Preise, Jerusalem, den Herrn (Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem; BWV 119) is a cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was composed during his first year as cantor to the Thomaskirche in Leipzig for the festivities surrounding the change of councils or Ratswechsel on 30 August 1723 - as at Mühlhausen, one of the cantor's duties was to write music for special church services surrounding the council.
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The text of the cantata consists of verses from psalms 147, 85 and 126, lines from Martin Luther's 'German Te Deum' and poems by unknown writers. To suit the event for which it was written, these are all turned into hymns of thanking and praising God for Leipzig's prosperity and asking him to protect the city in the future. As it was written for a secular church service, it follow the Baroque world view of emphasizing that the government's political power is legitimised by God and His power.
Even among other festal music written by Bach, this work's need for four trumpets is unusual. It is characterised by a very solemn character and the attributes of courtly homage music, such as the opening chorus in the form of a French overture or fanfare-like trumpet interjections in the bass recitative. It may be assumed that at the time of its composition, at the beginning of his tenure in Leipzig, the citizens wanted Bach to demonstrate the whole range of his skills and so he created a work that in musical terms corresponds less to sacred music and more to the type of secular music for a princely court, as had been required of him during his time in office in Köthen. Only in its final two movements does Bach again use simple forms to emphasize the work's character of a church cantata, implying that earthly powers do not last, but God - the supreme ruler - is entitled to have the last word.
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