Musical Notes

Hello OCBC family,
“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation” (Isaiah 12:2)

This passage is part of a song of worship by Isaiah, a passage that points out that God is our salvation, therefore we can trust in Him, even during difficult times. As a musician, this passage gives me some words of encouragement, because Isaiah says that Lord Jehovah is my (our) strength but also my (our) song. Therefore, when we sing praises to the Lord, we say that he is our strength and our salvation. This is a wonderful picture of the joy of the people when Jesus comes to reign over the earth. And this passage is the basis for the hymn that we sang last week, “I Greet Thee Who My Sure Redeemer Art.”

“I greet Thee, who my sure Redeemer art,
my only trust and Savior of my heart,
who pain didst undergo for my poor sake;
I pray Thee from our hearts all cares to take.”

This loved hymn has a deep theology, and the author is putting all his trust in the Lord alone. But, who wrote this hymn? For many years, hymnologists thought that this hymn was written by John Calvin, but it is not true. The connection of the French theologian with this hymn is because it became very popular in the Genevan Psalter created in 1551, but the hymn itself was written in 1545.

“Thou art the King of mercy and of grace,
reigning omnipotent in every place:
so come, O King, and our whole being sway;
shine on us with the light of thy pure day.”

The lyrics that we sing in our worship services were written by Elizabeth L. Smith, born in 1817, daughter of Dr. W. Allen, President of Dartmouth University. Then she married in 1843 to Dr. H. B. Smith, who became Professor in Union Theological Seminary, New York, in 1850. She translated many hymns into English.

“Thou art the Life, by which alone we live,
and all our substance and our strength receive;
O comfort us in death's approaching hour,
strong-hearted then to face it by Thy pow'r.”

The tune is a very easy tune to sing, and it was originally used to sing a meter version of Psalm 124. The name of the tune is Toulon. The composer was Louis Bourgeois, a French musician that wrote many melodies for the Genevan Psalter.

“Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness,
no harshness hast Thou and no bitterness:
make us to taste the sweet grace found in Thee
and ever stay in Thy sweet unity.”

Let me share with you the words of Paul from Galatians 1:4, “Who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.”

“Our hope is in no other save in Thee;
our faith is built upon Thy promise free;
O grant to us such stronger hope and sure
that we can boldly conquer and endure.”

Trust in the Lord, dear brother and sister, don’t be afraid, he is your strength, your song, and your salvation.
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In His service,
Israel