LSB #838 "The Saints in Christ Are One in Every Place"

Biblical citation in the hymnal:  Philippians 1:1-21

Philippians 1:1-21:  "1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

"To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:

"2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

"3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.  6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.  7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.  8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.  9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

"12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.  14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

"15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.  16 The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.  17 The former proclaim Christ out of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment.  18 What then?  Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

"Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.  21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

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There's only one passage cited, so obviously, this is the main source for the hymn text.  More specifically, Philippians 1:6 is referenced in the line "The work that You began, You will complete" in the fourth verse, and Philippians 1:21 appears at the beginning of the third verse:  "To live is Christ, for us, to die is gain."

Incidentally, "rich and poor" in the line "Our joy to preach good news to rich and poor" in the third verse is a merism.

"Christ the Lord Is Risen Today"

I recently watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from 17 April.  The hymn was "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today," and I noticed some significance in the rhyme scheme.

The third verse begins with the lines "Vain the stone, the watch, the seal; / Christ hath burst the gates of hell."  "Seal" and "hell" exhibit a slant rhyme, unlike the perfect rhymes of all of the preceding couplets.  In a way, this lack of coherence illustrates the vanity, and the break from the established pattern matches the gates' being "burst."

LSB #837 "Lift High the Cross"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  John 12:32; Hebrews 13:12-15; Isaiah 11:10, 12; Matthew 16:24

John 12:32:  "'And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.'"

Hebrews 13:12-15:  "12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.  13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured.  14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.  15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name."

Isaiah 11:10:  "In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples - of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious."

Isaiah 11:12:  "He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth."

Matthew 16:24:  "Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.'"

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John 12:32 is referred to in the fourth verse:  "O Lord, once lifted on the glorious tree, / As Thou hast promised, draw us all to Thee."

The passage from Hebrews 13 appears in the fifth and sixth verses:  "Let ev'ry race and ev'ry language tell / Of Him who saves our lives from death and hell. // So shall our song of triumph ever be: / Praise to the Crucified for victory!"

Both passages from Isaiah 11 are alluded to at the beginning of the second verse ("Led on their way by this triumphant sign") and in the first line of the refrain ("Lift high the cross..."), and Isaiah 11:12 (specifically "gather the dispersed of Judah...") overlaps with John 12:32 in the fourth verse.

Matthew 16:24 is the basis for the first line of the first verse:  "Come, Christians, follow where our Captain trod."

"O Sons and Daughters of the King"

I wrote about a couple small features in "O Sons and Daughters of the King" last year, but I recently found an-other small point when it was the hymn in the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service on 16 April (specifically LSB #471, where the text is paired with the tune "O filii et filiae").

Here's the first musical phrase:

The second verse starts with the line "That Easter morn, at break of day."  "Break" is sung with a melisma (C Bb), giving a slightly more literal representation of its metaphorical meaning here.

LSB #836 "O God of Light"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 119:105, 1 Peter 1:10-12, Isaiah 51:4

Psalm 119:105:  "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

1 Peter 1:10-12:  "10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.  12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look."

Isaiah 51:4:  "'Give attention to me, my people, and give ear to me, my nation; for a law will go out from me, and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.'"

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Psalm 119:105 appears in the first verse, especially in the first and last lines:  "O God of light, Your Word, a lamp unfailing, / Shall... guide our footsteps to the perfect day."

The passage from 1 Peter 1 is the basis for the second half of the second verse and the third verse.

Isaiah 51:4 overlaps a bit with the light imagery in Psalm 119:105, but it also appears at the beginning of the third verse:  "Undimmed by time, those words are still revealing / To sinful hearts Your justice and Your grace."