"" (, original: ) 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 '' ...

Justus Jonas Justus Jonas, the Elder (5 June 1493 – 9 October 1555), or simply Justus Jonas, was a German Lutheran theologian and reformer. He was a Jurist, Professor and Hymn writer. He is best known for his translations of the writings of Martin Luthe ...

, a paraphrase of

Psalm 124 Psalm 124 is the 124th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English of the King James Version: "If it had not been the who was on our side, now may Israel say". The Book of Psalms is part of the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and a ...

in eight stanzas. It was first published in 1524 in the Erfurt ''Enchiridion''. The theme of the psalm is the need of help against raging enemies. It has been translated also as "Where the Lord God does not stand (stay) with us", "If God the Lord is not with us", "If God the Lord is not on our side", among others.

History

Jonas wrote the hymn on a request by

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...

in 1524. He combined the ideas of Psalm 124 with passages from Psalm 12 and other Biblical motifs. The text was first published in the Erfurt ''Enchiridion'', a hymnal of 26 songs including 18 by Luther, "

Es ist das Heil uns kommen her "Es ist das Heil uns kommen her" (originally: "Es ist das heyl vns kommen her", English: "Salvation now has come for all" or more literally: It is our salvation come here to us) is a Lutheran hymn in 14 stanzas by Paul Speratus. It was first pub ...

" and other hymns by Paul Speratus, "" by

Elisabeth Cruciger Elisabeth Cruciger (also spelled Kreuziger, Creutziger etc.; née von Meseritz) (c. 1500 - 2 May 1535), a German writer, was the first female poet and hymnwriter of the Protestant Reformation and a friend of Martin Luther. Life Elisabeth von ...

, and others. Luther himself published his own paraphrase of Psalm 124 in three stanzas, ". The current German Protestant hymnal ' has as EG 297 a combination of Jonas' stanzas 1, 2, 5 and 6, and Luther's 2 and 3 (as 3 and 4).

Music

hymn tune A hymn tune is the melody of a musical composition to which a hymn text is sung. Musically speaking, a hymn is generally understood to have four-part (or more) harmony, a fast harmonic rhythm (chords change frequently), with or without refrain ...

for Jonas's hymn was published in 1525 in

Zwickau Zwickau (; is, with around 87,500 inhabitants (2020), the fourth-largest city of Saxony after Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz and it is the seat of the Zwickau District. The West Saxon city is situated in the valley of the Zwickau Mulde (German: ' ...

( Zahn No. 4440). published two melodies for the hymn in the 1535 edition of his hymnal: Zahn Nos. 4441a and 4442. Another hymn tune, Zahn No. 4443, was published in Leipzig, in

Ernst Vögelin Ernst Vögelin (August 10, 1529 - 1589Vögelin, Ernst (1529 - 1589)
als
The hymn is the base for several compositions. An early four-part setting was written by

Johann Walter Johann Walter, also known as ''Johann Walther'' or ''Johannes Walter'' (original name: ''Johann Blankenmüller'') (1496 – 25 March 1570) was a Lutheran composer and poet during the Reformation period. Life Walter was born in Kahla, in present-d ...

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

composed a

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 ...

BWV 178 The (BWV; ; ) is a catalogue of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was first published in 1950, edited by Wolfgang Schmieder. The catalogue's second edition appeared in 1990. An abbreviated version of that second edition, known as BWV2a ...

, based on Jonas's hymn and the Zahn 4441a tune, the eighth cantata of his second annual cycle, first performed on 30 July 1724. He also wrote a chorale fantasia, BWV 1128, believed to date from between 1705 and 1710, which was discovered in 2008. Chorale preludes were written by

Johann Christoph Bach Johann Christoph Bach (baptised – 31 March 1703) was a German composer and organist of the Baroque period. He was born at Arnstadt, the son of Heinrich Bach, Johann Sebastian Bach's first cousin once removed and the first cousin of J.S. ...

and

Johann Pachelbel Johann Pachelbel (baptised – buried 9 March 1706; also Bachelbel) was a German composer, organist, and teacher who brought the south German organ schools to their peak. He composed a large body of sacred and secularity, secular music, and h ...

, vocal works were composed by

Michael Altenburg Michael Altenburg (27 May 1584 – 12 February 1640) was a German theologian and composer. Altenburg was born at Alach, near Erfurt. He began attending school in Erfurt in 1590; he began studying theology at the University of Erfurt in 1598, ...

Christoph Graupner Christoph Graupner (13 January 1683 – 10 May 1760) was a German composer and harpsichordist of late Baroque music who was a contemporary of Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Philipp Telemann and George Frideric Handel. Life Born in Hartmannsdorf ...

Johann Hermann Schein Johann Hermann Schein (20 January 1586 – 19 November 1630) was a German composer of the early Baroque era. He was Thomaskantor in Leipzig from 1615 to 1630. He was one of the first to import the early Italian stylistic innovations into German ...

and

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

, among others.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wo Gott Der Herr Nicht Bei Uns Halt 1524 works 16th-century hymns in German Lutheran hymns based on Psalms Hymn tunes