Suggested tune: WERDE MUNTER
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Werde munter, mein Gemüthe, Und ihr Sinnen geht herfür. J. Rist. [Evening.] Probably Rist's finest hymn. First published iii the "Dritte Zehen" of his Himlische Lieder, Luneburg, 1642, p. 45, in 12 stanzas of 8 lines, entitled, "A Christian Evening Hymn, with which to commit oneself to the protection of the Most High." Included in Crüger's Praxis, 1656, No. 26, and most later hymnbooks, and in the Unverfälscher Liedersegen, 1851, No. 537. The sixth stanza has been a special favourite in Germany, and was (so Koch, viii. 191) repeated in their last moments by Johann Georg, Duke of Mecklenburg, 1675, and Moritz Wilhelm, Duke of Sachse-Zeitz, 1718. Translated as:—
1. Rouse thy self my Soul and gather. In full, by J. C. Jacobi in his Psalmodia Germanica, 1722, p. 113. In his edition, 1732, p. 176, slightly altered, and thence as No. 480, in pt. i. of the Moravian Hymn Book, 1754. In the Moravian Hymn Book, 1789, a considerably altered form of stanza vii., ix., v., beginning, "Author of the whole Creation," was included as No. 762 (1886, No. 1184), and this passed into J. Montgomery's Christian Psalmist, 1825, J. A. Latrobe's Collection, 1841, and P. Maurice's Choral Hymn Book, 1861.
2. Sink not yet, my soul, to slumber. A very good translation, omitting stanzas viii., ix., by Miss Winkworth, in her Lyra Germanica, 2nd Ser., 1858, p. 78. From this stanzas i.-iv., xii., were repeated in Psalms & Hymns, Bedford, 1859 ; i.-iii., in the English Presbyterian Psalms & Hymns, 1867 ; and i., ii., x., xii., in the Ohio Lutheran Hymnal, 1880. Other centos are:—
(1.) Father, merciful and holy (stanza ii.), in Kennedy, 1863, and Dr. Thomas's Augustine Hymn Book, 1866, No. 174.
(2.) Have I, Lord, from Thee departed (stanza vi.), in Dr. Thomas's Augustine Hymn Book, 1866, No. 504.
In her Chorale Book for England, No. 167 (set to the beautiful melody of 1642, by J. Schop), Miss Winkworth omitted the trs. of stanzas iii., v., xi.
3. Now, awake, my soul, my senses. A translated of stanzas i., v., vii., xii., contributed by Miss Borthwick to Dr. Pagenstecher's Collection, 1864, No. 180.
Other translations are: (1) "Thou, my Soul, thy Thoughts be raising! " by H. J. Buckoll, 1842, p. 73. (2) "Be thou glad, my inmost being," by N. L. Frothingham, 1870, p. 169. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
Rist, Johann, son of Kaspar Rist, pastor at Ottensen, near Hamburg, was born at Ottensen, March 8, 1607, and from his birth was dedicated to the ministry. After passing through the Johanneum at Hamburg and the Gymnasium Illustre at Bremen, he matriculated, in his 21st year, at the University of Rinteln, and there, under Josua Stegmann (q. v.), he received an impulse to hymn-writing. On leaving Rinteln he acted as tutor to the sons of a Hamburg merchant, accompanying them to the University of Rostock, where he himself studied Hebrew, Mathematics and also Medicine.
During his residence at Rostock the terrors, of the Thirty Years War almost emptied the University, and Rist himself also lay there for weeks ill of the pestilence. After his r… Go to person page >
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