F) and the "crushing load" (Bb A G).

The second line of the second verse is "Walking with us stride by stride."  "Walking" is sung with a melisma (G F D C) for a musical sense of movement, and the "stride by stride" is sung to a conjunct melody (Bb A G), so there's a step-wise motion in the music and in the text.  The fourth line of the second verse is "Depths of grief for one who died?"  The descending notes at the beginning, going to the lowest pitch in the phrase (C) and in the entire tune, give a musical sense of the (metaphorical) "Depths of grief."

The second line of the third verse is "In the breaking of the bread."  "Breaking" is sung with a melisma (D F G), so there's a musical sense of the word's meaning: it's broken up among notes.  The fourth line of the third verse is "Living, risen from the dead!" and the "risen" ascends (emphasized with a melisma: D F G) for a musical mirroring of the text.

The one other thing I noticed is in the sixth line of the fifth verse, sung to this phrase:

The text here is "Called from ev'ry land and race."  "Ev'ry" is sung with a melisma (D D C), musically giving a sense of the great number.

LSB #461 "I Know That My Redeemer Lives"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Job 19:25-27, Colossians 1:18, Hebrews 7:25, John 14:2-3

Job 19:25-27:  "25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.  26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another."

Colossians 1:18:  "And he is the head of the body, the church.  He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent."

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 14:2-3:  "2 'In my Father's house are many rooms.  If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.'"

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The text is public domain:

I know that my Redeemer lives;
What comfort this sweet sentence gives!
He lives, He lives, who once was dead;
He lives, my ever-living head.

He lives triumphant from the grave;
He lives eternally to save;
He lives all-glorious in the sky;
He lives exalted there on high.

He lives to bless me with His love;
He lives to plead for me above;
He lives my hungry soul to feed;
He lives to help in time of need.

He lives to grant me rich supply;
He lives to guide me with His eye;
He lives to comfort me when faint;
He lives to hear my soul's complaint.

He lives to silence all my fears;
He lives to wipe away my tears;
He lives to calm my troubled heart;
He lives all blessings to impart.

He lives, my kind, wise, heav'nly friend;
He lives and loves me to the end;
He lives, and while He lives, I'll sing;
He lives, my Prophet, Priest, and King.

He lives and grants me daily breath;
He lives, and I shall conquer death;
He lives my mansion to prepare;
He lives to bring me safely there.

He lives, all glory to His name!
He lives, my Jesus, still the same;
Oh, the sweet joy this sentence gives:
I know that my Redeemer lives!

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The Biblical sources for this are easily identifiable.  In the first verse, "I know that my Redeemer lives" (which is repeated at the very end) comes directly from Job 19:25, and "My ever-living head" is from Colossians 1:18 ("he is the head of the body, the church").  "He lives to plead for me above" in the third verse comes from "he always lives to make intercession for them" in Hebrews 7:25.  "He lives my mansion to prepare" in the seventh verse refers to the verses from John 14.

"He lives to wipe away my tears" in the fifth verse seems to be a reference to Revelation 21:4:  "'He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.'"

The titles "my Prophet, Priest, and King" in the sixth verse come from Luther's Small Catechism.

Looking over the text, it occurs to me that the numerous "He lives" are an example of anaphora, a rhetorical device in which a word or phrase is repeated.  In the hymn, it provides not only a sense of the myriad ways in which God provides for us, but also a sense of the ebullience we experience because of His resurrection.

"O Jesu Christ, dein Kripplein" (TLH #107)

This is in Eb major, and both of the bass clef parts went below the standard tuning of the instruments I play them on, so this is just the two treble clef parts.

"Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing"

In the midweek Advent service last week, one of the hymns was "Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing."  Last year, I noticed something about the text, but now I noticed some connections between the text and the tune ("Der am Kreuz").

Here's the first phrase (repeated as the third phrase):

The G# accidental provides a musical feeling of discomfort or error to accompany "temptation" in the line "Should some lust or sharp temptation" (first line of the second verse), "grieves" in "Ev'ry wound that pains or grieves me" (first line of the fourth verse), and "vices" in "With seductive, sinful vices" (third line of the third verse).  It might even be something of a musical pun that G# is one of the notes to which "sharp temptation" is sung.

The seventh phrase also has a G# accidental, used to the same effect:

Here, the musical feeling of discomfort or error accompanies "sinning" in the line "Show the peril, and from sinning" (in the first verse), "wounded" in the line "Saying, 'Christ for me was wounded'" (second verse), and "temptation" in the line "And to master each temptation" (third verse).

LSB #460 "Christians, to the Paschal Victim"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Corinthians 15:17-20, Mark 16:1-8

1 Corinthians 15:17-20:  "17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.  18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.  19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

"20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."

Mark 16:1-8:  "1 When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him.  2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.  3 And they were saying to one another, 'Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?'  4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back - it was very large.  5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed.  6 And he said to them, 'Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He has risen; he is not here.  See the place where they laid him.  7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.  There you will see him, just as he told you.'  8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid."

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The text is public domain:

Christians, to the Paschal Victim
Offer your thankful praises!
The Lamb the sheep has ransomed:
Christ, who only is sinless,
Reconciling sinners to the Father.
Death and life have contended
In that combat stupendous:
The Prince of life, who died,
Reigns immortal.

"Speak, Mary, declaring
What you saw when wayfaring."
"The tomb of Christ, who is living,
The glory of Jesus' resurrection;
Bright angels attesting,
The shroud and napkin resting.
My Lord, my hope, is arisen;
To Galilee He goes before you."

Christ indeed from death is risen,
Our new life obtaining.
Have mercy, victor King, ever reigning!
Amen.  Alleluia.

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The text from 1 Corinthians appears in the last verse.  "Christ indeed from death is risen" is a paraphrase of "But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead."

The second verse is from the text from Mark.

"The Lamb the sheep has ransomed" in the first verse seems to draw from 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!'"

"Lobt Gott, ihr Christen" (TLH #105)

Compared to what I'm familiar with, the TLH version of this tune is a bit different near the end.  It has some quarter notes where I'm used to eighth notes.

Because this is a shorter tune, I went through the verse three times instead of my usual two.

I'll be skipping #106 next week because musically it's exactly the same as #105.

"Jesus Loves Me"

Back in August, I realized something about the refrain in "Jesus Loves Me."  The tune, which is also titled "Jesus Loves Me," contains two cross inscriptions:

The text is:

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

"Jesus loves me" and "Bible tells me" are what are sung to these cross inscriptions, so there's a musical illustration of how "Jesus loves me" and what the "Bible tells me," namely the crucifixion.

LSB #459 "Christ Is Arisen"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Corinthians 15:17-20; Isaiah 26:19

1 Corinthians 15:17-20:  "17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.  18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.  19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

"20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."

Isaiah 26:19:  "Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.  You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!  For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead."

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1 Corinthians 15:17-20 seems to be the principal source.  "Christ has been raised from the dead" appears at the very beginning of the hymn:  "Christ is arisen / From the grave's dark prison," and "And if Christ has not been raised" appears in the second verse:  "Were Christ not arisen, / Then death were still our prison."

Along with connecting to the theme of resurrection, the verse from Isaiah appears in the line "So let our joy rise full and free" in the first verse and "Now let our joy rise full and free" in the third.

"Christum wir sollen loben schon" (TLH #104)

"Sing with All the Saints in Glory"

A little over a year ago, I wrote a post about some features in "Sing with All the Saints in Glory," but since then, I found a couple more.

Both are within the first two phrases (the tune is "Mississippi"):

In the first verse, the text here is "Sing with all the saints in glory, / Sing the resurrection song!"  "Resurrection" is sung to an ascending group of notes (F G A Bb), musically giving a sense of its meaning.

In the third verse, the text is "Life eternal! Heav'n rejoices: / Jesus lives who one was dead."  Here, "eternal" is sung with a melisma (F C F E), and since the word is drawn out, there's a sense of that duration.

LSB #458 "Christ Jesus Lay in Death's Strong Bands"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Acts 2:24, 1 Corinthians 15:54-57, 1 Corinthians 5:7b, 2 Timothy 1:10

Acts 2:24:  "God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it."

1 Corinthians 15:54-57:  "54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:  'Death is swallowed up in victory.'  55 'O death, where is your victory?  O death, where is your sting?'  56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

1 Corinthians 5:7b:  "For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed."

2 Timothy 1:10:  "...and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel"

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The text is public domain:

Christ Jesus lay in death's strong bands
For our offenses given;
But now at God's right hand He stands
And brings us life from heaven.
Therefore let us joyful be
And sing to God right thankfully
Loud songs of alleluia!
Alleluia!

No son of man could conquer death,
Such ruin sin had wrought us.
No innocence was found on earth,
And therefore death had brought us
Into bondage from of old
And ever grew more strong and bold
And held us as its captive.
Alleluia!

Christ Jesus, God's own Son, came down,
His people to deliver;
Destroying sin, He took the crown
From death's pale brow forever:
Stripped of pow'r, no more it reigns;
An empty form alone remains;
Its sting is lost forever.
Alleluia!

It was a strange and dreadful strife
When life and death contended;
The victory remained with life,
The reign of death was ended.
Holy Scripture plainly saith
That death is swallowed up by death,
Its sting is lost forever.
Alleluia!

Here our true Paschal Lamb we see,
Whom God so freely gave us;
He died on the accursèd tree -
So strong His love - to save us.
See, His blood now marks our door;
Faith points to it; death passes o'er,
And Satan cannot harm us.
Alleluia!

So let us keep the festival
To which the Lord invites us;
Christ is Himself the joy of all,
The sun that warms and lights us.
Now His grace to us imparts
Eternal sunshine to our hearts;
The night of sin is ended.
Alleluia!

Then let us feast this Easter day
On Christ, the bread of heaven;
The Word of grace has purged away
The old and evil leaven.
Christ alone our souls will feed;
He is our meat and drink indeed;
Faith lives upon no other!
Alleluia!

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The first verse seems to be taken from Acts 2:24, although as far as specific word choice, there's not much in common.

1 Corinthians 15:54-57 appears in the third and fourth verses, specifically "death is swallowed up by death, / Its sting is lost forever."

At the beginning of the fifth verse, Christ is called "our true Paschal Lamb," which is taken from 1 Corinthians 5:7b.

2 Timothy 1:10 seems to be referenced a few times in the hymn: Christ's "bring[ing] us life from heaven" in the first verse, "The victory remained with life, / The reign of death was ended" in the fourth, and the sustenance and provision detailed in the sixth and seventh verses (as specific examples of "life and immortality").

I also found a few uncited sources:

The lines "See, His blood now marks our door; / Faith points to it; death passes o'er" in the fifth verse refer to the Passover, described in Exodus 12.

Christ as "The sun that warms and lights us" and even "Eternal sunshine" in the sixth verse is an image from Revelation 21:23:  "And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb."

"Christ, the bread of heaven" in the seventh verse seems to come from "I am the bread of life... come down from heaven" in John 6, but there are probably other Biblical passages that could be cited for this too.

Finally, "The Word of grace has purged away / The old and evil leaven" seems to come from 1 Corinthians 5:7-8:  "Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.  For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.  8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."