1 True mirror of the Godhead! Perfect Light!
Thou Three in One, whose never slumbering might
Enfolds the world within its sheltering wings,
And holds in being all created things!
2 We praise Thee with the earliest morning ray;
We praise Thee with the parting beam of day:
All things that live and move, by sea and land,
Forever ready at Thy service stand.
3 Exhaustless Treasure! Being limitless!
What gaze has ever pieced Thy deep abyss?
Deep Fount of Life! Light inaccessible!
How great Thy power, O God, what tongue can tell?
4 Thy Christendom is singing night and day,
"Glory to Him, the mighty God, for aye,
By Whom, through Whom, in Whom all beings are!
Grant us to echo on this song afar!"
5 Thy name is great, Thy kingdom in us dwell,
Thy will constrain and feed and guide us well:
Spare us, redeem us in the evil hour,
For Thine the glory, Thine the rule, the power.
Source: The Cyber Hymnal #13372
Johann Franck (b. Guben, Brandenburg, Germany, 1618; d. Guben, 1677) was a law student at the University of Köningsberg and practiced law during the Thirty Years' War. He held several positions in civil service, including councillor and mayor of Guben. A significant poet, second only to Paul Gerhardt in his day, Franck wrote some 110 hymns, many of which were published by his friend Johann Crüger in various editions of the Praxis Pietatis melica. All were included in the first part of Franck’s Teutsche Gedichte bestehend im geistliche Sion (1672).
Bert Polman… Go to person page >
Catherine Winkworth (b. Holborn, London, England, 1827; d. Monnetier, Savoy, France, 1878) is well known for her English translations of German hymns; her translations were polished and yet remained close to the original. Educated initially by her mother, she lived with relatives in Dresden, Germany, in 1845, where she acquired her knowledge of German and interest in German hymnody. After residing near Manchester until 1862, she moved to Clifton, near Bristol. A pioneer in promoting women's rights, Winkworth put much of her energy into the encouragement of higher education for women. She translated a large number of German hymn texts from hymnals owned by a friend, Baron Bunsen. Though often altered, these translations continue to be used i… Go to person page >
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