Es woll uns Gott genädig sein

"Es woll uns Gott genädig sein"
Hymn by Martin Luther

"Es wolt uns got genedig seyn" in the Erfurt Enchiridion, 1524
English May God be gracious to us
Text by Martin Luther
Language German
Based on Psalm 67
Melody by Matthias Greitter
Published 1524 (1524)

"Es woll uns Gott genädig sein" (May God be gracious to us,[1] or more literally: May God want to be merciful to us) is a Lutheran hymn, with words written by Martin Luther based on the Psalm 67. The hymn in three stanzas of nine lines each was first published in Wittenberg in 1524. The hymn, with a tune by Matthias Greitter, was set to music by composers including Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach. It was translated to English and has appeared in 25 hymnals.

History

Luther wrote in a letter to Georg Spalatin, around the end of 1523, about the importance of writing "Deutsche Psalmen" (German psalms). Trying to win Spalatin for collaboration, he specifies:

Portrait of Luther in 1525 by Lucas Cranach
"Neue und modische Wörter sähe ich gern vermieden; denn um die Gemeinde zu gewinnen, muss man ganz schlichte und volkstümliche, doch zugleich saubere und geeignete Wörter wählen, und der Sinn soll klar und möglichst psalmnah wiedergegeben sein. Deshalb muss man frei verfahren und den angenommenen Sinn ohne Rücksicht auf den Wortlaut durch geeignete Worte übertragen."[2]
(I would like to see new and fashionable words avoided; for in order to win the congregation, one has to choose quite simple and popular words, but at the same time clean and suitable ones, and the meaning should be rendered clearly and as closely to the psalm as possible. Therefore one has to proceed freely and transfer the assumed meaning without regard to exact text by suitable words.)

Luther wrote "Es woll uns Gott genädig sein" as a paraphrase of Psalms 67 in three stanzas of nine lines each.[1] It was first printed in Wittenberg in 1524, first in a leaflet together with "Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir”, a paraphrase of Psalm 130.[3] It appeared then in Luther’s Ein weyse Christliche Messe zu halten und zum Tisch Gottis zu gehen (A way to hold a Christian mass and to go to the table of God). It was published the same year in the Erfurt Enchiridion.[4]

Lyrics

GermanPsalm (KV)

Es woll uns Gott genädig sein
Und seinen Segen geben;
Sein Antlitz uns mit hellem Schein
Erleucht zum ewgen Leben,
Daß wir erkennen seine Werk,
Und was ihm lieb auf Erden,
Und Jesus Christus' Heil und Stärk
Bekannt den Heiden werden
Und sie zu Gott bekehren![1]

So danken Gott und loben dich
Die Heiden überalle,
Und alle Welt, die freue sich
Und sing mit großem Schalle,
Daß du auf Erden Richter bist
Und läßt die Sünd nicht walten,
Dein Wort die Hut und Weide ist,
Die alles Volk erhalten,
In rechter Bahn zu wallen.[2]

Es danke, Gott, und lobe dich
Das Volk in guten Taten;
Das Land bringt Frucht und bessert sich,
Dein Wort ist wohlgeraten.
Uns segne Vater und der Sohn,
Uns segne Gott, der Heilge Geist,
Dem alle Welt die Ehre tu,
Für ihm sich fürchte allermeist
Und sprech von Herzen: Amen.[1]

  1. ^ a b Dellal 2012.
  2. ^ Gutenberg 2017.

God be merciful unto us, and bless us;
and cause his face to shine upon us.
That thy way may be known upon earth,
thy saving health among all nations.






Let the people praise thee, O God;
let all the people praise thee.
O let the nations be glad and sing for joy:
for thou shalt judge the people righteously,
and govern the nations upon earth.




Let the people praise thee, O God;
let all the people praise thee.
Then shall the earth yield her increase;
and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
God shall bless us;
and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.

Melody and settings

The hymn tune is by Matthias Greitter and appeared in 1524.[1] Johann Walter set it for four parts.[1]

Heinrich Schütz set it as part of his Becker Psalter of all psalms in German. Johann Sebastian Bach used it as the basis for chorale preludes, and in cantatas such as his second cantata as Thomaskantor in Leipzig, Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes, BWV 76, when he closed part I with the first stanza and part II with the last.[5]

Translation

The hymn was translated to English and has appeared in 20 hymnals.[6] A. T. Russell translated it as "May God unto us gracious be" and included it in his Psalms & Hymns, printed in 1851.[6] Richard Massie translated it in 1851 to "May God bestow on us His grace".[7]

See also

References

Bibliography

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