Psalter Hymnal (Gray) ‎#254

254. Remember Not, O God

1 Remember not, O God,
the sins of long ago;
in tender mercy visit us,
distressed and humbled low.

2 O Lord, our Savior, help,
and glorify your name;
deliver us from all our sins
and take away our shame.

3 Then, safe within your fold,
we will exalt your name;
our thankful hearts with songs of joy
your goodness will proclaim.

Text Information

• First Line: Remember not, O God
• Title: Remember Not, O God
• Meter: SM
• Language: English
• Publication Date: 1987
• Scripture:
  Psalm 79
• Topic: Confession and Forgiveness; Confession of Sin; Forgiveness
• Source: Psalter, 1912

Tune Information

• Name: GORTON
• Composer: Ludwig von Beethoven (1807, adapt.)
• Meter: SM
• Key: A♭ Major

Text Information:

Scripture References:
st.1 = Ps. 79:8
st.2 = Ps. 79:9
st.3 = Ps. 79:13

A versification of part of Psalm 79, "Remember Not, O God" comes from the 1912 Psalter with minor alterations. In lament style, this prayer asks for deliverance from sin and then vows to praise God forever. See PHH 79 for further commentary on Psalm 79.

Liturgical Use:
Service of confession and forgiveness. See also PHH 79.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook

Tune Information:

The tune GORTON derives from the second movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 23, Opus 57 (1807); however, the arranger and any significance to the tune title are unknown. GORTON was published with this versification of Psalm 79 in the 1912 Psalter. Sing this tune in parts, beginning very quietly and building to a fuller sound on each successive stanza. Try the first stanza in parts but unaccompanied after a chord or two on the organ to get the congregation started. Sing two long lines for each stanza.

A giant in the history of music, Beethoven (b. Bonn, Germany, 1770; d. Vienna, Austria, 1827) progressed from early musical promise to worldwide, lasting fame. By the age of fourteen he was an accomplished viola and organ player, but he became famous primarily because of his compositions, including nine symphonies, eleven overtures, thirty piano sonatas, sixteen string quartets, the Mass in C, and the Missa Solemnis. He wrote no music for congregational use, but various arrangers, including Gardiner (PHH 1ll), adapted some of his musical themes as hymn tunes; the most famous of these is ODE TO JOY from the Ninth Symphony. Although it would appear that the great calamity of Beethoven's life was his loss of hearing, which turned to total deafness during the last decade of his life, he composed his greatest works during this period.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook