"Jesus Shall Reign"

I was flipping through my hymnal recently and noticed something in "Jesus Shall Reign" that I probably should have mentioned more specifically when I wrote about the hymn a couple years ago.

I noted the musical span (particularly in the second measure) of this phrase from "Duke Street":

and that it connects with the breadth in the text there in the first verse:  "His kingdom stretch from shore to shore."  I didn't mention, however, that "stretch" is sung with a melisma (D F#), which also gives a sense of the expanse.

While reading over the text in order to write this post, I also realized that "from shore to shore" is a merism.

LSB #480 "He's Risen, He's Risen"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Corinthians 15:54-57, Romans 5:9-11, Revelation 5:12-13

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."

Romans 5:9-11:  "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."

Revelation 5:12-13:  "12 saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!'  13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, 'To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!'"

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The text from 1 Corinthians appears at the beginning of the fourth verse:  "O, where is your sting, death?"  Later in the fourth verse, the text from Romans appears:  "For all our transgressions His blood does atone / Redeemed and forgiven, we now are His own."

The text from Revelation is in the last verse ("Laud, honor, and praise to the Lamb that was slain"), but it might also be the source for the last two lines of the first verse:  "Break forth, hosts of heaven, in jubilant song / And earth, sea, and mountain their praises prolong."

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The line "Christ rose, and now open is fair Eden's door" in the fourth verse seems to refer to Genesis 3:24:  "He [God] drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life."

Messiah: No. 10 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth

The text is from Isaiah 60:2:  "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."

An-other rising "arise"

"Ich sterbe täglich" (TLH #120)

"The Lamb"

Last year, I noticed a few small connections between the text and tune of "The Lamb."  They all deal with this musical phrase (from the tune "Winter"):

The first and third lines in the hymn are both sung to this phrase.

The third line of the fifth verse is "His song prolong."  Both "song" and "prolong" are sung with melismas (F E and E D C, respectively), musically giving a sense of this lengthening.

The first line of the fourth verse is "He sighs, He dies."  Here, "sighs" is sung with a melisma (F E), musically giving something of an impression of this action.

LSB #479 "Christ Is Risen, Christ Is Living"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Corinthians 15:12-23, 55-57; John 14:19; Romans 6:3-5

1 Corinthians 15:12-23:  "12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?  13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.  14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.  15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.  16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised.  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.  21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.  22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.  23 But each in his own order:  Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ."

1 Corinthians 15:55-57:  "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."

John 14:19:  "'Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me.  Because I live, you also will live.'"

Romans 6:3-5:  "3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

"5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his."

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1 Corinthians 15:55-57 appears in the lines "Death has lost its sting and terror" at the end of the second verse and "Death has lost its old dominion" at the beginning of the third.  1 Corinthians 15:12-23 appears in the lines "If the Lord had never risen, / We'd have nothing to believe" and "As we share the death of Adam, / So in Christ we live again" in the second verse and "Christ, the firstborn of the living, / Gives us life and leads us out" in the third.

John 14:19 also appears in the second verse:  "But His promise can be trusted: / 'You will live, because I live.'"

I can't find a clear instance of Romans 6 in the hymn text.  It could just be included as an-other citation for the lines "But His promise can be trusted: / 'You will live, because I live.' / As we share the death of Adam, / So in Christ we live again."  It might be that "Let us thank our God, who causes / Hope to spring up from the ground" in the third verse has some connection with "we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his."

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In the first verse, there are the lines "Do not look among the dead for / One who lives forevermore," which seems to be taken from Luke 24:5:  "And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, 'Why do you seek the living among the dead?'"

Messiah: No. 9 O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion

The text is from Isaiah 40:9:  "Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, 'Behold your God!'" and from Isaiah 60:1:  "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you."

The "lift[ing] up" mentioned in this section is emphasized by a rising melody.

Similarly, the "arise"s have an upward trend.

"Mendon" (TLH #119)

"Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good"

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about something I noticed in "Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good" last year.  While looking over the hymn again since then, I found something else.

Every verse ends with the line "To God all praise and glory!" sung to this phrase from the tune "Lobt Gott den Herren, ihr":

Both "praise" and "glory" are sung with melismas (Bb A and F E F, respectively), musically giving a sense of the entirety of "all."

LSB #478 "The Day of Resurrection"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Exodus 12:22, 26-27; Psalm 105:43; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; Revelation 7:9-12

Exodus 12:22:  "'Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin.  None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.'"

Exodus 12:26-27:  "26 'And when your children say to you, "What do you mean by this service?" 27 you shall say, "It is the sacrifice of the LORD's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared out houses."'  And the people bowed their heads and worshiped."

Psalm 105:43:  "So he brought his people out with joy, his chosen ones with singing."

1 Corinthians 5:7-8:  "7 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."

Revelation 7:9-12:  "9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'  11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, 'Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.'"

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The text is public domain:

The day of resurrection!
Earth, tell it out abroad,
The passover of gladness,
The passover of God.
From death to life eternal,
From sin's dominion free,
Our Christ has brought us over
With hymns of victory.

Let hearts be purged of evil
That we may see aright
The Lord in rays eternal
Of resurrection light
And, list'ning to His accents,
May hear, so calm and plain,
His own "All hail!" and, hearing,
May raise the victor strain.

Now let the heav'ns be joyful,
Let earth its song begin,
Let all the world keep triumph
And all that is therein.
Let all things, seen and unseen,
Their notes of gladness blend;
For Christ the Lord has risen,
Our joy that has no end!

All praise to God the Father,
All praise to God the Son,
All praise to God the Spirit,
Eternal Three in One!
Let all the ransomed number
Fall down before the throne
And honor, pow'r, and glory
Ascribe to God alone!

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The first three Biblical citations all seem to appear in the first verse.  The Exodus verses provide background on the Passover, and "Our Christ has brought us over / With hymns of victory" has the same structure and idea as Psalm 105:43.

"Let hearts be purged of evil" at the beginning of the second verse seems to come from "Cleans[ing] out the old leaven" from 1 Corinthians 5:7.

Revelation 7:9-12 appears in the last two verses, specifically:  9-10 in the third verse and 11-12 in the fourth.

Messiah: No. 8 Behold, a virgin shall conceive

The text is from Matthew 1:23:  "'Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us)."  This quotes from Isaiah 7:14:  "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

"Glorification" (TLH #118)

"Oh, That I Had a Thousand Voices"

Last year, I noticed a small thing in "Oh, That I Had a Thousand Voices."  Roughly the second half of the first verse is "My heart, which in the Lord rejoices, / Would then proclaim in grateful songs / To all, wherever I might be, / What great things God has done for me."  The line "To all, wherever I might be" is sung to this phrase from the tune "O dass ich tausend Zungen hätte (König)":

The three syllables of "wherever" are each sung to a different pitch (G A C), and the word as a whole spans an interval of a fourth.  Both of these features give a musical sense of the breadth of "wherever."

LSB #477 "Alleluia, Alleluia! Hearts to Heaven"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Corinthians 15:54b-57, Isaiah 25:7-9, Revelation 21:4, 2 Timothy 1:10

1 Corinthians 15:54b-57:  "'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."

Isaiah 25:7-9:  "7 And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.  8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.  9 It will be said on that day, 'Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.  This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.'"

Revelation 21:4:  "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.'"

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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Stanzas one and three are public domain:

Alleluia, alleluia!
Hearts to heav'n and voices raise:
Sing to God a hymn of gladness,
Sing to God a hymn of praise;
He who on the cross a victim
For the world's salvation bled -
Jesus Christ, the King of Glory,
Now is risen from the dead.

Alleluia, alleluia!
Glory be to God on high:
Alleluia to the Savior
Who has gained the victory;
Alleluia to the Spirit,
Fount of love and sanctity!
Alleluia, alleluia
To the triune Majesty!

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All four of the cited verses mention Jesus' defeat of death, and this appears most clearly at the beginning of the second verse:  "Alleluia, Christ is risen! / Death at last has met defeat."

"Let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation" from Isaiah 25:9 seems to appear in the numerous "Alleluia"s and in the first half of the first verse:  "Hearts to heav'n and voices raise: / Sing to God a hymn of gladness, / Sing to God a hymn of praise."

Messiah: No. 7 And he shall purify the sons of Levi

The text is from Malachi 3:3:  "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD."

"Potsdam" (TLH #117)

Because this is a shorter tune, I went through it three times.

"Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good"

Last year, I noticed a small feature in "Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good," specifically in the line "With healing balm our souls He fills" in the first verse.  It's sung to this phrase from the tune "Lobt Gott den Herren, ihr":

"Fills" is sung to a dotted half note that takes up the entire measure.  Musically, then, there's a representation of that "fill[ing]."

In looking over the hymn again in order to write this post, I also discovered a merism in the second verse:  "By morning glow or evening shade / His eye is never sleeping."  A merism is a rhetorical device in which two ends of a range are named as a way to refer to the entirety, so here, while "morning" and "evening" are what are mentioned specifically, the idea includes all of the time between them too.