"When in the Hour of Deepest Need"

I've written about small musical features in "When in the Hour of Deepest Need" twice before, but when it was part of the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service on 9 September last month, I found a few more.  The hymn is sung to the tune "Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein."  Here's the second musical phrase:

In the fourth verse, the text here is "And all our woes before You lay."  The phrase "all our woes" is sung to notes of all different pitches (Bb A G), giving something of a sense of the entirety of "all."

The same sort of feature is present in the line "Free us at last from ev'ry ill" at the end of the fifth verse, sung to this phrase:

Here, the phrase "ev'ry ill" is sung to notes of all different pitches (A G F), providing a sense of breadth.  Because the note values in this phrase are longer than the preceding ones (two half notes and a whole note rather than just quarter notes), there's even an added bit of emphasis.

The sixth verse begins with the line "So we with all our hearts each day," sung to this phrase:

"Hearts" is sung with a melisma (Bb A), giving a sense of the entirety of "all."

LSB #615 "When in the Hour of Deepest Need"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Psalm 102:1-2, Psalm 25:15-22, Romans 9:17-19, Micah 7:7

Psalm 102:1-2:  "1 Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you!  2 Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress!  Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call!"

Psalm 25:15-22:  "15 My eyes are ever toward the LORD, for he will pluck my feet out of the net.

"16 Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.  17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses.  18 Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins.

 "19 Consider how many are my foes, and with what violent hatred they hate me.  20 Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!  Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.  21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.

"22 Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles."

Romans 9:17-19:  "17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.'  18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.

"19 You will say to me then, 'Why does he still find fault?  For who can resist his will?'"

Micah 7:7:  "But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me."

+++

The text is public domain:

When in the hour of deepest need

We know not where to look for aid;

When days and nights of anxious thought

No help or counsel yet have brought,

Then is our comfort this alone

That we may meet before Your throne;

To You, O faithful God, we cry

For rescue in our misery.

For You have promised, Lord, to heed

Your children's cries in time of need

Through Him whose name alone is great,

Our Savior and our advocate.

And so we come, O God, today

And all our woes before You lay;

For sorely tried, cast down, we stand,

Perplexed by fears on ev'ry hand.

O from our sins, Lord, turn Your face;

Absolve us through Your boundless grace.

Be with us in our anguish still;

Free us at last from ev'ry ill.

So we with all our hearts each day

To You our glad thanksgiving pay,

Then walk obedient to Your Word,

And now and ever praise You, Lord.

+++

The hymnal does cite Romans 9:17-19, but because it's oddly excerpted and doesn't address the same themes as the hymn or the other citations, I suspect this is not actually the passage that was intended.

The hymn draws from the other three texts in a more general way, but there are a few instances where clearer connections can be made.  Micah 7:7 is the basis for the first three verses, specifically for looking to God for aid and knowing that He will hear.  The lines "To You, O faithful God, we cry / For rescue in our misery" seem to incorporate Psalm 102:1-2 too.

The passage from Psalm 25 seems to appear in the fourth verse, which - like the Biblical text - describes the multitude of the narrator's afflictions.

"When in the Hour of Deepest Need"

A couple years ago, I wrote a post about "When in the Hour of Deepest Need," specifically about how "deepest" in the title line is sung with a descending melisma for a sense of depth.  I was looking at the hymn again recently, and I realized that because "deepest" is a superlative adjective, this melisma could also serve to emphasize the degree.

"When in the Hour of Deepest Need"

Back in March, I transcribed "When in the Hour of Deepest Need" and noticed a small feature about the first line.  It's sung to this musical phrase from the tune "Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein":

The title line "When in the hour of deepest need" is sung to this phrase, with "deepest" sung to a group of descending notes (Bb A G), musically giving a sense of that depth.