"Walther" (TLH #198)

"O God of God, O Light of Light"

Recently, I was looking at "O God of God, O Light of Light" and noticed a few instances where the tune ("O grosser Gott") ascends while the text mentions "rais[ing]" or "lift[ing]."

The fourth verse begins with the line "Then raise to Christ a mighty song," sung to this ascending phrase:

The third verse ends with the lines "Lift up your heads, your King awaits. / We lift them up.  Amen, amen." sung to these phrases:

There's an interval of a fourth (F to Bb) for "Lift up," and a gradual rise (F G A Bb) for "We lift them up."

There's an-other ascent for "Lift up your heads, O mighty gates!" in the third verse, but since it's a small interval ("Lift up" is sung to a second:  F to G), I'm not going to bother with including the notation.

LSB #556 "Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 98:1-3, 2 Timothy 1:9-10, Galatians 4:4-5, Romans 3:28

Psalm 98:1-3:  "1 Oh sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things!  His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.  2 The LORD has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.  3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel.  All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God."

2 Timothy 1:9-10:  "9 who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, 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,"

Galatians 4:4-5:  "4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons."

Romans 3:28:  "For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law."

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The text is public domain:

Dear Christians, one and all, rejoice,

With exultation springing,

And with united heart and voice

And holy rapture singing,

Proclaim the wonders God has done,

How His right arm the vic'try won.

What price our ransom cost Him!

Fast bound in Satan's chains I lay;

Death brooded darkly o'er me.

Sin was my torment night and day;

In sin my mother bore me.

But daily deeper still I fell;

My life became a living hell,

So firmly sin possessed me.

My own good works all came to naught,

No grace or merit gaining;

Free will against God's judgement fought,

Dead to all good remaining.

My fears increased till sheer despair

Left only death to be my share;

The pangs of hell I suffered.

But God had seen my wretched state

Before the world's foundation,

And mindful of His mercies great,

He planned for my salvation.

He turned to me a father's heart;

He did not choose the easy part

But gave His dearest treasure.

God said to His belovèd Son:

"It's time to have compassion.

Then go, bright jewel of My crown,

And bring to all salvation.

From sin and sorrow set them free;

Slay bitter death for them that they

May live with You forever."

The Son obeyed His Father's will,

Was born of virgin mother;

And God's good pleasure to fulfill,

He came to be my brother.

His royal pow'r disguised He bore;

A servant's form, like mine, He wore

To lead the devil captive.

To me He said: "Stay close to Me,

I am your rock and castle.

Your ransom I Myself will be;

For you I strive and wrestle.

For I am yours, and you are Mine,

And where I am you may remain;

The foe shall not divide us.

"Though he will shed My precious blood,

Me of My life bereaving,

All this I suffer for your good;

Be steadfast and believing.

Life will from death the vict'ry win;

My innocence shall bear your sin,

And you are blest forever.

"Now to My Father I depart,

From earth to heav'n ascending,

And, heav'nly wisdom to impart,

The Holy Spirit sending;

In trouble He will comfort you

And teach you always to be true

And into truth shall guide you.

"What I on earth have done and taught

Guide all your life and teaching;

So shall the kingdom's work be wrought

And honored in your preaching.

But watch lest foes with base alloy

The heav'nly treasure should destroy;

This final word I leave you."

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The passage from Psalm 98 appears in the first verse.

The lines "My own good works all came to naught, / No grace or merit gaining" in the third verse seem to reference 2 Timothy 1:9 and Romans 3:28.  2 Timothy 1:9-10 appears more clearly, however, in the fourth verse:  "But God had seen my wretched state / Before the world's foundation, / And mindful of His mercies great, / He planned for my salvation."

The fifth and sixth verses come from Galatians 4:4-5, although "Slay bitter death for them that they / May live with You forever" seems to come from 2 Timothy 1:10 ("our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death").

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The line "In sin my mother bore me" in the second verse seems to come from Psalm 51:5:  "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me."

The line "A servant's form, like mine, He wore" in the sixth verse refers to Philippians 2:7:  "but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men."

The ninth verse, in which Jesus promises the Holy Spirit, seems to draw from John 14.

"Ach bleib bei uns" (TLH #197)

"When to Our World the Savior Came"

When I wrote about the Biblical sources for "When to Our World the Savior Came," I also found a small musical thing to note.  The hymn is sung to the tune "Canonbury" (an adaptation of the fourth of Robert Schumann's Nachtstücke, Op. 23).  Here's the last phrase:

In the fourth verse, the text here is "His healing hands stretched forth to save."  "Stretched" is sung with a melisma (B A), and this musical elongation gives a sense of the word's meaning.

LSB #555 "Salvation unto Us Has Come"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Romans 3:10-31, 5:1-11; Galatians 3:1-25; Ephesians 2:1-10

Romans 3:10-31:  "10 as it is written:  'None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God.  12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.'  13 'Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.'  'The venom of asps is under their lips.'  14 'Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.'  15 'Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.'  18 'There is no fear of God before their eyes.'

"19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.  20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

"21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it - 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.  For there is no distinction:  23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.  This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.  26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

"27 Then what becomes of our boasting?  It is excluded.  By what kind of law?  By a law of works?  No, but by a law of faith.  28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.  29 Or is God the God of Jews only?  Is he not the God of Gentiles also?  Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since God is one - who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.  31 Do we then overthrow the law by this faith?  By no means!  On the contrary, we uphold the law."

Romans 5:1-11:  "1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.  3 More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

"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.

Galatians 3:1-25:  "1 O foolish Galatians!  Who has bewitched you?  It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.  2 Let me ask you only this:  Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?  3 Are you so foolish?  Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?  4 Did you suffer so many things in vain - if indeed it was in vain?  5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith - 6 just as Abraham 'believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness'?

"7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the son of Abraham.  8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, 'In you shall all the nations be blessed.'  9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

"10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, 'Cursed by everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.'  11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for 'The righteous shall live by faith.'  12 But the law is not of faith, rather 'The one who does them shall live by them.'  13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us - for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree' - 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

"15 To give a human example, brothers:  even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified.  16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring.  It does not say, 'And to offsprings,' referring to many, but referring to one, 'And to your offspring,' who is Christ.  17 This is what I mean:  the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void.  18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.

"19 Why then the law?  It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary.  20 Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.

"21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God?  Certainly not!  For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law.  22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

"23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.  24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.  25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,"

Ephesians 2:1-10:  "1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.  4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  8 For by grace you have been saved through faith.  And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.  10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

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The text is public domain:

Salvation unto us has come

By God's free grace and favor;

Good works cannot avert our doom,

They help and save us never.

Faith looks to Jesus Christ along,

Who did for all the world atone;

He is our one Redeemer.

What God did in His Law demand

And none to Him could render

Caused wrath and woe on ev'ry hand

For man, the vile offender.

Our flesh has not those pure desires

The spirit of the Law requires,

And lost is our condition.

It was a false, misleading dream

That God His Law had given

That sinners could themselves redeem

And by their works gain heaven.

The Law is but a mirror bright

To bring the inbred sin to light

That lurks within our nature.

From sin our flesh could not abstain,

Sin held its sway unceasing;

The task was useless and in vain,

Our guilt was e'er increasing.

None can remove sin's poisoned dart

Or purify our guileful heart -

So deep is our corruption.

Yet as the Law must be fulfilled

Or we must die despairing,

Christ came and has God's anger stilled,

Our human nature sharing.

He has for us the Law obeyed

And thus the Father's vengeance stayed

Which over us impended.

Since Christ has full atonement made

And brought us to salvation,

Each Christian therefore may be glad

And build in this foundation.

Your grace alone, dear Lord, I plead,

Your death is now my life indeed,

For You have paid my ransom.

Let me not doubt, but truly see

Your Word cannot be broken;

Your call rings out, "Come unto Me!"

No falsehood have You spoken.

Baptized into Your precious name

My faith cannot be put to shame,

And I shall never perish.

The Law reveals the guilt of sin

And makes us conscience-stricken;

But then the Gospel enters in

The sinful soul to quicken.

Come to the cross, trust Christ, and live;

The Law no peace can ever give,

No comfort and no blessing.

Faith clings to Jesus' cross alone

And rests in Him unceasing;

And by its fruits true faith is known,

With love and hope increasing.

For faith alone can justify;

Works serve our neighbor and supply

The proof that faith is living.

All blessing, honor, thanks, and praise

To Father, Son, and Spirit,

The God who saved us by His grace;

All glory to His merit.

O Triune God in heav'n above,

You have revealed Your saving love;

Your blessèd name we hallow.

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This may be a disappointing and unhelpful post, but because many of the themes of the Biblical citations overlap, it's difficult to point out any part of the hymn that comes from one specific passage.  A combination of sources could be cited for every verse.

"Es ist genug" (TLH #196)

"From East to West"

About two weeks ago, KFUO tweeted the first two verses of "From East to West":

"Behold, the world's creator wears
The form and fashion of a slave;
Our very flesh our maker shares,
His fallen creatures all to save."

Hear Christ for you at https://t.co/CNJZkzVCPV! #Christmas pic.twitter.com/4Rf8upvY4G

— KFUO Radio (@KFUOradio) January 3, 2021

(The plain text is the second verse; the verse in the image is the first.)

At first, I noticed only that "From east to west" and "from shore to shore" are both merisms, but then I lookt at the tune and found a few more features.  Both are in the last phrase of the tune "Vom Himmel hoch":

The second verse ends with the line "His fallen creatures all to save."  "All" is sung with a melisma (F E), musically giving something of a sense of entirety.  The fifth verse is a doxology and ends with the line "And Holy Ghost eternally."  Here, "eternally" is sung with a melisma (G F E D C), musically giving a sense of duration.

LSB #554 "O Jesus, King Most Wonderful"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 19:38; Philippians 2:10-11; Psalms 22:28; 45:1-3; 146:10; 1 Peter 2:7

Luke 19:38:  "saying, 'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!'"

Philippians 2:10:11:  "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."

Psalm 22:28:  "For kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations."

Psalm 45:1-3:  "1 My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

"2 You are the most handsome of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.  3 Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one, in your splendor and majesty!"

Psalm 146:10:  "The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations.  Praise the LORD!"

1 Peter 2:7:  "So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, 'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,'"

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The text is public domain:

O Jesus, King most wonderful!
O Conqueror renowned!
O Source of peace ineffable,
In whom all joys are found:

When once You visit darkened hearts,
Then truth begins to shine,
Then earthly vanity departs,
Then kindles love divine.

O Jesus, light of all below,
The fount of life and fire,
Surpassing all the joys we know,
All that we can desire:

May ev'ry heart confess Your name,
Forever You adore,
And, seeking You, itself inflame
To seek You more and more!

Oh, may our tongues forever bless,
May we love You alone
And ever in our lives express
The image of Your own!

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Some of the citations (Luke 19:38 and the passages from Psalms 22 and 45) seem to be combined in the titles in the first verse.

"The honor... for you who believe" from 1 Peter 2:7 seems to appear in the second and third verses, which expand upon this.

The hymn's last two verses combine "confess[ing] that Jesus Christ is Lord" from Philippians 2 and "Prais[ing] the LORD!" from Psalm 146.

"Christ lag in Todesbanden" (TLH #195)

"All Praise to Thee, Eternal God"

"All Praise to Thee, Eternal God" (The Lutheran Hymnal #80) was one of the hymns in the Worship Anew service for 28 July 2019.  (In November of the previous year, I'd recorded the tune used for it:  "Gelobet seist du, Jesu.")  I noticed a small connection between the text and the tune, specifically in the third musical phrase:

In the third verse, the text here is "Forlorn and lowly is Thy birth."  The melody descends a whole octave, almost like a bow, and this gives a sense of that humility.

LSB #553 "O Christ, Our Hope, Our Hearts' Desire"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Colossians 1:5, 20, 23, 27; Hebrews 1:2; 1 Peter 2:24

Colossians 1:5:  "because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.  Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel"

Colossians 1:20:  "and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross."

Colossians 1:23:  "if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister."

Colossians 1:27:  "To them [the saints] God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."

Hebrews 1:2:  "but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world."

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:

O Christ, our hope, our hearts' desire,
Creation's mighty Lord,
Redeemer of the fallen world,
By holy love outpoured:

How vast Your mercy to accept
The burden of our sin
And bow Your head in cruel death
To make us clean within.

But now the bonds of death are burst,
The ransom has been paid;
You now ascend the Father's throne
In robes of light arrayed.

O let Your mighty love prevail
To purge us of our pride
That we may stand before Your throne
By mercy purified.

Christ Jesus, be our present joy,
Our future great reward;
Our only glory, may it be
To glory in the Lord!

All praise to You, ascended Lord;
All glory ever be
To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
Through all eternity!

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The hope that's mentioned in Colossians 1:5, 23, and 27 seems to appear in the lines "O Christ, our hope, our hearts' desire" in the first verse and "Our future great reward" in the fifth.  The other verse from Colossians (1:20) and 1 Peter 2:24 are the basis for the hymn's second verse and the first half of the third verse.

The verse from Hebrews 1 seems to appear in the line "Creation's mighty Lord" in the first verse.

"Wer nur den lieben Gott" (TLH #194)

"Grosser Gott"

Six months ago, I got a pedal clavier (a Hammond XPK-130G) to use with my keyboard (a Nord Electro 5).  This means I could finally start going through the organ book I got for Christmas 2019, James Bastien's The Older Beginner Organ Course, Level 1.  In Unit 6, there's a piece called simply "Hymn Tune," and while the melody is a bit different, I recognized it as "Grosser Gott."  Bastien notes that it's "from 'Katholisches Gesangbuch,'" which is the same origin listed for "Grosser Gott" in The Lutheran Service Book (#940).

For my recording, I went through the piece more or less as it appears in Bastien's book (I repeated the first two phrases, although there's no indication to do this) and then with the melody I'm more familiar with.  I also added my own Amen cadence at the end.

"All My Heart Again Rejoices"

At the end of 2019 and into 2020, KFUO was tweeting stanzas from "All My Heart Again Rejoices."  I noticed a few merisms in the text:  "Far and near" in the first verse ("All my heart again rejoices / As I hear / Far and near / Sweetest angel voices") and both "One and all" and "Great and small" in the sixth ("Come, then, banish all your sadness! / One and all, / Great and small, / Come with songs of gladness").