Unless stated otherwise, my source for hymn texts and tunes is The Lutheran Service Book.

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

LSB #516 "Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 25:1-13, Isaiah 62:5-12, Revelation 19:6-9, Revelation 7:9-17

Matthew 25:1-13:  "1 'Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.  2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.  3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.  5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.  6 But at midnight there was a cry, "Here is the bridegroom!  Come out to meet him."  7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.  8 And the foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out."  9 But the wise answered, saying, "Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves."  10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.  11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, "Lord, lord, open to us."  12 But he answered, "Truly, I say to you, I do not know you."  13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.'"

Isaiah 62:5-12:  "5 For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.

"6 On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent.  You who put the LORD in remembrance, take no rest, 7 and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth.  8 The LORD has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm:  'I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; 9 but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary.'

"10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway; clear it of stones; lift up a signal over the peoples.  11 Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth:  Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.'  12 And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemer of the LORD; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken."

Revelation 19:6-9:  "6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, 'Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.  7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure' - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

"9 And the angel said to me, 'Write this:  Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'  And he said to me, 'These are the true words of God.'"

Revelation 7:9-17:  "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.'

"13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, 'Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?'  14 I said to him, 'Sir, you know.'  And he said to me, 'These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  15 'Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.  16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'"


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The text from Matthew appears in the second half of the first verse.  In a way, it's surrounded by the text from Isaiah; the first few lines of the first verse describe the watchmen from Isaiah 62:6, who are later mentioned at the beginning of the second verse.  The text from Revelation 19 appears at the end of the second verse, which describes the arrival at "the marriage supper of the Lamb."

The text from Revelation 7 appears in the third verse, specifically in the lines "Now let all the heav'ns adore Thee, / Let saints and angels sing before Thee / With harp and cymbals' clearest tone... Where, joining with the choir immortal, / We gather round Thy radiant throne."

The line "Of one pearl each shining portal" in the third verse comes from Revelation 21:21:  "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass."