"Now, My Tongue, the Mystery Telling"

When I wrote a post about the Biblical sources for "Now, My Tongue, the Mystery Telling" last year, I also noticed a few musical features to note.  The text is sung to the tune "Grafton."  Here are the last two phrases:

The second verse ends with the lines "Till He closed with wondrous ending / His most patient life of woe."  The words "most patient" are sung with melismas (Bb Ab and G Bb Eb Ab, respectively), giving a sense of this superlative degree.

The third verse ends with the lines "Then, more precious food supplying, / Gives Himself with His own hand."  Similar to the above, here "more" is sung with a melisma (Bb Ab), giving a sense of comparative degree.

LSB #684 "Come unto Me, Ye Weary"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 11:28, John 6:37, Isaiah 60:20, Isaiah 40:31

Matthew 11:28:  "'Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.'"

John 6:37:  "'All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.'"

Isaiah 60:20:  "Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended."

Isaiah 40:31:  "but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

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The text is public domain:

"Come unto Me, ye weary,

And I will give you rest."

O blessed voice of Jesus,

Which comes to hearts oppressed!

It tells of benediction,

Of pardon, grace, and peace,

Of joy that hath no ending,

Of love that cannot cease.

"Come unto Me, ye wand'rers,

And I will give you light."

O loving voice of Jesus,

Which comes to cheer the night!

Our hearts were filled with sadness,

And we had lost our way;

But Thou hast brought us gladness

And songs at break of day.

"Come unto Me, ye fainting,

And I will give you life."

O cheering voice of Jesus,

Which comes to aid our strife!

The foe is stern and eager,

The fight is fierce and long;

But Thou hast made us mighty

And stronger than the strong.

"And whosoever cometh,

I will not cast him out."

O patient love of Jesus,

Which drives away our doubt,

Which, though we be unworthy

Of love so great and free,

Invites us very sinners

To come, dear Lord, to Thee!

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Each verse of the hymn is drawn from one of the cited passages.  The first verse comes from Matthew 11:28; the second verse comes from Isaiah 60:20; the third verse comes from Isaiah 40:31; and the fourth verse comes from John 6:32.

The second half of the second verse (particularly the lines "But Thou hast brought us gladness / And songs at break of day") also seems to be drawn from part of Psalm 30:5:  "Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning."

"Onward, Christian Soldiers"

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Played with the "mellow" drawbar organ sound on my Hammond SKX, with the Hammond XPK-130G pedals

"St. Crispin" (TLH #304)

Transposed from E major to F major

"All Glory Be to God Alone"

A couple years ago, I noticed a small feature in "All Glory Be to God Alone," sung to the tune "All' Ehr' und Lob."  Here's the last musical phrase:

The third verse ends with the line "To all the world Your grace extend."  "Grace" is sung with a melisma (G B), so there's a musical sense of its being "extend[ed]."  To some degree, there's a sense of this "extend[ing]" even in just the note values, since they increase from quarter notes to a half note and then to a whole note.

While looking over the hymn again, I noticed a cross inscription in the third musical phrase:

This corresponds to the text in the third verse, which is "You take the whole world's sin away."  Christ's crucifixion was the means by which this was effected.

LSB #683 "Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Ephesians 3:16-21, Galatians 2:20, 1 John 3:24, John 15:9

Ephesians 3:16-21:  "16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith - that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

"20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever.  Amen."

Galatians 2:20:  "I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

1 John 3:24:  "Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him.  And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us."

John 15:9:  "'As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.  Abide in my love.'"

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The text is public domain:

Jesus, Thy boundless love to me

No thought can reach, no tongue declare;

Unite my thankful heart to Thee,

And reign without a rival there!

Thine wholly, Thine alone I am;

Be Thou alone my constant flame.

O grant that nothing in my soul

May dwell, but Thy pure love alone;

Oh, may Thy love possess me whole,

My joy, my treasure, and my crown!

All coldness from my heart remove;

My ev'ry act, word, thought be love.

This love unwearied I pursue

And dauntlessly to Thee aspire.

Oh, may Thy love my hope renew,

Burn in my soul like heav'nly fire!

And day and night, be all my care

To guard this sacred treasure there.

In suff'ring by Thy love my peace,

In weakness by Thy love my pow'r;

And when the storms of life shall cease,

O Jesus, in that final hour,

Be Thou my rod and staff and guide,

And draw me safely to Thy side!

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The text from Ephesians 3 appears at the beginning of the first verse:  "Jesus, Thy boundless love to me / No thought can reach, no tongue declare; / Unite my thankful heart to Thee, / And reign without a rival there!"

Along with Galatians 2:20 and 1 John 3:24, the text from Ephesians 3 (specifically verse 17) also appears at the beginning of the second verse:  "O[h] grant that nothing in my soul / May dwell, but Thy pure love alone."

John 15:9 seems to appear at the end of the second verse and the beginning of the third:  "My ev'ry act, word, thought be love. // This love unwearied I pursue / And dauntlessly to Thee aspire."

The line "Be Thou my rod and staff and guide" in the fourth verse alludes to the end of Psalm 23:4:  "your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

"Day and night" in the third verse is a temporal merism.

"Blest Be the Tie That Binds"

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Played with the "mellow" drawbar organ sound on my Hammond SKX, with the Hammond XPK-130G pedals

"Uxbridge" (TLH #303)

Transposed from Eb major to F major

"Take My Life and Let It Be"

I haven't posted my recording of it yet, but in James Bastien's Great Hymns Arranged for Organ, the text "Take My Life and Let It Be" is paired with the tune "Hendon" (this is the tune it appears with in Lutheran Service Book #784).  When I was practicing it last month, I noticed a few features in the last two phrases:

In the first verse, the text here is "Let them flow in ceaseless praise, / Let them flow in ceaseless praise."  (The "them" are "my moments and my days" from the previous line.)  In the first phrase, the words "ceaseless praise" are sung with melismas (C Bb Bb A | A G), and since the words are stretched out, there's a sense of this duration.

In the third verse, the text here, referring to "my lips" in the previous line, is "Filled with messages from Thee, / Filled with messages from Thee."  In both phrases, "messages" is sung with a melisma (D C C Bb and A Bb G F, respectively), and since there's an extra syllable, there's a sense of the abundance of being "filled."

LSB #682 "God of the Prophets, Bless the Prophets' Sons"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  2 Kings 2:1-15, John 20:21-23, John 17:18, 1 Timothy 4:13-16

2 King 2:1-15:  "1 Now when the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.  2 And Elijah said to Elisha, 'Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel.'  But Elisha said, 'As the LORD lives, and as you yourself life, I will not leave you.'  So they went down to Bethel.  3 And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, 'Do you know that today the LORD will take away your master from over you?'  And he said, 'Yes, I know it; keep quiet.'

"4 Elijah said to him, 'Elisha, please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to Jericho.'  But he said, 'As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.'  So they came to Jericho.  5 The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha and said to him, 'Do you know that today the LORD will take away your master from over you?'  And he answered, 'Yes, I know it; keep quiet.'

"6 Then Elijah said to him, 'Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan.'  But he said, 'As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.'  So the two of them went on.  7 Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan.  8 Then Elijah took his cloak and rolled it up and struck the water, and they water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground.

"9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, 'Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.'  And Elisha said, 'Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.'  10 And he said, 'You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.'  11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them.  And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.  12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, 'My father, my father!  The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!'  And he saw him no more.

"Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.  13 And he took up the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.  14 Then he took the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water, saying, 'Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?'  And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.

"15 Now when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw him opposite them, they said, 'The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.'  And they came to meet him and bowed to the ground before him."

John 20:21-23:  "21 Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you.  As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.'  22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.  23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.'"

John 17:18:  "'As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.'"

1 Timothy 4:13-16:  "13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.  14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you.  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."

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The text is public domain:

God of the prophets, bless the prophets' sons;

Elijah's mantle o'er Elisha cast.

Each age its solemn task may claim but once;

Make each one nobler, stronger than the last.

Anoint them prophets, men who are intent

To be Your witnesses in word and deed,

Their hearts aflame, their lips made eloquent,

Their eyes awake to ev'ry human need.

Anoint them priests, strong intercessors they,

For pardon and for love and hope and peace,

That, through their pleading, guilty sinners may

Find Jesus' mercy and from sin release.

Anoint them kings, yes, kingly kings, O Lord.

Anoint them with the Spirit of Your Son.

Theirs not a jeweled crown, a blood-stained sword;

Theirs, by sweet love, for Christ a kingdom won.

Make them apostles, heralds of Your cross;

Forth let them go to tell the world of grace.

Inspired by You, may they count all but loss

And stand at last with joy before Your face.

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The long passage from 2 Kings 2 is cited apparently just to give context for the line "Elijah's mantle o'er Elisha cast" in the first verse.  The two passages from John (chapters 17 and 20) both appear in the line "Forth let them go to tell the world of grace" in the last verse.  The passage from John 20 also seems to be referred to in the third verse, which is about forgiveness.

The passage from 1 Timothy 4 seems to be the basis for the hymn text, although no specific words or phrases from it appear in the hymn text.

The line "Inspired by You, may they count all but loss" in the last verse comes from Philippians 3:8:  "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.  For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ."

"In the Cross of Christ I Glory"

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Played with the "mellow" drawbar organ sound on my Hammond SKX, with the Hammond XPK-130G pedals

"Franconia" (TLH #302)

"Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me"

Last month, I watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from 2 May.  The hymn was "Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me," and I noticed a few features to write about.  The hymn is sung to the tune "Warum sollt ich mich denn grämen."  Here's the first musical phrase:

The second verse begins with the line "When life's troubles rise to meet me" (the sense is completed later in the verse with the line "They will not defeat me").  The phrase generally ascends, giving a musical sense of that (metaphorical) "ris[ing]."

The second verse ends with the lines "He who knows / All my woes / Knows how best to end them," sung to these musical phrases:

The words "All my woes" are sung to notes of different pitches (Bb C A), and this variety provides something of a sense of the entirety of that "all."

The fourth verse ends with the lines "I am His because He gave me / His own blood / For my good, / By His death to save me."  As I indicated above, the last musical phrase contains a cross inscription, which corresponds to "By His death."  This musical figure points to the crucifixion and gives a bit more detail about Christ's death.

LSB #681 "Send, O Lord, Your Holy Spirit"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  John 20:21-23; 2 Timothy 1:13-14; 3:14-17; John 21:15-17

John 20:21-23:  "21 Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you.  As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.'  22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.  23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.'"

2 Timothy 1:13-14:  "13 Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  14 By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you."

2 Timothy 3:14-17:  "14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."

John 21:15-17:  "15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?'  He said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.'  He said to him, 'Feed my lambs.'  16 He said to him a second time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?'  He said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.'  He said to him, 'Tend my sheep.'  17 He said to him the third time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?'  Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, 'Do you love me?' and he said to him, 'Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.'  Jesus said to him, 'Feed my sheep.'"

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The text is public domain:

Send, O Lord, Your Holy Spirit

On Your servant now, we pray;

Let him prove a faithful shepherd

That no lamb be led astray.

Your pure teaching to proclaim,

To extol your holy name,

And to feed Your lambs, dear Savior,

Make his aim and sole endeavor.

You, O Lord, Yourself have called him

For Your precious lambs to care;

But to prosper in his calling,

He the Spirit's gifts must share.

Give him wisdom from above,

Fill his heart with holy love;

In his weakness, Lord, be near him,

In his prayers, Good Shepherd, hear him.

Help, Lord Jesus, help him nourish

All our children with Your Word

That in fervent love they serve You

Till in heav'n their song is heard.

Boundless blessings, Lord, bestow

On his faithful toil below

Till by grace to him be given

His reward, the crown of heaven.

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The cited texts occur mostly in the first verse.  The passage from John 20 appears in the first two lines:  "Send, O Lord, Your Holy Spirit / On Your servant now, we pray."  The two passages from 1 Timothy seem to appear in the next two lines, although where those passages have "follow" and "continue," the hymn looks at this from the opposite direction with "Let him prove a faithful shepherd / That no lamb be led astray."  Perhaps coincidentally, this same type of language is used in Isaiah 53:6 ("All we like sheep have gone astray...").

The passage from John 21 appears at the end of the first verse ("And to feed Your lambs, dear Savior, / Make his aim and sole endeavor") and at the beginning of the second verse ("You, O Lord, Yourself have called him / For Your precious lambs to care").

The name "Good Shepherd" at the end of the second verse comes from John 10:11, and "the crown of heaven" at the end of the third verse seems to refer to part of Revelation 2:10 ("'Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.'").

"Come, Christians, Join to Sing"

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Played with the "mellow" drawbar organ sound on my Hammond SKX, with the Hammond XPK-130G pedals

"Es ist das Heil" (TLH #301)

"My Soul Now Magnifies the Lord"

A couple years ago, I noticed a small feature in "My Soul Now Magnifies the Lord" (LSB #934), sung to the tune "Wo Gott zum Haus."  Here's the last musical phrase:

The text here in the fourth verse is "His gracious promise always stands."  "Always" is sung with a melisma (Ab G F), and since it's drawn out, there's a sense of duration.  While looking at the hymn again, I also noticed that "stands" is sung to a whole note, and this long note value mirrors the sense of that "always," too.