Jesus Christ, our Savior, who overcame death

Jesus Christ, our Savior in Spangenberg's church chants (Magdeburg 1545)

Jesus Christ, our Savior, who overcame death is a Lutheran hymn for Easter . Martin Luther wrote the text in 1524. The melody, which appears in the hymn books from 1529, is also attributed to him. The song is contained in the Evangelical Hymnal (No. 102).

Emergence

While Luther used older models in terms of content and music for his great Easter song Christ lay in death bands , there are no direct examples for Jesus Christ, our Savior . However, the regular closing of the stanzas Kyrie eleison ties in with the medieval German Leisen .

Form and content

The song proclaims the Easter message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the overcoming of sin and death through his substitution in extreme concentration. The three four-line stanzas are written in an unpretentious, irregular meter that is completely subordinate to the kerygmatic intention. In all stanzas, the third line, which is only five syllable and begins with the top note of the melody, carries the core message: "has risen - has reconciled us - he can save".

Text in use today

Jesus Christ, our Savior,
who overcame death,
is risen,
he has captured sin.
Kyrie eleison.

He who was born without sin,
bore God's wrath for us,
reconciled us
that God may grant us his grace.
Kyrie eleison.

Death, sin, life and grace,
all in his hands;
he can save
all who come to him.
Kyrie eleison.

melody

The way of singing assigned to the song in the Erfurt Enchiridion in 1524 was replaced by the syllabic melody ^?^/ⁱ replaced. Their call-like style effectively underlines the declamatory character of the text.

Johann Sebastian Bach arranged the song for his little organ book (BWV 626). Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock based his counterfacture Resurrection, yes resurrect you will (1758), based on the melody version used in Baroque style .

Translations

Translated into Danish as "Jesus Christ before frelsermand ..." first in the Danish hymn book Rostock 1529 and then in the Danish hymn book by Ludwig Dietz, Salmebog 1536, no. 54 and as a liturgical song for Mass no. 21; Taken over into the hymn book by Hans Tausen , En Ny Psalmebog , 1553. Apparently not in more recent Danish church hymn books .

literature

Wilhelm Lucke: Jesus Christ, our Savior, who overcame death . In: D. Martin Luther's works. Critical Complete Edition , Volume 35, Weimar 1923, pp. 160–161
Gerhard Hahn, Gotthard Gerber: 102 - Jesus Christ, our Savior, who overcame death . In: Gerhard Hahn , Jürgen Henkys (Hrsg.): Liederkunde zum Evangelisches Gesangbuch . No. 3 . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2001, ISBN 3-525-50324-5 , pp. 56–60 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).

Web links

Commons : Jesus Christ, Our Savior, Who Overcame Death - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

↑ The beginning of the song is quoted in two lines to distinguish it from Luther's Last Supper song Jesus Christ, our Savior, who turns the wrath of God from us (EG 215).
↑ Cf. Otto Holzapfel : Lied index: The older German-language popular song tradition ( online version on the Volksmusikarchiv homepage of the Upper Bavaria district ; in PDF format; ongoing updates) with further information.

[1] The beginning of the song is quoted in two lines to distinguish it from Luther's Last Supper song Jesus Christ, our Savior, who turns the wrath of God from us (EG 215).

[2] Cf. Otto Holzapfel : Lied index: The older German-language popular song tradition ( online version on the Volksmusikarchiv homepage of the Upper Bavaria district ; in PDF format; ongoing updates) with further information.