"Erfurt" (TLH #232)

I transposed this from Ab major to G major, and because the Amen cadence in the tenor part fell below the standard range of guitar, I played that an octave higher.

"Forgive Us, Lord, for Shallow Thankfulness"

One of the hymns in church a couple months ago was "Forgive Us, Lord, for Shallow Thankfulness."  The third line of the third verse is "Forgive our thanks for walking pleasant ways," sung to this phrase from the tune "Sursum corda":

Roughly the second half of this phrase is diatonic, moving up and down the steps of the scale.  Musically, then, it illustrates the "walking" in the text.

LSB #609 "Jesus Sinners Doth Receive"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 15:2-4, Luke 5:31-32, Matthew 9:12-13, 1 Timothy 1:15-16, 1 Peter 1:18-19

Luke 15:2-4:  "2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, 'This man receives sinners and eats with them.'

"3 So he told them this parable:  4 'What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?'"

Luke 5:31-32:  "31 And Jesus answered them, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.'''

Matthew 9:12-13:  "12 But when he heard it, he said, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  13 Go and learn what this means, "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice."  For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.'"

1 Timothy 1:15-16:  "15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.  16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life."

1 Peter 1:18-19:  "18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot."

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The text is public domain:

Jesus sinners doth receive;

Oh, may all this saying ponder

Who in sin's delusions live

And from God and heaven wander!

Here is hope for all who grieve:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

We deserve but grief and shame,

Yet His words, rich grace revealing,

Pardon, peace, and life proclaim;

Here our ills have perfect healing.

Firmly in these words believe:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

Sheep that from the fold did stray

No true shepherd e'er forsaketh;

Weary souls that lost their way

Christ, the Shepherd, gently taketh

In His arms that they may live:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

I, a sinner, come to Thee

With a penitent confession.

Savior, mercy show to me;

Grant for all my sins remission.

Let these words my soul relieve:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

Oh, how blest it is to know:

Were as scarlet my transgression,

It shall be as white as snow

By Thy blood and bitter passion;

For these words I now believe:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

Now my conscience is at peace;

From the Law I stand acquitted.

Christ hath purchased my release

And my ev'ry sin remitted.

Naught remains my soul to grieve:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

Jesus sinners doth receive;

Also I have been forgiven;

And when I this earth must leave,

I shall find an open heaven.

Dying, still to Him I cleave:

Jesus sinners doth receive.

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Most of the cited passages are found in the repeated line "Jesus sinners doth receive."  The third verse draws a bit more from the passage from Luke 15 (the lost sheep), but it also brings in some of the Good Shepherd imagery from John 10.

The verses from 1 Peter appear in the fifth and sixth verses:  "Christ hath purchased my release" and "By Thy blood and bitter passion."  The fifth verse also draws from Isaiah 1:18:  "'Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD:  though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.'"

"St. Clement"

"O Light Whose Splendor" (LSB #891) is probably the more familiar text sung to this tune, but I used LSB #886 ("The Day Thou Gavest") because I liked the key better.  The arrangement is the same, but 891 is in F major, and 886 is in G major.  This tune isn't in The Lutheran Hymnal or Lutheran Worship.

"Nun bitten wir" (TLH #231)

"O Light Whose Splendor"

I wrote an extensive post about "O Light Whose Splendor" a number of years ago, but when it was a hymn in church a couple months ago, I found an-other small feature to note.  Here's the second musical phrase (from the tune "St. Clement"):

In the first verse, the text here is "With radiance brighter than the sun."  "Brighter" is sung with a melisma (F G A), and the extra syllable illustrates the comparative nature of this adjective.  It's as if there are more notes to mirror the greater degree of brightness.

LSB #608 "Lord, to You I Make Confession"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 51:3-11, 17; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20; Isaiah 59:12; Psalm 32:5

Psalm 51:3-11:  "3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.  4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgement.  5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.  6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

"7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.  8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.  9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.  10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  11 Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me."

Psalm 51:17:  "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise."

2 Corinthians 5:18-20:  "18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.  20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us.  We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God."

Isaiah 59:12:  "For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities"

Psalm 32:5:  "I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,' and you forgave the iniquity of my sin."

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The text is public domain:

Lord, to You I make confession:

I have sinned and gone astray,

I have multiplied transgression,

Chosen for myself my way.

Led by You to see my errors,

Lord, I tremble at Your terrors.

Yet, though conscience' voice appall me,

Father, I will seek Your face;

Though Your child I dare not call me,

Yet receive me in Your grace.

Do not for my sins forsake me;

Let Your wrath not overtake me.

For Your Son has suffered for me,

Giv'n Himself to rescue me,

Died to save me and restore me,

Reconciled and set me free.

Jesus' cross alone can vanquish

These dark fears and soothe this anguish.

Lord, on You I cast my burden - 

Sink it in the deepest sea!

Let me know Your gracious pardon,

Cleanse me from iniquity.

Let Your Spirit leave me never;

Make me only Yours forever.

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The passages from the Psalms and from Isaiah are the primary basis of the hymn.  Since they're fairly similar, it's difficult to tell where or if the hymn is drawing from one more than the others.  There are a couple phrases that can be traced, though.  The line "I have multiplied transgression" in the first verse comes from Isaiah 59:12 ("our transgressions are multiplied").  The lines "Cleanse me from iniquity. / Let Your Spirit leave me never" in the last verse come from Psalm 51:10-11.  (Where The Lutheran Service Book has "Cleanse me from iniquity," Lutheran Worship has "Wash me, make me white as snow," which is taken from Psalm 51:7.)

The other cited passage, 2 Corinthians 5:18-20, appears in the third verse.

The line "Though Your child I dare not call me" in the second verse seems to come from the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15.  Luke 15:21:  "'And the son said to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.  I am no longer worthy to be called your son."'"

"St. Bride"

This tune isn't in Lutheran Worship or The Lutheran Service Book, so this is just twice through the arrangement in The Lutheran Hymnal (#455).

"Der Tag, der ist" (TLH #230)

Because the text is only one verse, I went through the tune only once.  The tenor part goes lower than standard guitar tuning, so I left that part out.

"Thy Strong Word"

About two months ago, I watched the CUW chapel service from September 30, where the hymn was "Thy Strong Word."  I wrote about a few features in this hymn before, but I found a couple more.

Here are some phrases from "Ebenezer," the tune to which "Thy Strong Word" is sung.  These same phrases are repeated throughout almost all of the hymn:

The sixth verse is a doxology.  The third and fourth lines, sung to the phrases above, are "To Thee, Light of Light begotten, / Praise be sung eternally."  The seventh and eighth lines, also sung to the phrases above, are "Mortals, angels, now and ever / Praise the holy Trinity!"  "Eternally" and "ever" are both sung with melismas (Ab Bb Ab G F and Ab G F, respectively), musically giving a sense of duration.  "Sung" in the fourth line is also sung with a melisma (C Bb) for a similar effect (the verb is modified by "eternally").

LSB #607 "From Depths of Woe I Cry to Thee"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 130, Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 5:20-21, 1 Timothy 1:14

Psalm 130:  "1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD!  2 O Lord, hear my voice!  Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy!

"3 If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?  4 But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.

"5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; 6 my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.

"7 O Israel, hope in the LORD!  For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.  8 And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities."

Ephesians 2:8-9:  "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."

Romans 5:20-21:  "20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

1 Timothy 1:14:  "and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus."

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The text is public domain:

From depths of woe I cry to Thee,

In trial and tribulation;

Bend down Thy gracious ear to me,

Lord, hear my supplication.

If Thou rememb'rest ev'ry sin,

Who then could heaven ever win

Or stand before Thy presence?

Thy love and grace alone avail

To blot out my transgression;

The best and holiest deeds must fail

To break sin's dread oppression.

Before Thee none can boasting stand,

But all must fear Thy strict demand

And live alone by mercy.

Therefore my hope is in the Lord

And not in mine own merit;

It rests upon His faithful Word

To them of contrite spirit

That He is merciful and just;

This is my comfort and my trust.

His help I wait with patience.

And though it tarry through the night

And till the morning waken,

My heart shall never doubt His might

Nor count itself forsaken.

O Israel, trust in God your Lord.

Born of the Spirit and the Word,

Now wait for His appearing.

Through great our sins, yet greater still

Is God's abundant favor;

His hand of mercy never will

Abandon us, nor waver.

Our shepherd good and true is He,

Who will at last His Israel free

From all their sin and sorrow.

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Psalm 130 is the primary source for the hymn.  Roughly, the hymn's first verse is from verses 1-3; the second from verses 3-4; the third from verse 5; the fourth from verses 6-7; the fifth from verses 7-8.

Ephesians 2:8-9 appears in the second verse.

Romans 5:20-21 and 1 Timothy 1:14 both seem to appear in the lines "Through great our sins, yet greater still / Is God's abundant favor" in the last verse.

The lines "It rests upon His faithful Word / To them of contrite spirit / That He is merciful and just" in the third verse seem to come from 1 John 1:9:  "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

A number of passages could be cited for the line "Our shepherd good and true is He" in the last verse, but John 10:11 bears the closest resemblance:  "'I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.'"

"Wem in Leidenstagen" (TLH #229)

"By All Your Saints in Warfare"

A couple months ago, I watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from 21 September, the Feast Day of St. Matthew.  The hymn was "By All Your Saints in Warfare" with the verse for St. Matthew inserted.  In looking over the text, I found a couple Biblical sources I'd missed in my original post.

The third verse ends with the lines "Ascribing pow'r and glory / And praise to God alone."  This echoes the first two verses of Psalm 29:  "1 Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.  2 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness."

In the verse for St. Matthew, the lines "From all unrighteous mammon, / O raise our eyes anew / That we in our vocation / May rise and follow You" (particularly the last line) come from Matthew 9:9:  "As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, 'Follow me.'  And he rose and followed him."

LSB #606 "I Lay My Sins on Jesus"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 John 1:7, Matthew 11:29, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:14

1 John 1:7:  "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin."

Matthew 11:29:  "'Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.'"

Ephesians 1:7:  "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace"

Colossians 1:14:  "in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

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The text is public domain:

I lay my sins on Jesus,

The spotless Lamb of God;

He bears them all and frees us

From the accursed load.

I bring my guilt to Jesus

To wash my crimson stains

Clean in His blood most precious

Till not a spot remains.

I lay my wants on Jesus;

All fullness dwells in Him;

He heals all my diseases;

My soul He does redeem.

I lay my griefs on Jesus,

My burdens and my cares;

He from them all releases;

He all my sorrows shares.

I rest my soul on Jesus,

This weary soul of mine;

His right hand me embraces;

I on His breast recline.

I love the name of Jesus,

Immanuel, Christ, the Lord;

Like fragrance on the breezes

His name abroad is poured.

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1 John 1:7 appears in the first verse:  "I bring my guilt to Jesus / To wash my crimson stains / Clean in His blood most precious."  This verse also draws on John 1:29:  "The next day he [John the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, 'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!'"  The description "crimson" may also point to Isaiah 1:18:  "Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD:  though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool."

Ephesians 1:7 could be cited for both the second half of the first verse and part of the second verse.  There's a bit of overlap between it and Colossians 1:14 in the line:  "My soul He does redeem."

Matthew 11:29 is referred to at the beginning of the third verse:  "I rest my soul on Jesus, / This weary soul of mine."

Saint-Saëns: Christmas Oratorio, Op. 12: IV. Air et chœur

I've been going through John in the Latin Vulgate, and last week, I stumbled upon what I think is the source for the text in a movement of Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio, Op. 12.  In her conversation with Jesus after Lazarus' death, Martha says, "Utique Domine ego credidi quia tu es Christus Filius Dei qui in mundum venisti" (John 11:27).  In the ESV, this is rendered as:  "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world."

In the fourth movement of Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio, the text is "Domine ego credidi quia tu es Christus Filius Dei vivi qui in hunc mundum venisti."  Aside from "vivi" and "hunc," this matches the verse from John exactly.

Vivi is an adjective (from vivus, viva, vivum) that means "living," so this text seems to incorporate a bit of Matthew 16:16 too:  "Simon Peter replied, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'"

Hunc is a demonstrative adjective.  The Oratorio text is just a bit more specific than John; instead of simply "into the world," it's "into this world."

"Zeuch ein" (TLH #228)