"Stuttgart" (TLH #357)

"Almighty God, Your Word Is Cast"

On Worship Anew last week, one of the hymns was "Almighty God, Your Word Is Cast," and I noticed a small feature in it.  It's sung to the tune "St. Flavian."  Here's the third musical phrase:

In the second verse, the text here, referring to the seed mentioned earlier in the verse, is "But give it root in ev'ry heart."  The phrase "ev'ry heart" is sung to notes of all different pitches (F G A), giving a sense of breadth.

LSB #736 "Consider How the Birds Above"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 6:25-34; 10:29-31; 1 Timothy 6:8-10; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Matthew 6:25-34:  "25 'Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  26 Look at the birds of the air:  they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?  28 And why are you anxious about clothing?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more cloth you, O you of little faith?  31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?"  32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

"34 'Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.'"

Matthew 10:29-31:  "29 'Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?  And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.  30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.  31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.'"

1 Timothy 6:8-10:  "8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.  9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.  10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.  It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs."

2 Corinthians 12:7-10:  "7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.  8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.  9 But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."

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Matthew 6:26 is paraphrased in the hymn's first verse, and the passage from Matthew 10 seems to be incorporated, too, especially in the last line:  "Are we not worth much more than these?"

Matthew 6:28, 30 are paraphrased in the hymn's second verse; verses 25, 31-32, and 34 are the basis for the hymn's third verse; verses 25 and 32 appear in the hymn's fourth verse; and verse 33 is paraphrased in the sixth verse ("Seek first God's reign... All else will then be given you").

The passage from 1 Timothy 6 seems to be referred to in the line "Be on your guard against all greed" at the beginning of the fourth verse.

The passage from 2 Corinthians 12 appears in the fifth verse, specifically the lines "For He who faced for you the cross / Will give you strength to live each day."

"Gott sei Dank" (TLH #356)

"Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling"

One of the hymns on Worship Anew this week was "Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling," and I noticed a small feature in it.  It's sung to the tune "Galilean."  Here are the fifth and sixth musical phrases:

In the second verse, the text here is "Even as the sun is setting, / Some are sent into the fields."  The words "is setting" are sung to a descending group of notes (C B A), giving a sense of their meaning.

LSB #735 "Have No Fear, Little Flock"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Luke 12:32, Matthew 25:34, Psalm 103:3-5, Matthew 28:20b

Luke 12:32:  "'Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.'"

Matthew 25:34:  "'Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."'"

Psalm 103:3-5:  "3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's."

Matthew 28:20b:  "'And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'"

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Luke 12:32 is paraphrased in the first verse ("Have no fear, little flock, / For the Father has chosen / To give you the Kingdom"), and Matthew 25:34 is also incorporated.

The passage from Psalm 103, particularly "who heals all your diseases," appears in the lines "For He stoops down to heal you, / Uplift and restore you" in the third verse.

Matthew 28:20b is rendered as "For He stays close beside you" in the fourth verse.

"Dundee" (TLH #355)

Transposed from E flat major to F major

LSB #734 "I Trust, O Lord, Your Holy Name"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 31:1-5; 40:4; 64:10

Psalm 31:1-5:  "1 In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me!  2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily!  Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me!

"3 For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name's sake you lead me and guide me; 4 you take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge.  5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God."

Psalm 40:4:  "Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!"

Psalm 64:10:  "Let the righteous one rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him!  Let all the upright in heart exult!"

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The text is public domain:

1 I trust, O Lord, Your holy name;

O let me not be put to shame

Nor let me be confounded.

My faith, O Lord,

Be in Your Word

Forever firmly grounded.

2 Bow down Your gracious ear to me

And hear my cry, my prayer, my please;

Make haste for my protection,

For woes and fear

Surround me here.

Help me in my affliction.

3 You are my strength, my shield, my rock,

My fortress that withstands each shock,

My help, my life, my tower,

My battle sword,

Almighty Lord -

Who can resist Your power?

4 With You, O Lord, I cast my lot;

O faithful God, forsake me not,

To You my soul commending.

Lord, be my stay,

And lead the way

Now and when life is ending.

5 All honor, praise, and majesty

To Father, Son, and Spirit be,

Our God forever glorious,

In whose rich grace

We run our race

Till we depart victorious.

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The passage from Psalm 31 is the main source for the hymn.  Psalm 31:1 is paraphrased in the first two lines, and Psalm 40:4 is also incorporated.  "Incline your ear to me" from Psalm 31:2 is rendered as "Bow down Your gracious ear to me" at the beginning of the hymn's second verse.  The description of God as a refuge in Psalm 31:2-4 and Psalm 64:10 appears in the hymn's third verse, although other Biblical passages could be cited here, too, such as Psalm 28:7 ("The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.") and Proverbs 18:10 ("The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.").  "Into your hand I commit my spirit" from Psalm 31:5 appears in the fourth verse:  "With You, O Lord, I cast my lot... To You my soul commending."

The lines "In whose rich grace / We run our race / Till we depart victorious" at the end of the fifth verse seem to allude to part of Hebrews 12:1:  "let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."

"Rathbun" (TLH #354)

"Beach Spring"

An-other of my own arrangements of a hymn tune

Melodia 8' and Flute 4' on the lower manual; Open Diapason 8', Gedeckt 8', and Hautbois 8' on the upper manual; Sub Bass 16' + Gedeckt 8' for the pedals

Played with the pipe organ sound on my Hammond SKX, with the Hammond XPK-130G bass pedals

LSB #733 "O God, Our Help in Ages Past"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 90, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, Romans 8:18, Psalm 46:1-3

Psalm 90:  "1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.  2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

"3 You return man to dust and say, 'Return, O children of man!'  4 For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.  5 You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning:  6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.

"7 For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed.  8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.

"9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh.  10 The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.  11 Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you?  12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.  13 Return, O LORD!  How long?  Have pity on your servants!  14 Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.  15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil.  16 Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children.  17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!"

2 Corinthians 4:16-18:  "16 So we do not lose heart.  Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.  For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."

Romans 8:18:  "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."

Psalm 46:1-3:  "1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling."

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The text is public domain:

1 O God, our help in ages past,

Our hope for years to come,

Our shelter from the stormy blast,

And our eternal home:

2 Under the shadow of Thy throne

Thy saints have dwelt secure;

Sufficient is Thine arm alone,

And our defense is sure.

3 Before the hills in order stood

Or earth received her frame,

From everlasting Thou art God,

To endless years the same.

4 A thousand ages in Thy sight

Are like an evening gone,

Short as the watch that ends the night

Before the rising sun.

5 Time, like an ever-rolling stream,

Soon bears us all away;

We fly forgotten as a dream

Dies at the op'ning day.

6 O God, our help in ages past,

Our hope for years to come,

Be Thou our guard while troubles last

And our eternal home!

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Psalm 90 is the main source for the hymn.  Verse 1 appears in the hymn's first and last verses (specifically "our eternal home"); verse 2 in the third verse; verse 4 in the fourth verse; and verses 5 and 10 (and possibly also verse 6) in the fifth verse.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 and Romans 8:18 both seem to be the basis for the line "Our hope for years to come" in the first and sixth verses.

The passage from Psalm 46 appears in the first, second, and sixth verses.  Verse 1 appears in the line "O God, our help in ages past" in the first and sixth verses, and elements from verses 1 and 3 are combined in the line "Our shelter from the stormy blast" in the first verse.  The passage is referred to only generally in the second verse.

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Since the hymn's first and last verses begin with the same two lines about God's being our help, the hymn presents a structural image of God's encompassing protection:  "You hem me in, behind and before," as it's put in Psalm 139:5.

"Herre Jesu Krist" (TLH #353)

Transposed from A major to C major