Come, Holy Ghost, Blessed Lord

What: This is a Reformation-era translation of Martin Luther's Pentecost Hymn, Komm Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott. Miss Catherine Winkworth's "Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord" is the more familiar translation, found in LSB 497.

Who: Miles Coverdale completed William Tyndale's Old Testament and published the first-ever English translation of the Bible from the original Greek and Hebrew, entitled the Matthew's Bible. It is Coverdale's translation of the Psalms that was in the Anglican Church's Book of Common Prayer until the 20th century. He also translated this hymn.

Note: 'Thole' means to suffer or undergo. It is related to the word 'tolerate.' "Lore venomous" is a poetic way of saying dangerous/false doctrine.

Changes: Even Coverdale acknowledged his translation was rough. I have tried to smoothen it out as best as I could, but it could still use some amending.

Tune: KOMM HEILIGER GEIST, LSB 497.

Come, Holy Ghost, blessed Lord,

Fulfill our hearts, now, with Thy grace.

And make our minds of one accord,

With love kindle them in each place.

Thou, Lord, forgivest our trespass

And call'st the folk of each country

To the right faith and trust of (Thy) grace

That they may give Thee thanks and sing to Thee.

Alleluia, alleluia!

O holy Light, principal,

The Word of Life show unto us;

And cause us to know God o'er all

For our own Father most gracious.

Lord, keep from us lore venomous

That we may follow none but Christ.

He is the truth; His Word says thus;

Cause us to set in Him alone our trust.

Alleluia, alleluia!

O holy Fire, comfort sweet,

Fill our hearts with faith and boldness,

T'abide by Thee in cold and heat;

Content to thole for righteousness.

O Lord, give strength for our weakness,

And send us help in ev'ry hour,

That we may beat all wickedness,

And bring this old Adam under Thy pow'r.

Alleluia, alleluia!

Komm, Heiliger Geist
Martin Luther
Tr. Miles Coverdale, ed. MDS

See God to Heaven Upfaring

What: This Ascension hymn has been in LCMS hymnals before. In TLH, it was Englished by Frances E Cox as "Lo, God to Heaven Ascendeth." Then, in Worship Supplement (1969), it was Englished by Martin L. Seltz as "See God to Heaven Ascending." Also, a W.J. Blew Englished it as "While Up to Heaven God Goeth" in 1846. I translated this hymn anew, but I have heavily depended on these three translations, so its almost a composite translation.
Who: Gottfried Wilhelm Sacer was a (Lutheran?) pastor in the 1600's.
Note: Bach included a setting of the last stanza in his Ascension Oratorio.
Tune: The meter is 76 76 67 76. TLH has   (LSB 354), which is the tune that I worked with. WS had ZEUCH EIN ZU DEINEN TOREN (TLH 228).

See God to heav'n upfaring

In triumph from the earth,

With horns and trumpets blaring,

All jubilant with mirth.

Sing praise to God the Lord;

Sing praise with exultation,

To Christ the King of nations,

The Lord of Hosts adored!

To greet the Lord ascending,

The heavens laugh with glee;

And, to their King attending,

The saints, whom He set free,

With myriad angels come,

With seraphs sweetly singing,

And cherub voices ringing,

They welcome YHWH home.

We know the way ascending

To our exalted Head;

We know the stairway wending

To heaven where He sped.

Our Healer goes before;

He will not here forsake us,

But to His throne He'll take us,

And open wide the door.

Our minds to heav'n are wending,

Where He prepares our place.

Our walk on earth is ending,

There to adore His grace.

Lift up your heart and soul!

Where Jesus Christ has entered,

There let your hopes be centered;

Press onward t'ward the goal. 

Let us to heav'n be springing

With humble hearts ascend.

Let us likewise be singing:

We seek You, Jesus, Friend,

You, God's annointed Son,

Our Life and Way to heaven,

To Whom all might is given,

To You our Head's true Crown.

When will that day be dawning,

When come that blessed time,

That Christ will come that morning

In majesty sublime?

Oh, quickly come and cheer

Our souls the Healer meeting,

His second coming greeting;

Sweet Day of days, appear!

Gott fähret auf gen Himmel

Gottfried Wilhelm Sacer

Tr. MDS

Lord Christ, Our Heavenly Guide

What: This is a somewhat standard evening hymn.
Who: Back in the early 1800's, David Henkel was a confessional Lutheran in America before it was cool. Long story short, he read the Book of Concord, shared it with everyone he could, and eventually started the Evangelical Lutheran Tennessee Synod. Among the stuff he wrote (before he died way too young) was his translation of Luther's Small Catechism, to which he added a few hymns.
Changes: I changed a couple things to better align the stress with the text.
Tune: The meter is SM, and I think FRANCONIA, LSB 410 works well.

Lord Christ, our heav'nly guide,

We pray Thee with us stay;

Do not Thy scepter from us hide,

Lest we should go astray.

The eventide is come;

Guide us along the road

That leads to our eternal home,

Up to the throne of God.

In these last evil days

Let not Thy Word divine

Withdraw its holy lucid rays,

But in us brilliant shine.

Pure, to the end, O Lord,

May we always preserve

Thy holy sacraments and Word,

And them with care observe.

That we in quiet rest,

Our future days may spend.

May we with godliness be blest,

Our lives in peace to end.

'Till we Thy throne surround

In heav'n with shining throngs,

Thy praise from golden harps shall sound,

In sweet harmonious songs.

David Henkel, alt.

Lord, Let Your Servant Now Depart

What: This is a Reformation Era translation of Luther's hymnic version of the Nunc Dimittis (Lord, Now Let Your Servant).
Who: Martin Luther translated by the Scottish Reformer, Wedderburn. Which Wedderburn is more difficult, but probably either Jacob or Joseph. Or they could have merely put someone else's translation in their little book. Who knows?
Note: Another translation of this hymn can be found in LSB 938.
Changes: I have edited this version, taking it out of the 16th century Scottish dialect and into today's standard English. (Because of the dialect, this is actually easier than keeping the thees and thous.
Tune: For whatever reason, Wedderburns translates this into 86 86 86. The problem is that the only tune of this meter in LSB is CORONATION, or All Hail the Pow'r of Jesus' Name.

Lord, let Your servant now depart

In gladness, rest, and peace;

I am rejoicing in my heart

To see His godly face,

Whom faithfully You promised me:

Christ Jesus, King of Grace.

Of blinded Heathen folk so sore

He is the very light,

Who never heard of Him before,

Nor saw Him with their sight.

His is the glory and decor,

And strength of Israel right.

Mit Fried und Freud
Martin Luther
Tr. Wedderburns, ed. MDS

On this Blest Epiphany

What: Basically, this hymn is a prayer to Jesus, that He accept and sanctify the poor singer's "gifts" offered Him in the Divine Service. 

Who: Erdmann Neumeister was a Lutheran hymnwriter who lived around the same time as Bach. He also wrote "Jesus Sinners Doth Receive" and the newly translated, "God's Own Child, I Gladly Say It."

Changes: This translation is largely inspired by and edited from Emanuel Cronenwett's translation in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal (#52). The translation below should be much more faithful to the original German.

Notes: In the original German the last line is a clear reference to "Jesus sinners doth receive." Special thanks to James Prothro, fellow graduate of CTX and fellow student here at the Sem, for helping me muddle thru the German. Lastly, I have included an alternate translation  of st. 3 for those singers neither at church nor knowing the word 'sate.'

Tune: The meter is 78 78 77 and the ELHal has JESUS NIMMT DIE SÜNDER AN, Jesus Sinners Doth Receive, LSB 609.

On this blest Epiphany

I have gifts for You, dear Jesus.

I would serve You willingly

Where You first serve me with graces.

In Your mercy, Lord, receive
What gifts I, a beggar, give.

Take the gold of faith, O Lord
It is only what You gave me
By Your Spirit and Your Word
In the water, for to save me.
Try it, make it pure from dross
In the furnace of the cross.

Take the frankincense of prayer 
And in mercy let it sate You.
As my hands rise in the air,
May this sacrifice elate You.
Hear me when I pray, O Lord
And Your "Yea, Amen!" afford.

Take the bitter myrrh of rue;

How my sins are great and grievous!

You alone are good and true,

Source of healing and forgiveness.

Lord, I praise You and believe 

Jesus my gifts doth receive.

Erdmann Neumeister

Tr. comp.

Take the frankincense of prayer;
Let it please You, I implore You.
May my hands rise in the air
As a sacrifice before You.
Hear me when I pray, O Lord
And Your "Yea, Amen!" afford.

Thank God! My Jesus Cleanses Me

What: This hymn is for the Presentation of Christ, when Jesus has just been circumcised and Mary has just been purified. The hymnwriter, Johann Olearius, brilliantly twists the images of the day: Christ's shed blood purifies us.
Who: The main translator, August Crull, was an LCMS pastor who put together an hymnal in 1884, before working on the LCMS's first English hymnal, the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-Book. This hymn is found there, as # 189.
Note: Mark the Small Catechism allusion in verse 1. Also, note that 'Simeon' has 3 syllables.
Changes: I've updated the text a little.
Tune: The meter is 87 87 887 and ELHB has ES IST DAS HEIL (Salvation Unto Us Has Come)

Thank God! My Jesus cleanses me

From all sins I committed,

He paid my debt and set me free,

So now I am acquitted.

I trust in Jesus' righteousness,

His innocence and blessedness

Are now my life and treasure.

Why should I grieve? He Who fulfilled,

The Law, so to release us,

He Who the Father's wrath has stilled

By His own death, this Jesus

Still lives and ev'rything He owns

He gives to me thru faith alone;

Is there a greater treasure?

Now I, like Simeon, can end

My life in peace and gladness,

And to my God I can commend

My spirit without sadness;

For when I shut my weary eyes,

My death will mean I see the Christ

And feel the bliss of heaven.

Lord, may I always be prepared,

Upon Your grace relying!

Oh, keep me in Your favor here,

So I am Yours when dying;

Then I will cry, with cheerful faith

In Him, Who, dying, conquered death,

"Come Jesus! Lord, come quickly!"

Gott Lob! mein Jesus macht mich rein
Johann Olearius
Tr. comp

O Sacred Feast in Holy Place

What: This is a catechetical hymn on the Lord's Supper. That is, it reminds the singers what they are receiving when they eat and drink the bread and wine. And yet the hymnwriter doesn't just set a dissertation to rhyme, but eloquently and poetically speaks from the heart on why the Lord's Supper is so special.
Who: This hymn was originally written in Latin by G.W. Wettmann, put into German by in 1868, and "Englished" in 1925, presumably by Emanuel Cronenwett.
Note: I cannot find G. W. Wettmann on the internet, nor the German title, "O welch ein heilig Abendmahl." Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Changes: I've updated the text a little, although there are still some awkward phrases.
Tune: The meter is LM (88 88). I think that WENN WIR IN HÖCHSTEN NOTEN SEIN (LSB 615) would be the most appropriate tune, but if that's too difficult, DUNEDIN (LSB 599) would also work.

O sacred feast in holy place,

Whose food and drink is saving grace,

Communion of Christ's Brotherhood

With Christ Himself as Host and Food.

"In, with, and under" earthly bread,

The Lamb once offered in our stead,

As very Bread of Life from heav'n

For our soul's hunger here is giv'n.

Mysteriously, with cup e'er blest,

As to disciples first address'd,

Christ graciously imparts His Blood

Unto our soul's eternal good.

Hence, present at this Board we face

Not merely Christ's forth-given grace;

That He Himself is present here,

Hold this in faith and trust sincere.

To Christ triumphant, this is giv'n:

Almightiness in earth, in heav'n;

His Word is truth and verity,

Both now- and thru eternity.

"This is My body, is My blood:"

This designates the unseen Good,

Which orally each guest receives,

Yes, even those who disbelieve.

With lips and faith the worthy guest

Here seeks and finds in Christ's soul-rest,

And though unworthy also come:

They give up blessing, to their doom.

O Lord, have mercy!, grant us grace

With thankful hearts Thy Name to praise,

And laud Thee someday face-to face.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

O welch ein heilig Abendmahl
From the Latin of G. W. Wettman
German version comp. Rev. G. Cronenwett and Prof. W. Lehmann, 1868
Tr. Emanuel Cronenwett, 1926, alt.