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

Wednesday, May 12, 2021

LSB #571 "God Loved the World So That He Gave"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  John 3:16, Titus 3:4-7, 2 Timothy 1:9, Matthew 9:2

John 3:16:  "'For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.'"

Titus 3:4-7:  "4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life."

2 Timothy 1:9:  "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"

Matthew 9:2:  "And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed.  And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.'"

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The text is public domain:
God loved the world so that He gave
His only Son the lost to save,
That all who would in Him believe
Should everlasting life receive.
Christ Jesus is the ground of faith,
Who was made flesh and suffered death;
All then who trust in Him alone
Are built on this chief cornerstone.
God would not have the sinner die;
His Son with saving grace is nigh;
His Spirit in the Word declares
How we in Christ are heaven's heirs.
Be of good cheer, for God's own Son
Forgives all sins which you have done;
And, justified by Jesus' blood,
Your Baptism grants the highest good.
If you are sick, if death is near,
This truth your troubled heart can cheer;
Christ Jesus saves your soul from death;
That is the firmest ground of faith.
Glory to God the Father, Son,
And Holy Spirit, Three in One!
To You, O blessèd Trinity,
Be praise now and eternally!
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The first verse of the hymn paraphrases John 3:16.  Part of the passage from Titus bears some similarity to this too, although it appears more clearly in the third verse ("His Spirit in the Word declares / How we in Christ are heaven's heirs.").

"Take heart" from Matthew 9:2 is referred to in both the fourth and fifth verses, specifically in the lines "Be of good cheer, for God's own Son / Forgives all sins which you have done" and "This truth your troubled heart can cheer."

2 Timothy 1:9 seems to appear at the beginning of the third verse:  "God would not have the sinner die; / His Son with saving grace is nigh."  For "God would not have the sinner die," I would also cite Ezekiel 18:23, 32; 33:11.

The image of Christ as the cornerstone in the second verse comes from Ephesians 2:19-21:  "19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord."