Paul Gerhardt's hymns - complete listing, translated: “he sang the Gospel”; Willkomm's “Foreword”

      Paul Gerhardt is recognized within the Lutheran Church as its greatest hymn writer, after Martin Luther.  I recently learned of a complete listing of Gerhardt's hymns that was published in Germany in 1906 for the 300-year Jubilee: Paul Gerhardts sämtliche Lieder. Jubiläums-Volksausgabe.  I had to see how the hymn verses would translate with the DeepL Translator.  I was rather surprised at the results, and decided to publish them below, even though it is only a machine translation.  Many hours were spent hyperlinking this.  It can be useful in comparing to published English language hymnals, to see how faithful the human translators were to Gerhardt's original meaning in the original German language.  It may even stir someone into producing their own polished translations into English, or other languages, for their own hymns. 

      What pleased me most when finding this listing was that the “Foreword” was written by Otto Willkomm, a companion missionary of Carl Manthey Zorn who also left the erring Leipzig Mission Society (pictured here).  Willkomm, rather than emigrate to America with Zorn, stayed in Germany and became President of the separated Lutheran Free Church after the passing of Pastor Ruhland.  (He also wrote the “Foreword” to the book of Pastor Ruhland's sermons.) — 

      >>> So what made the hymns of Paul Gerhardt so special?  Read Willkomm's “Foreword”, which gives perhaps the greatest tribute to Gerhardt, given for the 300-year Jubilee celebration. This “Foreword” deserves to be given prominence here:

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Foreword.

The Lutheran Church owes its name of the singing church to the Reformer and his followers. For Luther was not only the brave confessor, but also a God-gifted singer of God's great miracle, and with his childlike, simple songs, yet so deeply grounded in the Word of God, he sang the Gospel, for which he risked his life, into the hearts of the German people. That is why he is justly called the Wittenberg Nightingale. But the fact that the Lutheran church has remained the singing church is due in large part to Paul Gerhardt, whose complete hymns are herewith presented again to the German people in a jubilee edition. Paul Gerhardt is a singer of the Lutheran Church, the church of the pure word and sacrament. Like Luther's and his contemporaries and pupils, a Speratus, Nik. Hermann, Joh. Matthesius, Nik. Selnecker, and others, Gerhardt's songs contain pure doctrine, the doctrine of the divine Word. Although in them the subjective moment asserts itself more strongly, in that the poet dwells more on what we humans feel in relation to the divine acts of salvation, and emphasizes more what God works in us and accomplishes through us, and has composed special songs for almost all situations and circumstances of human life, his songs are just as far from playing with human emotions, as is found in the pietistic songs, as from (page IV) the dry manner with which the rationalist songs refer to the particular circumstances. Gerhardt's songs rest firmly on God's clear and true word. They are far from any deviation from the wholesome example of the apostolic and prophetic words. It has been dared to claim that Gerhardt, the indomitable confessor and tolerator of the elector's efforts at union, has promoted the union through his songs more than the elector. For many of his songs were such that they could also be sung by Reformed people. This is certainly true with regard to songs that deal with general Christian truths. But that a Reformed person could honestly sing Gerhardt's songs about baptism and the Lord's Supper is inconceivable, because in them the glorious benefits of the sacraments are praised above all, but this is done only on the basis of a clearly expressed confession of the essence of the sacraments. Nor are the various situations and conditions of human life, together with their duties, discussed in a rational manner, but are praised from God's Word and illuminated with God's Word.

Paul Gerhardt is in a special way the singer of the Lutheran Church of all times and places. His songs are so full of poetry and melody that everyone likes to sing them and they have therefore caught on very quickly, to which, of course, the work of the composer, the cantor Johannes Crüger, has contributed a great deal. But this work was greatly facilitated precisely by the melodic manner of Gerhardt's poems. And because Gerhardt's songs are truly poetic, they have also survived the attempts at improvement and watering down of later times, (page V) and so they are still alive among the people almost in their original form. At least this is true of a number of them, which form, so to speak, the iron stock of every hymnbook. And quite a number of Gerhardt's songs have been translated into foreign languages, partly in the same rhythm.

In March of next year (it is no longer possible to determine the day, but the 12th of March is usually given), it will be 300 years since this God-gifted singer was born. This anniversary will be celebrated in many places. But so that it does not pass without lasting blessing, there is nothing better than that his songs, all his songs, should again become quite well known. To make this possible is the purpose of this inexpensive jubilee popular edition of his songs. May the purpose be achieved and this booklet with its beautiful content become a companion for many through good and bad days, cheerful and gloomy hours! May the words of the well-tried cross-bearer be a balm for many sore hearts!

So go forth, dear little book, and in this last afflicted time, help the Christian people of the German tongue to praise the one of whom Gerhardt sings:

“My consolation, my treasure, my light and salvation,

My highest good and life”,

and continue with such praise until it becomes

“My weeping shall be wine,

My moans will be pure rejoicing!”

O. Willkomm.

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Paul Gerhardt: not Pietist, not Rationalist, not Reformed, but Lutheran.

     What a thrill it was to read Willkomm's words which even more encouraged me to produce the below translated and hyperlinked document:

The above English translated file may be directly accessed here;   

For German readers, the original German text is available here (with hyperlinks).

      As Willkomm sent out his “dear little book”, so I send out the above translation of his book “in this last afflicted time, (to) help the Christian people of the German English tongue.”  SDG.