"" (O Eternity, you word of thunder) is a

Lutheran hymn Martin Luther was a great enthusiast for music, and this is why it forms a large part of Lutheran services; in particular, Luther admired the composers Josquin des Prez and Ludwig Senfl and wanted singing in the church to move away from the '' ...

in German, with text by

Johann Rist Johann Rist (8 March 1607 – 31 August 1667) was a German poet and dramatist best known for his hymns, which inspired musical settings and have remained in hymnals. Life Rist was born at Ottensen in Holstein-Pinneberg (today Hamburg) on 8 Marc ...

, first published in

Lüneburg Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also calle ...

in 1642. It was translated into English in several versions. The hymn was used in cantata music, including Bach's first

chorale cantata A chorale cantata is a church cantata based on a chorale—in this context a Lutheran chorale. It is principally from the Germany, German Baroque music, Baroque era. The organizing principle is the words and music of a Lutheran hymn. Usually a chora ...

of his second cantata cycle, BWV 20.

History

Rist wrote "" as a poem in 16 stanzas. He published it first in his collection ''Himlische Lieder'' (Heavenly songs) in

in 1642, p. 51, in 16 stanzas of 8 lines, entitled "An earnest contemplation of the unending Eternity." It was printed in Burg's ''Gesang-Buch'' in Breslau in 1746 in full length. Later editions often shortened the song. The melody was written by

Johann Schop Johann Schop (ca. 1590 – 1644) was a German violinist and composer, much admired as a musician and a technician, who was a virtuoso and whose compositions for the violin set impressive technical demands for that area at that time. In 1756 ...

for "Wach auf, mein Geist, erhebe dich". It was adapted by

Johann Crüger Johann Crüger (9 April 1598 – 23 February 1662) was a German composer of well-known hymns. He was also the editor of the most widely used Lutheran hymnal of the 17th century, ''Praxis pietatis melica''. Early life and education Crüger was bo ...

for "" when he published it in the 1653 edition of his hymnal ''

Praxis Praxis may refer to: Philosophy and religion * Praxis (process), the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practised, embodied, or realised * Praxis model, a way of doing theology * Praxis (Byzantine Rite), the practice of fai ...

''. A translation, "Eternity! tremendous Word, Home-striking Point, Heart-piercing Sword", by John Christian Jacobi appeared in 1722, translating 12 stanzas. "Eternity! terrific word", a translation of stanzas 1, 3, 12 and 16, appeared in the American Lutheran General Synod's Collection in 1850, possibly by

William Morton Reynolds William Morton Reynolds (4 March 1812 – 5 September 1876) was a Lutheran and later Episcopal minister in the United States, professor of Latin, and President of Capital University at Columbus, Ohio, and of the Illinois State University. He was a ...

. It was reprinted in the Ohio Lutheran Hymnal of 1880. Another translation, "Eternity! most awful word" by

Arthur Tozer Russell Arthur Tozer Russell (1806–1874) was an English clergyman known as a hymnwriter. Life The elder son of Thomas Russell, he was born at Northampton on 20 March 1806. He received his early education at St. Saviour's School, Southwark, and Merchan ...

appeared in his ''Psalms & Hymns'' in 1851, based on stanzas 1, 2, 9 and 16. A fourth translation, "Eternity, thou word of fear", of stanzas 1, 9, 13 and 16 by

Edward Thring Edward Thring (29 November 1821 – 22 October 1887) was a celebrated British educator. He was headmaster of Uppingham School (1853–1887) and founded the Headmasters' Conference in 1869. Life Thring was born at Alford, Somerset, the son of th ...

was printed in the ''Uppingham and Sherborne School Hymn Book'' in 1874.

Text

The text is in 16 stanzas of 8 lines each, with a rhyme scheme AABCCBDD. In a

bar form Bar form (German: ''die Barform'' or ''der Bar'') is a musical form of the pattern AAB. Original use The term comes from the rigorous terminology of the Meistersinger guilds of the 15th to 18th century who used it to refer to their songs and the ...

, the stollen have three lines each, while the abgesang has only two lines. In the first edition, a title reads: "An earnest contemplation of the unending Eternity". It has been described as "an impressive and strongly coloured hymn".

Musical settings

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesh ...

composed a church cantata: ''O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort'' in 1723. The hymn is used in several of Bach's

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

s. In ''O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort'', BWV 60, composed for the 24th Sunday after

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

and first performed on 7 November 1723, the first stanza is used in the opening movement. ''O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort'', BWV 20, is a chorale cantata for the first Sunday after Trinity. Bach used three stanzas unchanged and the melody in three movements, and treated paraphrases of the other stanzas in

recitative Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repea ...

s and

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

s. It was the first cantata in his second cantata cycle which was meant to contain only chorale cantatas. Organ preludes were written by Baroque composers such as Tobias Zeutschner, published in ''Musicalischer Vorschmack'' in Ratzeburg in 1683,

Johann Gottfried Walther Johann Gottfried Walther (18 September 1684 – 23 March 1748) was a German music theorist, organist, composer, and lexicographer of the Baroque era. Walther was born at Erfurt. Not only was his life almost exactly contemporaneous to that ...

and

Johann Tobias Krebs Johann Tobias Krebs (7 July 1690 – 11 February 1762) was a German organist and composer, today best remembered as the father of Johann Ludwig Krebs, one of Bach's most accomplished pupils. Krebs was born in Heichelheim and went to school i ...

. In the 20th century,

Sigfrid Karg-Elert Sigfrid Karg-Elert (November 21, 1877April 9, 1933) was a German composer in the early twentieth century, best known for his compositions for pipe organ and reed organ. Biography Karg-Elert was born Siegfried Theodor Karg in Oberndorf am Neckar, ...

set the hymn as No. 42 of his 66 Chorale improvisations for organ, published in 1909, and

Felix Draeseke Felix August Bernhard Draeseke (7 October 1835 – 26 February 1913) was a composer of the "New German School" admiring Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner. He wrote compositions in most forms including eight operas and stage works, four symphonies, ...

composed a chorale prelude the same year, among others.

References

{{Authority control Lutheran hymns 17th-century hymns in German