Farewell I Gladly Bid Thee

Representative Text

1 Farewell I gladly bid thee,
False, evil world, farewell.
Thy life is vain and sinful,
With thee I would not dwell.
I long to be in heaven,
In that untroubled sphere
Where they will be rewarded
Who served their God while here.

2 By Thy good counsel lead me,
O Son of God, my Stay;
In each perplexing trial
Help me, O Lord, I pray.
Mine hour of sorrow shorten,
Support my fainting heart,
From ev'ry cross deliver,
The crown of life impart.

3 When darkness round me gathers,
Thy name and cross, still bright,
Deep in my heart are sparkling
Like stars in blackest night.
O heart, this image cherish:
The Christ on Calvary,
How patiently He suffered
And shed His blood for me!

4 Lord, hide my soul securely
Deep in Thy wounded side;
From ev'ry danger shield me
And to Thy glory guide.
He has been truly blessed
Who reaches heav'n above;
He has found perfect healing
Who rests upon Thy love.

5 Lord, write my name, I pray Thee,
Now in the Book of Life,
And with all true believers
Take me where joys are rife.
There let me bloom and flourish,
Thy perfect freedom prove,
And tell, as I adore Thee,
How faithful was Thy love.



Source: Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary #535

Author: Valerius Herberger

Herberger, Valerius, son of Martin Herberger, furrier and poet at Fraustadt, Posen, was born at Fraustadt, April 21, 1562. He studied theology at the Universities of Frankfurt a. Oder and Leipzig, and became in 1584 master of the lower classes in the school at Fraustadt. In 1590 he was appointed diaconus of St. Mary's Church, Fraustadt, and in 1599 chief pastor; but in 1604 he and his flock were ousted from the church by King Sigismund III., of Poland, for the sake of the few Roman Catholics in the place. Out of two houses near one of the gates of the town they made a meeting-place, to which, as the first service was held on Christmas Eve, the name of the "Kripplein Christi" was given. He died at Fraustadt, May 18,1627 (Koch, ii. 301-311; A… Go to person page >

Translator: Catherine Winkworth

Catherine Winkworth (b. Holborn, London, England, 1827; d. Monnetier, Savoy, France, 1878) is well known for her English translations of German hymns; her translations were polished and yet remained close to the original. Educated initially by her mother, she lived with relatives in Dresden, Germany, in 1845, where she acquired her knowledge of German and interest in German hymnody. After residing near Manchester until 1862, she moved to Clifton, near Bristol. A pioneer in promoting women's rights, Winkworth put much of her energy into the encouragement of higher education for women. She translated a large number of German hymn texts from hymnals owned by a friend, Baron Bunsen. Though often altered, these translations continue to be used i… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Farewell I gladly bid thee
Title: Farewell I Gladly Bid Thee
German Title: Valet will ich dir geben
Author: Valerius Herberger (1613)
Translator: Catherine Winkworth (1863)
Meter: 7.6.7.6.7.6.7.6
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Tune

ST. THEODULPH (Teschner)

Now often named ST. THEODULPH because of its association with this text, the tune is also known, especially in organ literature, as VALET WILL ICH DIR GEBEN. It was composed by Melchior Teschner (b. Fraustadt [now Wschowa, Poland], Silesia, 1584; d. Oberpritschen, near Fraustadt, 1635) for "Valet wi…

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Timeline

Media

The Cyber Hymnal #1436
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)

Instances

Instances (1 - 16 of 16)

Book of Hymns for the Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Wisconsin and Other States #d60

Book of Hymns for the joint Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan and other states #d58

TextPage Scan

Chorale Book for England, The #137

Evangelical Lutheran Hymn Book with Tunes #d92

TextPage Scan

Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-book #371

TextPage Scan

Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-book #532

TextPage Scan

Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary #535

Evangelical Lutheran Hymnbook (Lutheran Conference of Missouri and Other States) #d74

Hymn Book for the use of Evangelical Lutheran Schools and Congregations #d26

TextPage Scan

Hymn Book #116

Page Scan

Hymnal for Evangelical Lutheran Missions #184

TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #1436

Text

The Lutheran Hymnal #407

The Selah Song Book (Das Sela Gesangbuch) #d160

Page Scan

The Selah Song Book (Das Sela Gesangbuch) (2nd ed) #514a

The Selah Song Book. Word ed. #d82

Exclude 14 pre-1979 instances
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