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Johann Roh's hymn Gottes Sohn ist kommen has been known in several English translations as a traditional hymn of Advent and Christmastide. The following is the well known English translation by Catherine Winkworth that I believe first appeared in The Chorale Book for England, 1863, and it appears at No. 86 in the excellent Wartburg Hymnal: For Church, School, and Home published by the Wartburg Publishing House, Chicago in 1918 for the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America:
Once He came in blessing,
all our ills redressing;
came in likeness lowly,
Son of God most holy;
bore the cross to save us,
hope and freedom gave us.
Still He comes within us,
still His voice would win us
from the sins that hurt us;
would to Truth convert us
from our foolish errors
ere He comes in terrors.
Thus, if thou hast known Him,
not ashamed to own Him,
but wilt trust Him boldly
nor dost love Him coldly,
He will then receive thee,
heal thee, and forgive thee.
He who thus endureth
bright reward secureth.
come, then, O Lord Jesus,
from our sins release us;
let us here confess Thee
till in heaven we bless Thee.
Text: Jan Roh, 1544
Translation: Catherine Winkworth, 1863
This hymn and tune appear as No. 74 in The Lutheran Hymnal 1941 (an outstanding hymnal as sacred to some Lutherans as The Hymnal 1940 is sacrosanct for some Episcopalians). Some newer hymnbooks have butchered the text or abandoned it, but the Editors of The Hymnal 1982 of the Episcopal Church (USA) very gently retouched the text in a masterful way that kept the integrity of Winkworth's original poetic translation and which encouraged congregations to embrace it as a seasonal favourite:
1 Once He came in blessing,
All our ills redressing;
Came in likeness lowly,
Son of God most holy;
Bore the cross to save us,
Hope and freedom gave us.
2 Still he comes within us,
still his voice would win us
from the sins that hurt us;
would to Truth convert us:
not in torment hold us,
but in love enfold us.
3 Thus if thou canst name him,
not ashamed to claim him,
but wilt trust him boldly,
nor dost love him coldly,
he will then receive thee,
heal thee, and forgive thee.
4 One who thus endureth
bright reward secureth.
Come then, O Lord Jesus,
from our sins release us;
let us here confess thee,
Till in heaven we bless thee.
The video below is a splendid prelude setting of the tune Gottes Sohn ist kommen by the Silesian composer Michael Weiss(e) which as you listen will include the hymn tune of the this marvellous hymn:
Mark Peters, organ, Trinity Lutheran Church, Traverse City, Michigan, 2013
With travelling text at bottom of video from No. 333
in the Lutheran Service Book (LSB) of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod:
a new text loosely inspired by J. Roh's ,,Gottes Sohn ist kommen”
in the Lutheran Service Book (LSB) of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod:
a new text loosely inspired by J. Roh's ,,Gottes Sohn ist kommen”
I would be remiss not to include the tune sometimes used in the Moravian Church in the USA. The tune is found in an older Moravian hymn book, and for a number of generations the following tune was "the right tune" and still is "the right tune" according to a retired pastor friend of mine:
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