Plague 6: Walther on Communion for dying (Cholera); Prayer of Repentance and Confession

      This continues from Part 5 in a series (Table of Contents in Part 1) of Old Missouri devotions during a time of Plague or Pestilence as we are experiencing with the Coronavirus or COVID-19. —  In Part 1 I referenced the blog post "Disease, Death, and Dependance" on LutheranMuseum.com.  In that post, the writer was edified by a sermon of Walther related to the 1849 Cholera outbreak in St. Louis that claimed more than 1 in 10 people in that city.  

      Recent research has turned up another writing of Walther, a sermon plan, that directly addressed the same plague.  This was in Walther's book Predigtenwürfe und nicht ganz ausgeführte Predigten und Casualreden, (CPH 1903, Google Books; "Sermon Plans, Uncompleted Sermons, and Occasional Addresses").  Although there is no known English translation of this book, it is planned for a future blog on this site.  Anyway, the sermon plan was listed as an "Address for Confession without Text, held during the season of Cholera. 4th Sunday after Trinity Sunday (1849)", page 346.  For those unfamiliar with the Church calendar year (like me), that would have been about July 1, 1849, in the middle of the June-July outbreak (source: LutheranMuseum.org.) 

      This sermon was given when many faced death among them, and all around them. Walther is quite descriptive about the severity of their distress. (To my knowledge the COVID-19 death rate is much lower, more like 3 in 1000 in the more severely affected areas in America today.)  It is somewhat different than the other sermon, as Walther addressed the Christian use of Holy Communion for those nearing death, and gives us counsel for Christian practice during our current government imposed "social distancing". — As one reads the following, keep in mind that this was not a full sermon but rather an abbreviated outline and so there appear long dashes (—) and ellipses (…) where the narrative is truncated.

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Translation from the German by BackToLuther using DeepL and Google Translators, page 346.

4th Sunday after Trinity. 

(In the season of Cholera.) 

The thing that occupies us all day and night now is without doubt death.  God now compels even the careless to think of death. 

Where we walk and stand, we encounter memories of death. Dying people groan at us in almost every house, on every street the hearse rolls by before our eyes.  Almost every hour brings us new news of the renewed death of one of our brothers or sisters. It is as if the high dividing wall between time and eternity has almost completely fallen. The city in which we live [St. Louis, Missouri] already appears to us like the graveyard [Gottesacker], our houses like mortuaries, our beds like coffins. 

I am convinced that each one of us has gone to this place of worship today with the thought that perhaps it is the last time. 

May you therefore use the precious time still given to you to enjoy Holy Communion, for Holy Communion is a delightful means of preparation for death. 

Let me speak to you of this now, namely 

1. in what way Holy Communion is such a delightful means of preparation for death, and 

2. how to enjoy Holy Communion if it is to become such a means for us. 

I. 

What does it take to be properly prepared for one's death? 

a. That one knows that your sins are forgiven — you have a merciful God —. b. That one has the strength to contradict the accusations of conscience and the devil.  c. That they know that your body will not remain in the grave —. 

But these three things are found in Holy Communion. 

a. Forgiveness of sin.  Christ commanded that the Sacrament should be given to us in the words: "he for you — this for you".  But will Christ command that this should be said to us if it is not given to us in this way, and if we should not be assured of forgiveness? 

Yes, even if these words were not added to it —. 

From this it follows that in the Holy Communion too, the power is given to contradict the accusations of conscience and the devil. — [page 347] 

How comforted from our body’s decay we are made at last also by Holy Communion!         

The Holy Communion is a new tree of life. 

The first Christians well recognized all this.  Therefore they called Holy Communion the viaticum [“provision for a journey”] of the dying Christians — in the persecutions they enjoyed it daily —.  They often spent large sums of money to obtain permission to bring the Holy Sacrament to those who were to die martyrdom in their prisons. 

II. 

But now the second question that arises is how we should enjoy Holy Communion, if it is to become such a delightful means of preparing ourselves properly for the hour of our death. 

Unfortunately, some think that it is enough if they [only] enjoy the sacrament shortly before their death. 

a. One must also test oneself — b. in faith, the "for you" —.

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      If anyone suggests that "Old Missouri" did not focus on the Sacraments enough, this sermon outline certainly refutes such a notion. — What follows is another writing under the title "Address for Confession, and a Prayer" which, although not addressing the plague situation, is yet appropriate to follow the above sermon. Walther demonstrates that he is perhaps the greatest Christian preacher since the Reformation century. — If/when there is another blog post in this "Plague" series, it will be Part 7. 

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Address for Confession, and a Prayer. (p. 347)

May God give you much grace and peace through… etc.  Amen. 

Beloved ones in the Lord Jesus! 

True Christianity is something quite different from what we usually believe.  It is usually thought that true Christianity consists in a series of so-called good works, and that therefore, if one wants to be saved, one must do as many good works as possible and live a good life.  Whoever is not aware of gross sins, whoever has many good qualities, whoever, for example, is kind, serving, generous, gentle, humble, whoever, in doing so, believes God's Word to be true, reads it daily, prays diligently, usually believes that he is certainly a true Christian. 

This opinion, my listeners, is more common than you think. Even those who confess that their faith saves them when they examine themselves to see whether they are in God's grace are usually calm, when they are not aware of any gross sins and rather find some good in themselves.  Well, so they think, should you not be a true Christian? But, dear friends, this is not a doctrine of the pure Lutheran Church, this is in part paganism, in which everything was given over [read balance, including Prayer, in the "Read more »" section below]

Plague 5- Gerhard's Consolation for Pestilence; Prayer

      This continues from Part 4 in a series (Table of Contents in Part 1) of Old Missouri devotions during a time of Plague or Pestilence as we are experiencing with the Coronavirus or COVID-19. — Although this installment does not come directly from "Old Missouri", yet it comes from a highly regarded Lutheran theologian/dogmatician from the era of so-called Lutheran Orthodoxy, roughly the period between the Reformation century and the age of Pietism.  John Gerhard, along with his other theological writings, also wrote devotional materials.  This example was pointed out to me from an interested reader and comes from the book Enchiridion consolatorium oder Tröstliches Handbüchlein Johann Gerhard's wider den Tod und die Anfechtungen beim Todeskampfe (Leipzig, 1877, Google Books: "Handbook of Consolation by John Gerhard Against Death and the Temptations of the Struggle with Death").

Enchiridion consolatorium oder Tröstliches Handbüchlein
John Gerhard's Manual of Comfort (CTSFW bookstore, $7.99)

This book was a translation of Gerhard's original Latin book by a pastor in Germany.  My correspondent had discovered one of Gerhard's "Consolations" that had a heading of "Pestilence" and considered it pertinent for the current world plague.  In the same book, I discovered a short "Prayer in Sickness" and so I consider it worthy to follow "Pestilence". So I then proceeded with the work of translation for both items. — However I have subsequently discovered that an English translation of just the first portion was made in 1990 by Dr. John Drickamer which is still available from the CTSFW bookstore (↗).  Drickamer admitted that he "abridged, altered, and adapted" the text and that he had "taken liberties with the wording".  I did not take liberties with my translations below, perhaps Drickamer's is more readable.  See the translated "Foreword" by the German pastor afterwards – it is informative for learning of Gerhard's own afflictions in his personal life.
      As I translated and studied Gerhard's work, I gained an appreciation for him and wondered that Starck's Prayerbook was patterned after Gerhard's work.  Two things stood out for me from Gerhard's devotion: (A) It is better to be in God's hands in plague and sickness than in man's hands in times of war and bloodshed – as David well knew. (#6); (B) On Christians, those who have despaired of their works and turned to the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of their sins, "on such the second death hath no power". (#8). — In the next Part 6…

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Translation from the German by BackToLuther using DeepL and Google Translators, pages 238-241, 185-187 ; 
Bible translations are KJV if not noted. (German texts here & here)

In Times of Pestilence.

Passages of consolation: Numbers 16:46-48 [KJV]: And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun. And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.

2 Chronicles 6:28-30 [Luther Bibel]:  If becomes any dearth in the land, or pestilence,… or any plague or disease: Then whosoever shall pray or make supplication among all men, and among all thy people Israel, if any man shall feel his plague and his sorrow, then hear thou from heaven, from the place of thy dwelling, and be gracious.

Ps. 91:1-7, 9-10 [composite Luther, KJV]: He who sits under the shield of the Most High, and abides under the shadow of the Almighty, says to the Lord, "My confidence and my fortress, my God, in whom I hope. For He delivers me from the snare of the hunter, and from the pestilence that is harmful. He will cover thee with His feathers, and thy confidence shall be under His wings. His truth is a covering and shield, that thou shalt not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrows that fly by day, nor of the pestilence that creepeth in darkness, nor of the pestilence that wasteth at noon. Whether a thousand fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, it shall not hurt thee. For the Lord is thy confidence, and the Most High is thy refuge. No evil shall befall thee, and no plague shall come nigh unto thy tabernacle.

Ps. 112:7-8 [Luther Bibel]: When a plague comes, the righteous man is not afraid; his heart has undaunted hope in the Lord. His heart is confident, and fears not. [p. 239]

Reasons for Consolation: 1. God sends this plague to men. Lev. 26:25: I will send the pestilence among you. Amos 4:10: I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt.

2. God can protect His own in time of pestilence. Ex. 15:26 [Luther Bibel]: If you will obey the voice of the Lord your God, I will not put on you the sickness that I put on Egypt; for I am the Lord your physician.

3. The holy angels protect from the slaughter. Ps. 34:7: The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. Ps. 91:11-12: For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

4. Faith in Christ will keep away the destroying angel. Ex 12:23: For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. [p. 240]

5. God can easily avert the pestilence if we ask Him in true repentance. 2 Sam. 24:16: And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. 2 Chron. 7:13-14 [Luther Bibel]: "If I send a pestilence among my people, and my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and they pray, and seek my face, and turn from their evil ways, then will I hear from heaven, and forgive their sins, and heal their Land.

6. It is better to have pestilence than war and bloodshed. 2 Sam. 24:14: David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the Lord; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man.

7. Sometimes even the pious are taken by this plague. Is. 38:1, 21: In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. For Isaiah had said, Let them take a lump of figs, and lay it for a plaister upon the boil. Ezekiel 24:16 [Luther Bibel]: God says to the prophet Ezekiel, “Son of man, behold, I will take away the delight of thine eyes with a plague”. [p. 241]

8. But such things do not hurt them in their souls. Ps. 73:26 [Luther Bibel]: Though my body and soul may be withering away, Thou, O God, art always the consolation of my heart and my portion. Revelation 20:6: Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power.

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Prayer in Sickness.

My Lord and God, who giveth and giveth back life, in whose hand is life and death, health and sickness, hear me, hear me, not according to my will and desire, but according to the good pleasure of thy will. If thou wilt, thou can make me well; just speak one word, and I will be well. Thou art the length of my days, my time is in thy hands. But if thou now would call me to thy heavenly homeland by the way of death, then first kill all inordinate love for earthly life in me, give me strength of spirit so that I may overcome the fear of death; light up and, when my eyes become dark, multiply in me the right light of the heart in the midst of darkness. With thou is the source of true life, and in thy light I shall see the light. Thy death, dear Lord Jesus, has become to my death [p. 186] poison, thy death has earned me eternal life. Thus I take thy Word with a believing heart and am therefore certain that thou dwellest in my heart through faith. Therefore I will not burden thou from my heart, but thou bless me and raise me up with life-giving comfort. Thou hast said: He who believes in Me shall never die. This thy Word my heart holds before thee, and in such trust I come before thy throne of grace that thou wilt not cast out him that cometh to thee. Thy dear blood maketh me clean from my sins, thy wounds hide me from the wrath of God and from the severity of judgment. In thee will I die, and thou wilt live in me; in thee will I abide, and thou wilt abide in me; thou wilt not leave me in death and dust, but wilt raise me up to the resurrection of life. Thou hast fought and overcome for me, so now fight and overcome in me as well. May thy power become powerful in my weakness. My soul clings to thee, do not let me be separated from thee. Thy peace, which is higher than all reason, preserve my heart and my senses. Into thy hands I commend my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, Lord, thou faithful God. Take my soul [p. 187] which thou created, which thou redeemed, which thou cleansed of sins with thy blood, which thou hast sealed with the pledge of the Holy Spirit and nourished with thy body and blood. It is yours, thou gavest it to me. Now therefore take again what is thine, and forgive me the guilt of my sins with which I have defiled it. Let not the fruit of thy suffering be lost to me, nor thy dear blood shed in vain for me. In thee have I hoped, Lord, help me that I shall not be defiled, nor mocked forever. Amen.

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In the next Part 6…
Read the "Foreword" by the German pastor Böttcher in the "Read more" section below:

Plague 4- Sihler's sermon "Benefits of Sickness"; (#4)

Wilhelm Sihler, young & old

      This continues from Part 3 in a series (Table of Contents in Part 1) of Old Missouri devotions during a time of Plague or Pestilence as we are experiencing with the Coronavirus or COVID-19. — This installment is from one of the early fathers and founders of the Old Missouri Synod, Dr. Wilhelm Sihler.  My attention came to one of his sermons through other online sources, notably the 1580 Press, where a portion of an English translation of one of Sihler's sermons was freely available.  Their bibliography indicated that its source was actually a reprint of the translation originally printed in The Lutheran Witness, July 7, 1883, p. 31-32.  However, one discovers that the Witness only translated the first portion (Part I) of the original German language sermon from Sihler's 1883 book Zeit- und Gelegenheits-Predigten (Timely and Occasional Sermons, title page image shown at right). This sermon is available for viewing in Google Books p. 27-34.  And so I determined to finish translating the entire sermon, including the introductory paragraphs and second portion, Part II. — Sihler's preaching may not have been as good as Walther's. Fuerbringer says "Sihler was earnest, stern, exacting in every respect" (Persons and Events, p. 40). Pieper makes no use of his works in his Christian Dogmatics.  Yet he was a true "Missourian" and so would hold to the proper distinction of the Law and Gospel. — The following is largely my translation using the DeepL Translator with only minor use of the Witness. —  In the next Part 5…

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On the Benefits of Sickness.

I am the Lord that healeth thee.  Exodus 15:26

Beloved in Christ!

Without the sad and pitiful sin of our first parents, and the sin inherited from generation to generation through physical procreation, there would be no evil, neither natural nor moral.

But now we are abundantly afflicted with such evils through our sin and God's wrath; and wherever we turn, a veritable flood of hardship, misery, sorrow, and heartache is everywhere to be seen; the evils are almost innumerable, and the earth is indeed a real misery.

Among these multiple evils, these fruits and punishments of sin in Adam, sickness is one of the most widespread evils in the north and south, east and west; likewise, no class of human society is spared from this evil; sickness seizes the rich as well as the poor, the high as well as the low, the learned as well as the unlearned, the educated as well as the uneducated, man as well as woman, parents as children.

But why is disease itself such a widespread and universal evil?

Answer: So that God, through the painful or prolonged sickness of man, that is, sinners, may make it clear to us through God's painful or prolonged sickness, as through His wholesome punishment, that we must die and that we must carry with us a body of death which, after the separation of the soul, becomes a prey to decay and the food of worms, for every sickness is truly a sign and the beginning of death; and just as bodily death is the wages and punishment of sin, [p. 28] so is the sickness of man, the sinner by nature; for as soon as our first parents, after having enjoyed the forbidden fruit, fell victim to the judgment of God – death in time and in eternity – they were at the same time subjected to all sorts of diseases, as harbingers of bodily death, the germs of which are now inherited by us.

But if in general, according to the Word of God, sickness is a consequence and a punishment of our sin in Adam, then the same is true of every single disease of every single human being, if he is unbelieving and unconverted; for the believer, sickness is a consequence of that sin, but not a punishment, but a fatherly chastisement.

But every illness, whether it is the cause or the reason for it, hits the individual man according to God's will. Our Lord God, however, is One who, as the prophet says, "doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men," [Lamentations 3:33] as the devil does; but even in such a visitation he has good in mind for the sick person, and this staff of woe is also indirectly directed towards the eternal salvation of both the curable sinner and the believer.

We now want to ask and answer two questions:

I. To what end does God send sickness?

II. To what end does God work recovery?

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I. To what end does God send sickness?

But before answering this question, it should be noted that there are two kinds of people to whom God sends disease, believers and non-believers, and the Lord, though with the same disease, has a different reckoning with each of them.

What is this then for unbelievers? Answer: It is to be a wholesome chastener in the sick person, and to work and cooperate with the divine Law with its demanding, threatening, and cursing, killing, and condemning, so that he may awaken from his hard sleep of sin, recognize his sins, feels this in his conscience, and confesses repentantly toward God. [click on the "Read more »" below to read the balance]

If the Sun did not rise this morning… (Easter 2020)

      Sunrise in Indiana today was about 7:10 AM. Now to repeat from a previous blog, Walther reported in 1880 that the world says

"that Copernicus has clearly shown that it is not true what the Bible says that the Sun had stood still at Joshua's prayer (Joshua 10:12-14).  But if this is not true, so also is the whole Bible not true."

In its essence, what Walther said was that 

"If the Sun does not rise in the morning, neither did the Son rise on Easter morning."

But how could Walther be so sure of both assertions?  Well, he explicitly tells us, doesn't he?… he asserts that the "whole Bible"… is Truth.  To those Christians who assert the later, but not the former, I must ask them: "Just what is the difference between the clear Scripture testimony of the later with that of the former? (Josh. 10:12-14)" — But I will confess both, with Walther: 

The Sun did rise today, and the Son did rise on Easter morning. ==>> He Is Risen Indeed!

Plague 3- Starck's Prayer Book, Pieper edition (Pt 3)

My mother's copy of Starck-Pieper-Concordia Prayer Book

      This continues from Part 2 in a series (Table of Contents in Part 1) of Old Missouri devotions during a time of Plague or Pestilence as we are experiencing with the Coronavirus or COVID-19. — As in the previous post, I bring another devotional book in my mother's possession that I discovered after her passing many years ago.  It is the 1921 CPH Starck's Prayer Book, From the German Edition of Dr. F. Pieper, and it is available for viewing on Archive.org >> here <<. Her copy had many clippings from other devotional materials that were inserted at various places.   Some words were underlined.  That makes it special for me. The embossed cover of her copy is shown at right, along with images of the author Johann Friedrich Starck and editor Franz Pieper.  This edition was an English translation of Pieper's German edition by Prof. W.H.T. Dau. Dau had to make substantial substitutions for all the rhyming portions, such as the hymns, because of the difficulty of translating these from the German. — What makes this edition so special is that it was edited by Pieper, the greatest teacher of Christian doctrine in the 20th century.  We will make note of Pieper's editing from his added phrase in the devotion below, the highlighted portion in green.

There is much more to say about this edition, including a comparison with the 2009 revised CPH edition of William Weedon, but that will be covered in a future post.
      For now I would highlight Starck's devotion that directly addresses the current situation in the world today, a "pestilence".  I am using only Dau's translation for the devotional portion, but for the prayer-poem and the hymn, I am adding my translation of Pieper's German edition.  Dau's edition can be viewed directly on pages 502-505 here, Pieper's German edition is here.

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The Believing Christian Prays in Time of Pestilence.

EXHORTATION.

But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord, thy God, … that all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee. … The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until He have consumed thee from off the land. … The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. Deut. 28:15, 21-22.

When wrath, tribulation, and anguish is come upon those that do evil, Rom. 2:8-9, contagious diseases and pestilence must certainly be included in that anguish. To a large extent this plague comes, (1) when men put no faith in the word of warning and admonition, Num. 14:12; (2) when men serve God only outwardly and not with the heart, Jer. 14:12; (3) when they even put God out of their minds entirely by their disobedience, Jer. 24:10; 27:9; (4) when they despise the servants of God, Jer. 29:17; (5) when the people become bold and unruly, Ezek. 14:19; (6) when fornication and murder are rampant, Ezek. 33:26-27; (7) when no admonition to repentance is any longer heeded, Amos 4:10; (8) on account of adultery, Num. 25:9; (9) on account of blasphemy, 2 Kings 19:35; (10) on account of pride, 2 Sam. 24:15; and also on account of other sins. Now, when this chastisement is inflicted by God, it is necessary that men repent, because the Lord suffers Himself to be entreated according to His mercy; hence David from among three plagues chose this one rather than the others.

PRAYER.

O Thou strong and mighty God, great is Thy wrath against wilful sinners, who will not let Thy benefactions lead them to repentance. For a time Thou dealest with men like a loving father, who seeks with much patience to draw his disobedient children to himself, but afterwards, when men wantonly abuse Thy grace, Thou manifestest Thyself as a stern Judge. We, too, are experiencing this now, O just God; we hear that in many places a contagious disease has appeared, which devours many thousands of people, so that there are corpses in nearly every house, and there are not enough hands to bury them. We are consumed by Thine anger, and by Thy wrath are we troubled. Have we not strong reasons to fear that Thou wilt send this spreading contagion also into our borders and our city”? O jealous God, we need not think that those on whom Thy heavy rod is now descending are sinners above the rest; rather we must confess that we all deserve to perish like them. There is found among us security, contempt of Thy Holy Word, stiff-neckedness, dissipation, fornication, unrighteousness, voluptuousness, and pride. Yea, there is scarcely any fear of God in our land; the godly man ceases, and the faithful fail from among the children of men. If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquity, O Lord, who shall stand?

O Lord, Lord, when Thou saidst, Seek ye My face, my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek. [Ps. 27:8] Thou hast no pleasure in the death of the sinner, but that the sinner turn from his way and live. Therefore, we abhor ourselves and repent in dust and ashes. Do not look upon our manifold sins; graciously pronounce us not guilty; succor us in our distress, and remove all punishments from us. We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly. Command the destroying angel who is wielding the sword of vengeance to cease, and say to him, It is enough. Let us live, and we will glorify Thy name. Though we do not deserve any mercy, yet we are in need of it. Though we are all children of death, yet Thou hast promised the penitent that Thou wouldst exercise mercy instead of justice towards them.

Oh, grant us Thy grace and life, for Jesus’ sake, our only Mediator and Advocate. Have mercy, have mercy upon us, O God of mercy! Be gracious unto us; spare us, good Lord; be gracious unto us; help us, good Lord, our God. Have mercy on the poor and afflicted who have been seized with this violent pestilence, who must suffer hunger and grief, who are destitute of all nursing care, and forsaken by all men. Lead them to the knowledge of Thy grace in Christ, Thy dear Son; aid them with Thy comfort, and let Thy Spirit witness unto their spirit that they are God’s children, though they may have to die of this plague. O Lord, hear our prayer; protect our fatherland, and we shall say: The Lord hath done great things for us. Yea, Thou canst deliver all who come to Thee.

(Starck-Pieper original, translated) O Lord God, by your faithfulness Appear to us with comfort and salvation Prove to us your great mercy And do not punish us in the act; Attend us with your kindness,  Your wrath and fury be far from us. Amen.

(Dau substitution – rhymes) What God wills, that I am willing.  Can I ever say Him nay?  Fire and flood His deed fulfilling  Making for His feet a way.  Ah! God’s yea and nay shall be  Ever yea and nay to me.  What God wills as to correcting,  That shall always be my rule.  Why should pupil make objection,  Sitting in the Master’s school?  Flesh and blood the stroke would shun,  Still I say, God’s will he done.  What God wills when I am praying,  As to measure, time, and term,  I can trust e’en His delaying,  That may be His glory’s germ.  Give He many, give He few,  What have I with that to do? Amen.

Hymn (Starck-Pieper original, translated) 1. What great fear and heartache  Let us experience from God now,  In these miserable times.  Hovering in agony,  And nigh, O horrible judgment,  In the face of the strangling angel  Tremble and shake! [Pieper omitted 2 of Starck's verses] 2. Righteous God, Thou hast caused  Us to hear and all but see,  And speaks thereby: Come, see!  So shall it be with you,  When you are aware of your iniquity,  Who made me angry,  None will soon stand.  3. Oh, yes, the great security  No one can nearly describe it,  One knows of no piety,  Everyone is adrift.  Of lies, deceit, debauchery,  Contempt for God, hypocrisy,  And so one wants to remain.  4. Wilt thou, according to the measure of our sins  Bind the sharp rod,  And our wickedness, envy, and hate  Together with other grave sins  Punish with plague and pestilence,  Of which thou wilt make us hear much,  Alas, who shall find grace?  5. O God, we fall at Thy feet,  Oh, Father, spare, gentle!  With tears we repent heartily  Before your mercy seat;  Remember not what we have done,  And yet look at us in mercy.  In Christ, Thy Son.  6. In Jesus’ wounds would we Wrap ourselves in faith,  We bring blood here before Thee,  For the sake of this blood  Thou wilt to the poor show mercy,  Can alone this hot blood  Quench the wrath’s flood.  7. Grant us fresh air And give us life,  Banish the poisonous scent of plague;  If thou wilt grant us this,  So let heart, mind, and mouth  Lift up praise and glory to Thee  With a thousand thanks.

Hymn (Dau substitution – rhymes) We know not how, o God, that Thou wilt move  Thy great, eternal majesty to prove. Not only in the sunshine of this life, But in its darker hours, and times of strife, E’en then we see Thy will, and humbly bend  To that which seemeth best for Thee to send. And yet in our own weakness oft we strive  To rise above the ills which round us thrive; We battle single-handed with the wrong  That seeks to weigh us down the whole day long.  But now at eventide we pray to Thee  For strength to help us gain the victory. O Father, teach us that the darker hours  Are needed to bring forth more perfect flowers,  Cleanse Thou our minds, and make us know aright  That vales of darkness lead to clearer light — For this we humbly ask, most gracious God, E’en though we pass beneath Thy chastening rod. To us, so weak, the load seems ofttimes hard, And, sorely pressed, we see not the reward; We do not try to pierce the cloud of grief, Or seek the hand which brings to us relief. But open, Lord, we pray, our sin-blind eyes  And make us see from whence our help will rise. Give us clean hands, a broken, contrite heart, That we may choose naught but the better part,  Help us to offer unto Thee our lives  One pure, entire, unbroken sacrifice — Then we may hope for glory at the last, When earthly trials and struggles all are past.

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      We note Pieper's inserted phrase above – "Lead them to the knowledge of Thy grace in Christ, Thy dear Son".  Why was Pieper compelled to add this phrase?  Because Starck was a Lutheran Pietist.  The background on the weaknesses of Pietism will be covered in a later blog about Starck and his popular Prayer Book – 174 editions, and "perhaps the most widely used prayer-book in the Lutheran Church.").  But we can already see why Pieper needed to edit it before it could be considered truly Lutheran. — In the next Part 4 (Sihler)…