"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").

"Thy Strong Word"

On two different occasions a number of months ago, I found a handful of things to note in "Thy Strong Word."  They're all within the first two phrases of the tune "Ebenezer":

The first line of the hymn is "Thy strong word did cleave the darkness."  "Darkness" is sung with a melisma (Ab G F at the end of the second measure), musically giving a sense of having been "cleave[d]."

The fourth verse begins with the lines "From the cross Thy wisdom shining / Breaketh forth in conqu'ring might."  Similar to the cloven "darkness," here "Breaketh" is sung with a melisma (C Bb C Db) musically giving something of a sense of the word's meaning.

The second verse starts with the lines "Lo, on those who dwelt in darkness, / Dark as night and deep as death" (adapted from Isaiah 9:2).  Reflecting that "deep as death" musically, there's a descent in the melody (Bb Ab G F).