Speak ye peace, thus saith our God;
Comfort those who sit in darkness,
Mourning 'neath their sorrows' load;
Speak ye to Jerusalem
Of the peace that waits for them,
Tell her that her sins I cover,
And her warfare now is over.
Yea, her sins our God will pardon,
Blotting out each dark misdeed;
All that well deserved His anger
He will no more see nor heed.
She hath suffer'd many a day,
Now her griefs have passed away,
God will change her pining sadness
Into ever-springing gladness.
For Elijah's voice is crying
In the desert far and near,
Bidding all men to repentance,
Since the kingdom now is here.
Oh that warning cry obey,
Now prepare for God a way;
Let the valleys rise to meet Him,
And the hills bow down to greet Him.
Make ye straight what long was crooked,
Make the rougher places plain,
Let your hearts be true and humble,
As befits His holy reign;
For the glory of the Lord
Now o'er earth is shed abroad,
And all flesh shall see the token
That His Word is never broken.
—Johannes Olearius, trans. Catherine Winkworth
From Winkworth, Chorale Book for England.
Tune: "Freu dich sehr," Louis Bourgeois, har. Claude Goudimel.
Courtesy of The Genevan Psalter Resource Center.
About the Authors
Johannes Olearius (1611–1684) was a German pastor who also authored a commentary on the whole Bible, various devotional works, and one of the most influential German hymnbooks of the 17th century. Of the over 1200 hymns appearing in this work, he wrote 302, most of them short, simple works for various times and seasons. This one was originally written for St. John the Baptist's Day.Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878) was the most prolific translator of German hymns into English that ever lived. Dr. Julian credits her with reviving the German hymn in English-speaking circles. As a novice translator myself, I greatly admire the delicate line she walked between literal translation and beautiful English hymn-writing.
No comments:
Post a Comment