"Macht hoch die Tür" (TLH #73c)

"Jerusalem, My Happy Home"

When I transcribed the text for "Jerusalem, My Happy Home" a couple years ago, I noticed a handful of significant melismas.  The hymn is sung to the tune "Land of Rest."  Here's the third musical phrase:

In the third verse, the text here is "There grow such sweet and pleasant flow'rs."  "Sweet" is sung with a melisma (A Bb), giving a sense of degree (for the modifying "such").  In the fourth verse, the text here is "There evermore the angels dwell."  Both "evermore" (D C A Bb) and "dwell" (D C) are sung with melismas, giving a sense of duration.

In fact, every "(for)evermore" in the fourth verse (one in each line) has this feature.  I won't include notation for all of them, though.

LSB #587 "I Know My Faith Is Founded"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  2 Timothy 1:12, John 17:8, Luke 17:5, 1 Peter 1:3-9

2 Timothy 1:12:  "which is why I suffer as I do.  But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me."

John 17:8:  "'For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.'"

Luke 17:5:  "The apostles said to the Lord, 'Increase our faith!'"

1 Peter 1:3-9:  "3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  8 Though you have not seen him, you love him.  Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

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The text is public domain:

I know my faith is founded

On Jesus Christ, my God and Lord;

And this my faith confessing,

Unmoved I stand on His sure Word.

Our reason cannot fathom

The truth of God profound;

Who trusts in human wisdom

Relies on shifting ground.

God's Word is all-sufficient,

It makes divinely sure;

And trusting in its wisdom,

My faith shall rest secure.

Increase my faith, dear Savior,

For Satan seeks by night and day

To rob me of this treasure

And take my hope of bliss away.

But, Lord, with You beside me,

I shall be undismayed;

And led by Your good Spirit,

I shall be unafraid.

Abide with me, O Savior,

A firmer faith bestow;

Then I shall bid defiance

To ev'ry evil foe.

In faith, Lord, let me serve You;

Though persecution, grief, and pain

Should seek to overwhelm me,

Let me a steadfast trust retain;

And then at my departure,

Lord, take me home to You,

Your riches to inherit

As all You said holds true.

In life and death, Lord, keep me

Until Your heav'n I gain,

Where I by Your great mercy

The end of faith attain.

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The verse from John 17 seems to appear in the first verse, although lines like "Unmoved I stand on His sure Word" and "Who trusts in human wisdom / Relies on shifting ground" bear more resemblance to Matthew 7:24-27:  "24 'Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.  26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.  27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.'"

Luke 17:5 appears twice in the second verse:  "Increase my faith, dear Savior" and "A firmer faith bestow."  (Incidentally, "night and day" is a merism.)

The last verse seems to combine 2 Timothy 1:12 and 1 Peter 1:3-9.

"Macht hoch die Tür" (TLH #73a)

This is the first of three tunes for TLH #73 (confusingly, all are titled "Macht hoch die Tür").  I'd skipt this originally because I didn't know how to accommodate the time signature (part of it is in 4/4, and part of it is in 3/4), but it actually wasn't too difficult.

"Rejoice, My Heart, Be Glad and Sing"

Last year, I transcribed the text of "Rejoice, My Heart, Be Glad and Sing" (sung to the tune "Ich singe dir") and noticed a small feature.  Here's the third musical phrase:

In the first verse, the text here is "For God, the source of ev'rything" (the next line is "Your portion shall remain").  Each syllable of "ev'rything" is sung to a different pitch (Eb D C), and this gives something of a sense of breadth and entirety.

LSB #586 "Preach You the Word"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 8:4-15, 1 Peter 1:24-25, 1 Timothy 4:15-16, 2 Timothy 2:3, 10

Luke 8:4-15:  "4 And when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable:  5 'A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it.  6 And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture.  7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it.  8 And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.'  As he said these things, he called out, 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.'

"9 And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, 10 he said, 'To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that "seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand."  11 Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.  13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy.  But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.  14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.  15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.'"

1 Peter 1:24-25:  "24 for 'All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass.  The grass withers, and the flower falls,  25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.'  And this word is the good news that was preached to you."

1 Timothy 4:15-16:  "15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.  16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching.  Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers."

2 Timothy 2:3:  "Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus."

2 Timothy 2:10:  "Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory."

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The Parable of the Sower from Luke 8 appears primarily in verses three through six, although it's also referred to in the line "Preach you the Word and plant it home" in the first verse.  In the sixth verse (where the Lord is described with the relative clause "Who gave the sower seed to sow"), there's also some overlap with Isaiah 55:10-11:  "10 'For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.'"

1 Peter 1:24-25 appears at the end of the first verse:  "The Word that shall endure and stand / When flow'rs and men shall be forgot."  Isaiah 40:6-8 could also be cited here. 

The other three passages are referred to more generally, but they seem to be in the second verse ("We know how hard, O Lord, the task / Your servant bade us undertake...") and in the second half of the third verse ("Intent alone that all may have / The wholesome loaves that all men need").

"Aus meines Herzens Grunde" (TLH #69)

"The Day Is Surely Drawing Near"

When "The Day Is Surely Drawing Near" was one of the hymns in a Worship Anew service last year, I noticed a particular feature in the structure of the verses, specifically as it applies to the second verse:

The final trumpet then shall sound

And all the earth be shaken,

And all who rest beneath the ground

Shall from their sleep awaken.

But all who live will in that hour,

By God's almighty, boundless pow'r,

Be changed at His commanding.

The rhyme scheme here is ABABCCD.  Each of the first six lines has a complement that rhymes with it, but the last line doesn't.  Significantly, this break in the pattern coincides with the line in the verse that describes being "changed."

LSB #585 "Lord Jesus Christ, with Us Abide"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 24:29, John 8:31-32, Colossians 2:8, 1 John 2:28

Luke 24:29:  "but they urged him strongly, saying, 'Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.'  So he went in to stay with them."

John 8:31-32:  "31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, 'If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.'"

Colossians 2:8:  "See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ."

1 John 2:28:  "And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming."

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Luke 24:29 appears in both the first verse ("Lord Jesus Christ, with us abide") and the last verse ("Stay with us, Lord, and keep us true").

John 8:31-32 and 1 John 2:28 are difficult to find.  They could be cited along with Luke 24:29 (although "'stay with us'" and "'abide in my word'" seem to be looking from opposite directions), or they might appear in the line "Great us, dear Lord, true steadfastness" in the second verse.

Colossians 2:8 is in the second half of the second verse ("That we keep pure till life is spent / Your holy Word and Sacrament") and the entirety of the fifth.

"Speak tongues of fire" in the third verse comes from Acts 2, specifically verse 3:  "And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them [the apostles] and rested on each one of them."

"Old Hundredth" (TLH #52)

"Who Trusts in God a Strong Abode"

A little over a year ago, I transcribed "Who Trusts in God a Strong Abode" and noticed a small feature to note, specifically regarding this musical phrase from the tune "Was mein Gott will" (Rhythmic):

In the second verse, the text here is "And guide our steps forever."  The melody here is a conjunct phrase (moving stepwise up and down the scale), and this gives a musical sense of the "steps" mentioned in the text.

LSB #584 "Faith and Truth and Life Bestowing"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 13:3-23, Colossians 1:3-6, 2 Corinthians 9:10, Luke 4:16-22

Matthew 13:3-23:  "3 And he told them many things in parables, saying:  'A sower went out to sow.  4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.  5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched.  And since they had no root, they withered away.  7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.  8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  9 He who has ears, let him hear.'

"10 Then the disciples came and said to him, 'Why do you speak to them in parables?'  11 And he answered them, 'To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.  12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.  13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.  14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

'"You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.  15 For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them."  16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.  17 For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

"18 'Hear then the parable of the sower:  19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.  This is what was sown along the path.  20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.  22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.  23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it.  He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.'"

Colossians 1:3-6:  "3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 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, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing - as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,"

2 Corinthians 9:10:  "He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness."

Luke 4:16-22:  "16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up.  And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read.  17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him.  He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,  18 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.'  20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.  21 And he began to say to them, 'Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.'  22 And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.  And they said, 'Is not this Joseph's son?'"

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The text from Matthew 13 provides the imagery for the hymn, and this text itself is present at the end of the first verse:  "Let not hearts, Your Word receiving, / Like a barren field be found, / Choked with thorns and unbelieving, / Shallow earth or stony ground."  "Give us ears to hear Your Word" at the end of the second verse comes from verse 9.

Colossians 1:3-6 and 2 Corinthians 9:10 both seem to be present in the second verse.  The first verse deals with sowing the seed, and the second verse - like these passages - deals with growing and bearing fruit.

The passage from Luke 4 doesn't appear in the hymn in any obvious way, but it may be the source for "Open now the Scriptures, Lord" in the first verse.

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The title phrase ("Faith and truth and life bestowing") exhibits polysyndeton (the repeated "and"), and this gives a sense of abundance.  Although one word is different, the phrase "faith and truth and life" also recalls John 14:6:  "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.'"

"Wunderbarer König" (TLH #42)

TLH #41 and TLH #42 are both sung to the tune "Wunderbarer König."  Because I didn't want to do the same tune two weeks in a row, I had skipt it.  By this point, I'm pretty well committed to recording every tune in The Lutheran Hymnal though, so I went back to do it.  I used a slower tempo to make it different from my earlier recording.  (I didn't realize until listening to my old recording how much slower this one is.)