Sunday, June 30, 2024

"Jesaia dem Propheten das" (#147)

German text in the Gesangbuch:
Jesaia, dem Propheten das geschah,
daß er im Geist den Herren sitzen sah
auf einem hohen Thron in hellem Glanz,
seines Kleides Saum den Chor füllet ganz.
Es stunden zween Seraph bei ihm daran,
sechs Flügel sah er einen jeden han;
mit zween verbargen sie ihr Antlitz klar,
mit zween bedeckten sie die Füße gar
und mit den andern zween sie flogen frei,
gen ander riefen sie mit großem G'schrei:
Heilig ist Gott, der Herre Zebaoth!
Heilig ist Gott, der Herre Zebaoth!
Heilig ist Gott, der Herre Zebaoth!
Sein Ehr die ganze Welt erfüllet hat.
Von dem G'schrei zittert Schwell und Balken gar,
das Haus auch ganz voll Rauchs und Nebels war.
Dr. M. Luther, 1526.
My prose translation:
It happened to Isaiah the prophet
That he, in the Spirit, saw the Lord sitting
On a high throne in bright glory,
The hem of His clothes completely filled the temple.
Two seraphim stood with Him there;
He saw [that] each one has six wings;
With two they hid their faces clear;
With two they completely covered their feet;
And with the other two they flew freely;
To one an-other they called with a great shout:
Holy is God, the Lord of hosts!
Holy is God, the Lord of hosts!
Holy is God, the Lord of hosts!
His glory has filled the whole world.
From the shout even the threshold and beams shake;
The house also was completely full of smoke and mist.
Dr. M. Luther, 1526.
Above the text in the Gesangbuch, there's the note "Jesaia Kapitel VI," indicating that the text comes from Isaiah 6.

This hymn appears as "Isaiah, Mighty Seer, in Days of Old" in The Lutheran Hymnal (#249), "Isaiah, Mighty Seer, in Spirit Soared" in Lutheran Worship (#214), and "Isaiah, Mighty Seer in Days of Old" in The Lutheran Service Book (#960).  In all of these, and as the Gesangbuch notes, the text is sung to "its own melody."  Here's the TLH arrangement, albeit without the tenor part (because it fell below standard guitar tuning):