Weblog Entry - 01/31/2003: "Wesley Night"

01/31/2003 Entry: "Wesley Night"

Friday is a good day to hear something from the Wesley's I think, this time a hymn for which John is responsible. It's a translation of a German hymn, but it can be truly called "Wesleyan".

Thou hidden love of God, whose height,Whose depth unfathomed no one knows,I see from afar thy beauteous light,And inly sigh for thy repose;My heart is pained, nor can it beAt rest, till it finds rest in Thee.
Thy secret voice invites me stillThe sweetness of thy yoke to prove;And fain I would; but though my willSeems fixed, yet wide my passions rove;Yet hindrances strew all the way;I aim at Thee, yet from Thee stray.
’Tis mercy all that Thou has broughtMy mind to seek its peace in Thee;Yet while I seek, but find Thee not,No peace my wandering soul shall see.O when shall all my wanderings end,And all my steps to theeward tend?
Is there a thing beneath the sunThat strives with Thee my heart to share?Ah, tear it hence and reign alone,The Lord of every motion there;Then shall my heart from earth be free,When it hath found repose in Thee.
O hide this self from me, that INo more, but Christ in me, may live!My vile affections crucify,Nor let one darling lust surviveIn all things nothing may I see,Nothing desire or seek, but Thee!
O Love, thy sovereign aid impartTo save me from low thought care;Chase this self will from all my heart,From all its hidden mazes there;Make me Thy duteous child that ICeaseless may “Abba, Father” cry.
Ah no! ne’er will I backward turn:Thine wholly, Thine alone I am!Thrice happy he who views with scornEarth’s toys, for Thee his constant Flame;O help that I may never moveFrom the blest footsteps of Thy love!
Each moment draw from earth awayMy heart that lowly waits Thy call;Speak to my inmost soul and say,“I am thy love, thy God, thy all!”To feel Thy power, to hear Thy voice,To taste Thy love, be all my choice.

Replies:

I suspect the tune Carroll cites is the one that Wesley himself probably used - in Britain we generally sing it to a Victorian tune.In the old Methodist Hymn Book the hymn is headed "Verborgne Gottesliebe du", which I assume is the first line of the original German.

Posted by Richard @ 02/01/2003 08:37 AM CST

Thou Hidden Love of God.... Words ..Gerhard Tersteegen 1697-1769....Trans. by John Wesley,1703-1791....Music,Geistliche Lieder,Leipzig,1539.....harm. from J.S. Bach,1726....tune, VATER UNSER 88.88.88

Posted by Carroll @ 02/01/2003 03:25 AM CST

What's the name/ first line of the original German hymn? Who's the author of the German words? I ask because I'd like to find and read that German original.

Posted by Swan @ 02/01/2003 02:22 AM CST

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