The Bible As Hymnal Part 2: Beyond Psalms

Inspired Songs
A study of the poetry of the Bible including
an introduction to the Book of Psalms

A “Lessons-to-Go” study
by Mark S. Pavlin
Inspired Songs

Part 2: Sacred poetry
not in the Book of Psalms
Inspired Songs
Session 1
Beyond Psalms

Part 1 of this study...
... Emphasized that an important guide for under-
standing and appreciating passages in Scripture is
to identify what kind of text it is: narrative, story-
telling parable, genealogy, prophecy, or, maybe....

.... Poetry
If the text is printed in verse form then it
might be poetry but this is not a guarantee
Don’t expect the verses to rhyme or
have meter since Biblical Hebrew poetry
doesn’t employ these familiar devices.
Furthermore, a passage can be a narra-
tive-poem, or a prophecy-poem, etc. In
fact, it is possible to understand most of
the OT as poetry.
This makes sense – in pre-literate soci-
eties, important stories and teachings
were handed down orally; poetry was
easier to memorize than prose.
“Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood.” - T. S. Eliot
“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has
found words.” - Robert Frost

Many places, many times
We find sacred poetry in many places inside and outside of Scripture,
in the Book of Psalms and beyond this one OT book.
There is poetry in Genesis, Proverbs, Song of Songs, Job, Ecclesiastes,
all the Prophetical books and the Apocrypha (Sirach, etc.).
There is poetry, though not as much, in the New Testament (consider
that most of what is not a Gospel is a letter).
Many of the sacred poems we
know today are hymn lyrics
written after the Protestant
Reformation; some are folk
songs or “spirituals.”
Early Christian hymns developed from chants of Scripture verses.
A common hymn type is one having lyrics drawn directly (or nearly
so) from Scripture whether or not the cited text is poetry.

This study
Study Part 1
 Session 1 - Sacred poetry and the Book of Psalms
 Session 2 – Psalms: Heart and soul
 Session 3 – Psalms: Ascending to worship
Study Part 2
 Session 1 – Beyond Psalms
 Session 2 – New Testament
to the Middle Ages
 Session 3 - To This Day
This study will sample from what is an
entire area of scholarship and discuss
just a few poems taken out of a great
body of literature. Participants are
welcome (expected) to share their
favorite religion poems and hymns.

Recall that Hebrew poetry is rich in the construction called parallelism.
If it is present in a set of verses, it is a “dead giveaway” that the
passage is carefully crafted, even if it is part of what appears to be
narrative prose.
A simple example is Gen. 4:23-24, introduced with
“Lamech said to his wives”:
Remember parallelism
Adah and Zillah - - - - listen to me;
Wives of Lamech- - - hear my words.
I have killed a man- -for wounding me,
A young man - - - - - for injuring me.
If Cain is avenged - - seven times,
Then Lamech - - - - - seventy-seven times.”

While the earth remains, seed-
time and harvest, cold and heat,
summer and winter, day and
night shall not cease. [ESV]
Is it poetic?
As long as the earth endures
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
Summer and winter,
Day and night
Will never cease. [NIV, NRSV]
A passage may be printed in English as prose or as poetry,
depending on the version. A beautiful example of “free verse”
poetry is Gen. 5:22, which appears as prose in the English
Standard Version but as poetry in most other versions:

When God calls Abram to leave his home and journey to the
future land of Israel, He speaks a promise whose poetic seven-
fold structure emphasizes its message:
The call was a song
1. I will make you into a great nation
2. I will bless you
3. I will make your name great
4. You will be a blessing
5. I will bless those who bless you
6. I will curse those who curse you
7. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
Read and analyze the blessing at the end of the
story of Joseph as poetry. Gen. 5:48:15-16

Songs of victory
A number of the psalm-like poems in the OT are jubilant
hymns of victory praising Yahweh, the One God, the
Almighty, who reaches down with power to win an often
unlooked-for and memorable defeat of an enemy of Israel.

Songs of victory
The first of these songs results from the stunning event
celebrated to this day as the Feast of Passover.
It brought to a dramatic close a long period of trial which
followed after the twelve clans led by the sons of Jacob
came to live in the land of Egypt, that ancient superpower
nation, according to Gen. 47:27.
A number of the psalm-like poems in the OT are jubilant
hymns of victory praising Yahweh, the One God, the
Almighty, who reaches down with power to win an often
unlooked-for and memorable defeat of an enemy of Israel.

Victory over Egypt
At some time thereafter, they were enslaved and some
time after that they were liberated by Yahweh acting
through the leadership of Moses and Aaron.
This formative event in the early history of the people
that became the nation of Israel, the Exodus, also resulted
in the destruction of an Egyptian pursuit force.
The dramatic drowning of Pharaoh's hapless army is still
one of the most celebrated and famous stories in the
Western tradition.

The song of Moses and Miriam
When Pharaoh’s horses, chariots and horsemen
went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters
of the sea back over them, but the Israelites
walked through the sea on dry ground.
That day the Lord saved Israel from the
hands of the Egyptians.... And when the
Israelites saw the mighty hand of the
Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the
people feared the Lord and put their
trust in him and in Moses his servant.
Then {they} sang this to the LORD:
Let us sing to the LORD,
High exalted is He!
Both horse and its driver
Are thrown into the sea.

The song of Moses and Miriam
Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a
timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed
her, dancing. And Miriam sang to them:
Sing to the LORD... - Ex. 15:19-21
READ Exodus 15: 2-18
Identify the poetic parallelisms in this
passage.
What verses remind you of similar
phrases in the Psalms?
What expressions suggest that this
song reached its final form well after
Israel established their kingdom in
Palestine?

Deborah’s & Barak’s song of victory
When the princes in Israel take the lead,
When the people willingly offer themselves,
Praise the Lord!
Hear this, you kings and listen up, you rulers!
I will sing to the Lord, yes even I,
Will praise the Lord, the God of Israel, in song.
When you, Lord, went out... when you marched...
The earth shook, the heavens poured...
The mountains quaked before the Lord...
Before the Lord, the God of Israel.
- Judges 5:1-5
READ Judges 4 to learn the background to this song.

Mountains do, in fact, flow – given enough heat, pressure, and time.
The science of the flow of materials (rheology) uses the
Deborah Number (De) to represent this property:
De = trelax./tobs.
where:
trelax. (relaxation time) is the time
for a material to adjust to applied
stresses or deformations, and
tobs. (observation time) is the time
scale of an experiment probing the
response of the material
Digression: The Deborah Number
“The mountains trembled before the Lord”
(the word can be translated melted, gushed, flowed, or quaked)

My heart is with Israel’s princes,
With the willing volunteers
Among the people. Praise the Lord!
Then the people of the Lord
Went down to the city gates.
“Wake up, wake up Deborah {they cried}
Wake up, wake up, break out in song!”
Israel arises
- Judges 5:5-12
{At that time}... in the days of Jael, the
highways were abandoned;
Travelers took to winding paths.
Villagers in Israel would not fight;
They held back until I, Deborah, arose,
Until I arose, a mother in Israel.
God chose new leaders
When war came to the city gates...

From the heavens the stars fought,
From their courses they fought against Sisera
The river Kishon swept them away...
March on, my soul; be strong...
So may all your enemies perish, Lord,
But may all who love you be like the sun
When it rises in its strength.
Stars and the sun join the fray
- Judges 5:31
What might it mean that the stars fight?
That God’s people should be like the sun?
What differences in text and tone are in this song compared
to the other victory hymns and thanksgiving psalms?
- Judges 5:19-21

Habakkuk’s song of victory
God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran;
His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth.
His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand...
Plague went before him; pestilence followed his steps.
He stood and shook the earth, looked and made the nations tremble.
The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed....
- Hab. 3:3-6
Similar joyous expressions occur later in the history of Israel when the
people of Yahweh win a battle or when Yahweh makes good on a
promise of salvation. An example is Hab. 3:1-19.
1. What in this passage tells you it is a formal, communal psalm?
2. Find examples of the 3 main types of parallelism.
3. Find 3 verses that refer to the Exodus event (defeat of Pharaoh).
4. What do you think is the point of this hymn?

Hannah’s song of victory
An especially interesting song of victory is 1Sam. 2:1-10. It also
has the form and feel of a victory psalm. Like other of this type,
it contain martial images and exalts the king:
Those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most High will thunder from heaven;
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
He will give strength to His king.
- 1Sam. 2:10
So, what great battle did Israel win to elicit
from them this song?
Read 1Sam. 2:1-10 and 2Sam. 22: 2-51

The LORD is my rock,
My fortress and my deliverer;
My God is my rock
In whom I take refuge,
My shield, the horn of my salvation.
He is my stronghold
My refuge and my savior;
From violent people you save me.
I called to the LORD
Who is worthy of praise,
And have been saved
From my enemies.
- 2Sam. 22:2-4
Two psalms make a frame
My heart rejoices in the LORD;
In the LORD my horn is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
For I delight in your deliverance.
There is no one holy like the Lord
There is no one besides you;
There is no Rock like our God.
Do not keep talking so proudly
Or let your mouth speak arrogance,
For the LORD is a God who knows
And by him deeds are weighed.
- 1Sam. 2:1-3
“Hannah’s Song” had nothing to do with a battle but resulted from
Hannah giving birth after many sorrow-filled barren years.

Two psalms make a frame
These two psalms are similar in their theme and
clearly serve to bracket the saga contained between
them, the story of David, the greatest king of Israel.
Like other OT songs, they are artfully written and carefully position-
ed in the text to serve a purpose and thus should not be taken
literally as spontaneous utterances of a person in the story.*
The song writer gives God alone the glory for victory.
Not only that but the victory is unexpected, it is a....
*A give-away that the song was composed much later is the mention
of a king since during Hannah’s lifetime there was no king of Israel yet.

The bows of the warriors are
{now} broken,
But those who stumbled are
{now} armed with strength.
Divine reversal
Do the same for the song in 2Sam. 22.
What do you think? Is the action of God arbitrary?
If not, what motivates God to do what He does?
Identify passages in 1Sam. 2 that illustrate a reversal
in which those in a position of power or wealth are
“brought low.”

“Reversal” language is sprinkled throughout the Gospels – Jesus
delights in up-ending people’s prejudices about what God wants
from us: poverty of spirit, meekness, hunger for righteousness;
receiving blessings from persecution, and, finally, following Him to
His humiliating death.
Consider Luke 18: 1-18 in which we read about:
 Tax collectors being justified with God before pious Pharisees
 Everyone who humbles himself will be exalted, and
 “Anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little
child will never enter it.”
Humble Exalted

“Reversal” language is sprinkled throughout the Gospels – Jesus
delights in up-ending people’s prejudices about what God wants
from us: poverty of spirit, meekness, hunger for righteousness;
receiving blessings from persecution, and, finally, following Him to
His humiliating death.
Consider Luke 18: 1-18 in which we read about:
 Tax collectors being justified with God before pious Pharisees
 Everyone who humbles himself will be exalted, and
 “Anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little
child will never enter it.”
Humble Exalted
The NT reports that a young woman
living in Galilee named Mary sang
something very much like Hannah’s song
just before giving birth to her first child.
READ Luke 1: 39-55

Mary’s song of victory
Μεγαλύνει ἡ
ψυχή μου τὸν
Κύριον
καὶ ἠγαλλίασεν τὸ
πνεῦμά μου ἐπὶ
τῷ Θεῷ τῷ
σωτῆρί μου
Magnificat anima
mea Dominum,
Et exsultavit
spiritus meus in
Deo salvatore
meo...
My soul proclaims (or “magnifies”)
the greatness of the Lord,
My spirit rejoices
in God my savior. - Lk. 1:46-47
The Magnificat by
James Tissot (1894)

Holy is His name
For he has been mindful of the humble state
of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
For the Mighty One has done great things for me
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him...
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful…
- Lk. 1:50-54

An Old Testament psalm?
 The first stanza (synonymous
parallelism) is a “shout” testifying to
and delighting in God
 In the three contrast parallelisms that
follow, how does God over-turn the
status of (1) the proud (2) the mighty
and (3) the rich?
 It echoes several OT passages, but the
most obvious references are to the
Hannah’s Song – can you identity
similar verses?.

The song speaks for the community
 In this poem/hymn, Mary, as spokesperson for Luke’s Christian
community, proclaims continuity with Israel from of old
 While it doesn’t mention the Trinity or even hint at such a
teaching, the hymn points to the Incarnation as a great act of God
 The overall tone of Luke’s Gospel evidences that he advocates
acceptance of Jesus as Messiah and Lord by all Israel; in this way,
the OT people of God become the NT people of God (in Christ).

Many other kinds of poetry
There are many poems/hymns in Scripture that are not songs of
victory. Texts as mundane as lists of names, tribes, or nations might
be structured as poetry for easier memorization.
The dire warnings of the prophets are usually printed in verse form.
A quick scan of the Books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel is enough
to get the picture- they are mostly poetry.
Except for the first two chapters and half of the final chapter, the
entire Book of Job is printed in verse form in the NIV, NRSV, AMV,
ESV and other translations.

Numerous passages of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are poetic, most
famously Ch. 3 which Pete Seeger gave folk-musical form in the
1950’s (more on this in Session #3).

Numerous passages of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are poetic, most
famously Ch. 3 which Pete Seeger gave folk-musical form in the
1950’s (more on this in Session #3).
Finally, some passages in the last NT book, Revelation, are poetic.
The following slides present just a few examples from these
sections of Scripture, a “taste” of the variety of poems in the Bible.

Ruth’s prayer
The Book of Ruth opens with a tragedy in Moab that forces the
Hebrew woman, Naomi, to return to her home town of Bethlehem.
As she takes the long road back to Judah,
she orders her daughters-in-law, Orpah
and Ruth, to leave her and stay in Moab.

Wherever you go, I shall go;
Wherever you live, so shall I live;
Your people will be my people
And your God will be my God too.
Wherever you die, I shall die
And there will I be buried beside you.
May God Himself chastise me, yes, severely
If ever you and I grow apart.
Ruth 1:16-17 (NIV, freely)
Ruth’s prayer
Ruth refuses to leave Naomi to fend for herself. Her pledge of faith-
fulness can be rendered as poetry (and can serve as a wedding prayer).

Man, born of a woman, Is few of days and full of trouble.
He springs up like a flower and then withers away;
Like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure;
Do you fix Your eye on such a one?
Will You bring him before You for judgment?
Who can bring what is pure from the impure? No one!
A person’s days are determined;
You have decreed the number of his months;
You have set limits he cannot exceed.
So, look away from him and let him alone,
Until he has put in his time like a hired laborer.
Job 14:1-6 (NIV)
Job’s depression
Job, often praised as one who trusts in God, does not sound at all like
a saint in most of the Book of Job. In the following poetic passage,
the writer sees people’s lives to be more like those of transient
flowers than like long-lived and regenerative trees. Is life pointless?

Wood has hope
At least there is hope for a tree!
If cut down, it will sprout again-
Its new shoots will not fail....
But a man dies and is laid low;
He breathes his last and is no more...
He lies down and does not rise...
If only you would hide me in the grave!
Would conceal me till your anger has passed
Would set me a time and then remember me.
Job 14:7-13 (NIV)

A paean to wisdom
Wisdom has built her house;
She has set up its seven pillars*
She has prepared her meat and wine;
She has set her table,
And sent out her servants.
She calls from the highest point of the city,
“Let all who are simple come to my house!”
To those who have no sense she says,
“Come, eat my food and drink my wine.
Leave your simple ways and you will live;
walk in the way of insight.”
- Prov. 9:1-6
The opening chapters of the Book of Proverbs constitute an extended
song in praise of wisdom, full of memorable “one-liners”. Wisdom is
personified by a woman but Trinitarians see her as God, the Holy Spirit.
*Likely a reference to the virtues of the woman of noble character of Prov. 31:10-31

A paean to wisdom
Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults;
Whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse.
Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you;
Rebuke the wise and they will love you.
Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still;
Teach the righteous; they will add to their learning.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
Knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
For through wisdom your days will be many,
And years will be added to your life.
Wisdom is likened to a generous and competent woman in contrast to
Folly (v. 15-18), also a woman. What are her “virtues”?
Practicing wisdom has a down side but promises
rewards – what are its upside and its downside?
- Prov. 9:7-12

Isaiah’s song of comfort
Following the “golden ages” of Kings
David and Solomon, the multi-tribal
confederacy of the people of Yahweh
split into two political entities.
In the 8th century BC, Assyria conquered
the ten northern tribal units (Israel) and
executed their leaders. Many Jews were
assimilated or dispersed.
The southern entity (Judah) was left
weaker and more vulnerable than ever.
Open the Book of Isaiah to any chapter
and place your finger on any verse.
More likely than not, you just pointed to a
verse of poetry.
More likely than not, too, you are at or
near a line of great beauty.

Isaiah’s song of comfort
“Comfort my people,” says your God. Speak tenderly
to Jerusalem, proclaim to her that her hard service
has been completed, that her sin has been paid for,
and that she has received... double for all her sins.
- Is. 40:1-2
Prophets, speaking in the name of the Lord, pro-
nounced the people guilty of failure to follow Torah
and for moral laxity.
Judah succumbed to the Babylonians who sack
Jerusalem and razed the Temple in 586 BC. The aris-
tocracy went into exile in Babylon.
The Prophet Isaiah then brought words of hope:
God still loved His people. Judah would be
reconciled with God and would return to rebuild.
READ Is. 40

Close to His heart
You who bring good news to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,
lift up your voice with a shout,
Lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power,
and he rules with a mighty arm.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
He carries them close to his heart;
He gently leads those that have young.
- Is. 40:9-11
Discuss the meaning and
importance in context of
verses 12-17

Renewed strength
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
- Is. 40:28-31
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
His understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Have you even experienced
receiving power or energy to
do a job you thought not
possible for God?

Inspired Songs
End of
Session 1

Part 2: Sacred poetry
not in the Book of Psalms
Inspired Songs
A study of the poetry of the Bible including an
introduction to the Book of Psalms
Session 2: New Testament
to the Middle Ages

Poetry in the NT
Most of the hymns discussed in the
previous sessions of this study are in
the OT, which, depending on how you
look at it, is, maybe, 50% poetry.
What about the New Testament (NT)?
Does it include any hymns or poems?

Singing in the NT
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God... - Acts 16:25
No question that early Christians sang hymns; for
example, Jesus and his disciples sang a hymn at the
close his Last Supper (Mt. 26:30) and passages in the
NT link singing to prayer and to instruction in the faith.
Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you
teach and admonish one another... through psalms, hymns,
and songs from the Spirit, singing to God... - Col. 3:16

Prose in the NT
Let’s start with the best ones,
the ones in the Gospel of Luke.
Still, most of the NT is prose: 21 of the books are epistles.
But there are some great hymns too.

Luke’s foursome
There are four praise poems crowded into the first two chapters of
the Gospel of Luke. All four have traditional Latin names. Three have
the familiar joyous theme of God’s promises fulfilled. They are:
 Mary’s song of joy and praise, The Magnificat (1:46-55)
 Zechariah's Benedictus (1:67-79)
 The Gloria sung by the Christmas angels' (2:13-14)
 Simeon's Nunc Dimittis (2:28-32)
All are patterned on OT praise hymns, most examples of
which are in Psalms. Although in the style of contemporary
Jewish poetry, Luke uses them to convey the unique Christian
message: through Jesus, God’s Kingdom has come in the most
direct, certain and powerful way possible into the world.

#1. Mary’s “Magnificat”
 Session 1 of this study discussed the first of these four songs, “The
Magnificat”, Mary’s song of victory and praise
 In it Mary, speaking for Luke’s Christian community, joins the new
Israel in Christ to the old Israel of Yahweh’s promises and blessings
 The hymn then points to the Incarnation as a new great act of God
 Luke’s Gospel as a whole argues that through acceptance of Jesus
as Messiah and Lord OT people of God continue to be the people
of God, carriers of His promises and blessings.

#2. Zechariah’s “Benedictus”
Benedictus Dominus Deus Israel / Praise be to the Lord God of Israel...
There are two parts to this song. READ part 1 - Luke 1:67-75.
What is the tone and emphasis of this first section?
The preceding events re-
corded in Lk. 1, would lead
you to think Zechariah is
thanking God for the safe
delivery of his first-born son.
To what much wider
movement of God is the
hymn, in fact, referring?

#2. Zechariah’s “Benedictus”
READ part 2 – Lk. 1:76-79
And you, my child, will be called a prophet...
What is the difference between this section and the first?
Luke’s gospel was written
about 75 years after the
events it describes. This
suggests what other way
view of this passage?
This section sounds like an amazingly
accurate prediction or prophecy of the
important role to be played by John
the Baptist in salvation history.
John the Baptist in the Wilderness, Geertgen
tot Sint Jans (15th cent.) Gemäldegalerie, Berlin.

#3. The angelic “Gloria”
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the
angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” - Lk. 2:13-14
Gloria in excelsis Deo et in terra
pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.

“Gloria” the hymn
Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father,
We worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God,
You take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us;
You are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
You alone are the Lord,
You alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.

#4. Simeon’s “Nunc Dimittis”
Lk. 2:29-32 (NIV)
Lk. 2:29-32 (Vulgate)
Nunc dimittis servum tuum Domine,
secundum verbum tuum in pace:
quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum,
quod parasti ante faciem omnium populorum:
lumen ad revelationem gentium,
et gloriam plebis tuae Israel.
Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
You may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
Which you have prepared
in the sight of all nations:
A light for revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of your people Israel.

Seeing is believing
 The Lukan narrative presents this oracle as a spontaneous, Spirit-
inspired outburst. It is, instead, a carefully crafted poem.
 In it the poet uses physical sight as a metaphor for spiritual
knowledge: the old man with (doubtless) poor physical eyesight
nevertheless “sees” salvation in the still helpless baby
 Recognition that this child will be the “consolation of Israel” is
possible because he is a “light” and a “glory”
 His ecstatic vision expands to include the whole world as he an-
nounces that God has prepared salvation in the “sight” of all
people with spiritual vision
 Salvation, Simeon proclaims, is now extended to Gentiles, a
message directed by Luke to his largely non-Jewish community
 Now, having “seen” salvation, the man is at peace and is ready to
“depart” (die), knowing he is firmly in God’s eternal care.

The NT is NoT poetic
There is little poetry in the NT after these opening chapters except for
quotations from the OT (most from the Psalms and Prophetic books).
An outstanding exception is a passage
in the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians.
Scholars contend that Paul did not
compose it because its polished
style is quite unlike the rest of the
letter which is “rough”, as if dic-
tated and then not edited.

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited,
But emptied himself, taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
St. Paul inserts a poem in a letter
- Phil. 1:5-11 (NRSV)
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself and became obedient
to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
So that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue should confess
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

The Shepherd is the Lamb
Another early Christian poem is re-
corded in the book of Revelation. It
combines original text with quotations
from Isaiah (49:10 & 25:8)
Never again will they hunger, never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their Shepherd;
He will lead them to springs of living water
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
– Rev. 7: 16-17
They are before the throne of God
They serve him day and night...
And He who sits on the throne
Will shelter them with His presence.

 As noted earlier, singing was without doubt integral to Christian
worship from the earliest days of the Church.
 Writings of Clement, Tertullian, Athanasius, and Egeria attest this as
does an extant 3rd-century Greek hymn, the "Oxyrhynchus Hymn".
 The Apostolic Tradition (attributed to Hippolytus) attests the singing
of Hallel psalms (having “alleluia” as the refrain) during agape feasts.
 Chants of the Office (prescribed verses sung during specified times of
the day) have roots in the 4th century practices of desert monks who,
following St. Anthony, sang all 150 of the Psalms every week.
 Around 375 AD, antiphonal psalmody became popular in the East; in
386 AD, St. Ambrose introduced this practice to the West.
 In the 5th century, a singing school, the Schola Cantorum, was
founded at Rome to provide training in church musicianship.
Christians sang

 …maybe by St. Augustine or St. Ambrose
but probably derived from two (or more)
earlier hymns: one to God the Father and
another to God the Son...
 And named after the first few words (We
praise you, O Lord)
 The petitions at the end of the hymn are
verses from the OT Book of Psalms probably
attached later
 What similarities can you find between its
teachings with the theology found in the
Apostles' and/or Nicene creeds, especially
in what it says about the birth, suffering,
and glorification of Jesus Christ?
Christians write new poems
 Consider the “Te Deum Laudamus” (following slides), a Christian
psalm-like hymn, written in Latin around the 4th or 5th century…

Te Deum Laudamus
We praise you, O God
We acknowledge you to be the Lord,
All the earth worships you the Father everlasting.
To you all the angels cry aloud,
The heavens and all the powers therein.
To you cherubim and seraphim continually cry:
“Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sabaoth!
Heaven and earth are full of the majesty
of Your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise you.
The noble army of martyrs praise you.
The Holy Church throughout all the world
acknowledges you...

When you took upon yourself
to deliver man
You humbled yourself
to be born of a virgin.
When you had overcome
the sharpness of death,
You opened the kingdom of
heaven
to all believers.
You now sit at the right hand
of God
In the glory
of the Father.
We believe that You will come
to be our Judge.

Te Deum Laudamus (conclusion)
Day by day we magnify you,
We worship your name, ever world without end.
Grant, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.
O Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.
O Lord, let your mercy rest upon us as our trust is in you.
O Lord in you have I trusted, let me never be confounded.
We therefore pray you to help your servants,
Whom you have redeemed with your precious blood.
Make them numbered with your saints in glory everlasting.
Hear a Gregorian chant of the Te Deum Laudamus on YouTube at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfSl9or0j3s
Hear a congregation sing a modern version with organ accom-
paniment at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW889psVIJ

Gregorian chant is the principle trad-
itional form of plainchant (mono-
phonic, unaccompanied sacred song)
developed during the 9th and 10th
centuries in western Christianity,
mostly in Latin and mostly in the
Roman Catholic church.
Sidebar: on Gregorian Chant
Although popular legend credits Pope
Gregory I with inventing it (he repor-
tedly was a great music lover), this
form of chanting likely arose from a
later synthesis of Roman and Gallican
forms.

 Gregorian chant was traditionally sung in church by choirs of men
and boys or in chapels by men and women of religious orders
 It was sung in the Mass and the monastic Office.
 Its use is no longer obligatory but the Roman Catholic church still
considers it the music most suitable for worship
 Modern musical notation developed directly from Gregorian
neumes, the basic element of European systems of writing music
that placed square-shaped notes on a four-line staff without
indicating rhythm.
 During the 20th century, Gregorian chant underwent a musicolog-
ical and popular resurgence so that numerous recordings are now
widely available
 The peaceful, soothing sound of plainchant is useful as an aid to
meditation and a sure cure for insomnia.
A bridge to modern music

Rudimentary forms of notation existed throughout the Mediterranean
world centuries before the Christian Era, but apparently only as an aid
to a musician’s memory, e.g. indicating which strings to pluck on a lyre.
Musical notation
“Unless sounds are held by the memory of man, they perish
as they cannot be written down.“
- Isidore of Seville, early 7th century

Rudimentary forms of notation existed throughout the Mediterranean
world centuries before the Christian Era, but apparently only as an aid
to a musician’s memory, e.g. indicating which strings to pluck on a lyre.
Musical notation
“Unless sounds are held by the memory of man, they perish
as they cannot be written down.“
- Isidore of Seville, early 7th century
The founder of what is now the stan-
dard music staff was an Italian
Benedictine monk, Guido d'Arezzo,
in the early 11
th
century
Not until the 14th century did some-
thing like the present system of fixed
note lengths develop. The use of
regular measures (bars) became
commonplace only by the end of the
17th century.

It is said that one Cædmon, an illiterate cow-herder who worked
for the monastery of Whitby, England, received one night a gift in
a dream, the ability to recite Christian songs in (Old) English verse.
The first English hymn

Cædmon, it is said, was one of the greatest poets of his age but early
in his life he was so shy about singing or speaking in public that when
people began singing at parties he would leave “as soon as he saw
the harp approaching him”.
 Caedmon’s only surviving work is the oldest hymn written in English
(Old English) and is one of the oldest examples of Germanic
alliterative verse
 He composed it about AD 670; its theme is praise for all creation
 Likely, at first it was sung from memory, only later preserved in writing
 Nineteen manuscript copies are extant and one is included in Latin
translation by Bede in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People
 Is an important benchmark for the study of Old English prosody, for
the early influence which Christianity had on the poems and songs of
the Anglo-Saxon people after their conversion.
Caedmon’s Hymn

Now we must praise the protector / of the heavenly kingdom,
the might of the measurer / and his mind’s purpose,
The work of the Father of glory / as he for each of his wonders
the eternal Lord / established a beginning.
Caedmon’s hymn (in modern English)
He shaped first for the sons of the earth / heaven as a roof
the holy maker / then the middle-world,
Mankind’s guardian, the eternal Lord / made afterwards
solid ground for men / the almighty Lord.

The English translation (b. 1818) of John Mason Neale is on the
following slide. Neale was an Anglican priest, scholar and hymnist.
He held the position of warden of Sackville College, an almshouse at
East Grinstead from 1846 until his death in 1901.
This medieval sequence*, written ca. AD 1200 in Latin, is prescribed in
the Roman Liturgy for the Masses of Pentecost.
It is usually attributed to Cardinal Stephen Langton, Archbishop of
Canterbury, sometimes to Pope Innocent III.
It was set to music by various composers to the present day, but most
notably during the Renaissance, including Dufay, Josquin, Willaert,
Palestrina, John Dunstaple, Lassus, Victoria, and Byrd.
It is still sung today in some parishes on Pentecost.
Veni Sancte Spiritus
*A hymn in irregular meter sung between the Gradual and
the reading of the Gospel in Masses for special occasions.

Come, Thou holy Paraclete
Come, Thou holy Paraclete,
And from Thy celestial seat
Send Thy light and brilliancy:
Father of the poor, draw near;
Giver of all gifts, be here;
Come, the soul’s true radiancy.
Come, of comforters the best,
Of the soul the sweetest guest,
Come in toil refreshingly:
Thou in labor rest most sweet,
Thou art shadow from the heat,
Comfort in adversity.
O Thou Light, most pure and blest,
Shine within the inmost breast
Of Thy faithful company.
Where Thou art not, man hath nought;
Every holy deed and thought
Comes from Thy divinity.
What is soilèd, make Thou pure;
What is wounded, work its cure;
What is parchèd, fructify;
What is rigid, gently bend;
What is frozen, warmly tend;
Strengthen what goes erringly.
Fill Thy faithful, who confide
In Thy power to guard and guide,
With Thy sevenfold mystery.
Here Thy grace and virtue send:
Grant salvation to the end,
And in Heav’n felicity.

Come, Thou holy Paraclete
Come, Thou holy Paraclete,
And from Thy celestial seat
Send Thy light and brilliancy:
Father of the poor, draw near;
Giver of all gifts, be here;
Come, the soul’s true radiancy.
Come, of comforters the best,
Of the soul the sweetest guest,
Come in toil refreshingly:
Thou in labor rest most sweet,
Thou art shadow from the heat,
Comfort in adversity.
O Thou Light, most pure and blest,
Shine within the inmost breast
Of Thy faithful company.
Where Thou art not, man hath nought;
Every holy deed and thought
Comes from Thy divinity.
What is soilèd, make Thou pure;
What is wounded, work its cure;
What is parchèd, fructify;
What is rigid, gently bend;
What is frozen, warmly tend;
Strengthen what goes erringly.
Fill Thy faithful, who confide
In Thy power to guard and guide,
With Thy sevenfold mystery.
Here Thy grace and virtue send:
Grant salvation to the end,
And in Heav’n felicity.
What actions does this hymn attribute to the work of the often
ignored Third Person of the Holy Trinity? Especially, which would you
likely attribute instead to Jesus Christ?

Done is the battle on the dragon black,
Our champion Christ confoundit has his force;
The yetis of hell are broken with a crack,
The sign triumphal raisit is of the cross,
The devillis trymmillis with hiddous voce,
The saulis are borrowit and to the bliss can go,
Christ with his bloud our ransonis dois indoce:
Surrexit Dominus de sepulchro.
The first Resurrection poem
To convey the significance of the Resurrection of Jesus, Scottish poet
William Dunbar (ca. 1465-1530) pictures a knight fighting a black dragon
Modern English: The battle against the black dragon is done, our cham-
pion, Christ, has confounded his force. The gates of hell are broken with a
crack, the triumphant sign of the cross is raised. The devils shriek with hideous
voice. The souls are reclaimed and can go to bliss, Christ with his blood our
ransom does endorse. The Lord is risen from the grave!

Dungan is the deidly dragon Lucifer,
The cruewall serpent with the mortal stang;
The auld kene tiger, with his teith on char,
Whilk in a wait has lyen for us so lang,
Thinking to grip us in his clawis strang;
The merciful Lord wald nocht that it were so,
He made him for to failye of that fang.
Resurrection as combat victory
Modern English: The deadly dragon Satan is beaten, the cruel
serpent with the mortal sting, the old sharp tiger with his teeth
ajar which has lain in wait for us so long hoping to grip us in his
strong claws. The merciful Lord willed that it not be so. He
made him fall short of his prey. The Lord is risen from the grave!

Dungan is the deidly dragon Lucifer,
The cruewall serpent with the mortal stang;
The auld kene tiger, with his teith on char,
Whilk in a wait has lyen for us so lang,
Thinking to grip us in his clawis strang;
The merciful Lord wald nocht that it were so,
He made him for to failye of that fang.
Resurrection as combat victory
Modern English: The deadly dragon Satan is beaten, the cruel
serpent with the mortal sting, the old sharp tiger with his teeth
ajar which has lain in wait for us so long hoping to grip us in his
strong claws. The merciful Lord willed that it not be so. He
made him fall short of his prey. The Lord is risen from the grave!
What do you think? Did Jesus “pay” a ransom to the devil to set us
free from Satan’s “strong claws”?
What do you think? Do you agree that deadly combat with the devil
is a good way to think about the death and Resurrection of Jesus?

Wholy sinning
The good news brought
to the medieval world
by the Reformation was
that God loves all man-
kind unconditionally...
Yet, people of the 16-
17th centuries still ob-
sessed over personal
moral failings, fearing
they would be punished
for them.
...that His grace alone is
our sufficient source of
healing and power of
living a life in His favor
and service,

Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun,
Which was my sin, though it were done before?
Wilt thou forgive that sin, through which I run,
And do run still, though still I do deplore?
When Thou hast done, thou hast not done for I have more.
Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won
Others to sin, and made my sin their door?
Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun
A year or two, but wallow’d in, a score?
When thou hast done, thou hast not done for I have more.
I have a sin of fear, that when I have spun
My last thread, I shall perish on the shore;
But swear by thyself, that at my death Thy Son
Shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore;
And, having done that, Thou hast done; I fear no more.
Holy sonnets
Would God
forgive these
“sins” and still
love me?
One sacred poet in England wrote a set of Holy Sonnets, speaking
against this scary scenario, holding up God’s Son, Jesus Christ, as proof
and hope of Our Father’s great love and acceptance of us as we are.
Would, instead,
He reject me
and upon my
death send me
to a terrible
place of
torment?

Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun,
Which was my sin, though it were done before?
Wilt thou forgive that sin, through which I run,
And do run still, though still I do deplore?
When Thou hast done, thou hast not done for I have more.
Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won
Others to sin, and made my sin their door?
Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun
A year or two, but wallow’d in, a score?
When thou hast done, thou hast not done for I have more.
I have a sin of fear, that when I have spun
My last thread, I shall perish on the shore;
But swear by thyself, that at my death Thy Son
Shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore;
And, having done that, Thou hast done; I fear no more.
“Hymn to God the Father”

The greatest English religious poet (arguably)
Works include sonnets, epigrams, love
poems, religious poems, elegies, songs,
satires and sermons, noted for their
metaphorical and sensual style,
John Donne (1572–1631) was an English
scholar, soldier, politician, and Church
of England cleric who become Dean of
St Paul's Cathedral, London.
He is best known as a poet, considered
the preeminent representative of the
metaphysical poets.
His “Holy Sonnets”, series of 19 poems
or “Divine Meditations”, explore how
we can live a religious life amidst the
trials of the world.

Death becomes us
Towards the end of his life Donne wrote works rebuking the fear that
death stirred in people, basing his stance on the promises of Scripture
that people of faith die only to live again in the Presence of God.
Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so.
For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow
Die not (poor Death) nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones and soul's delivery.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally
And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.
A beautiful example is Holy Sonnet X, "Death Be Not Proud".

The greatest English hymn writer?
... however, his prolific writing helped
usher in a new era of English worship
as many other hymnists followed his
lead.
In particular, he led the way for the
acceptance of hymns whose text was
based on life experiences not on
verses from the Book of Psalms.
Isaac Watts (1672–1748) was a Congregational minister, theologian,
and logician. He was also a prolific and popular writer of 750
hymns, now recognized as the "Godfather of English Hymnody".
Watts was not the first to promote the
singing of hymns...

Watts’ greatest hits (first line)
When I survey the wond'rous cross / on which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss / and pour contempt on all my pride.
Joy to the world / the Lord is come / Let earth receive her King
Let every heart / prepare him room / And heaven and nature sing!
Alas, and did my Savior bleed / and did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head / for such a worm as I?
From all that dwell below the skies / Let the Creator's praise arise;
Let the Redeemer's name be sung / Through ev'ry land by ev'ry tongue.
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun / does his successive journeys run / His
kingdom stretch from shore to shore / ‘Til suns shall rise and set no more.
Our O God, our help in ages past / Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast / And our eternal home.

Or was Charles the greatest?
"And Can It Be That I Should Gain?"
"Christ the Lord Is Risen Today"
"Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies"
"Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus"
"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
"Jesus, Lover of My Soul"
"Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending"
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling"
"O for a Heart to Praise My God"
"O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing"
Charles Wesley (1707–1788) Anglican minister, evangelist, and leader
with his brother John, of the movement that became the Methodist
Church. He wrote an astonishing 6,000+ hymns including:

From “And Can It Be”
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature's night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed thee.

Alive in Christ
No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in him, is mine;
Alive in him, my living head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th‘ eternal throne,
And claim the crown through Christ
my own.

Was Fanny the greatest?
“The Queen of Gospel Song Writers“
was best-known for writing:
"Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior“
"Blessed Assurance“
"Jesus Is Tenderly Calling You Home“
"Praise Him, Praise Him“
"Rescue the Perishing" and
"To God Be the Glory".
Frances Jane “Fanny” Crosby (1820–1915), an American poet, lyricist,
and composer, was the most prolific hymnist in history, with >8,000 to
her credit. Blind since infancy, she was also a prominent advocate for
education and employment of the blind.

Fanny was famous
The popularity of her hymn lyrics coupled with her winsome
personality won her fame. She was a popular speaker and often
met with presidents, generals, and other dignitaries.
 Published four books of secular poetry
and two best-selling autobiographies.
 Wrote political and patriotic songs and
at least five cantatas on biblical and
patriotic themes
 Wrote the first secular cantata by an
American composer.
 Was committed to Christian rescue
missions such as the Cremorne Mission
(1882) in New York City
 Was known for her public speaking; she
was the first woman to speak in the US
Senate.

From “To God Be The Glory”
To God be the glory, great things He has done
So loved He the world that He gave us His son
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin
And opened the life gate that all may go in.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear His voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice;
Come to the Father
Through Jesus the Son
Give Him the glory,
Great things He has done!

Inspired Songs
End of
Session 2

Part 2: Sacred poetry not in the
Book of Psalms
Inspired Songs
Session 3
To this day

Religious poetry today
Session 2 of this study discussed how the Protestant Reformation set the
stage for a period for all manner of creative works of Christian art and
literature – architecture, painting, sculpture, music, poetry, and, of
course, combining the last two, hymns, a time that continues to this day.
The body of new religious poetry and hymnody is vast, encompassing
many and diverse musical styles including folk, rap, and rock, an entire
career study in itself.
Topics worth discussing might be 19th and 20th century sacred poetry i.e.
Gerald Manley Hopkins and T. S. Eliot*, et. al.
Or 21st century contemporary worship music (think about your own
favorites; do you think any will be sung in worship 50 years from now?)
This study cannot claim to do more than touch on one aspect.
*The following two slides are optional, provided for those who
wish to sample one (each) of their better-known works.

God’s Grandeur
The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;
It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod?
Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man’s smudge and shares man’s smell: the soil
Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.
And for all this, nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs—
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with (ah!) bright wings.
Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889)

And would it have been worth it,
after all,
After the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain,
among some talk of you and me,
Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it toward some
overwhelming question,
To say: "I am Lazarus, come from the dead,
Come back to tell you all,
I shall tell you all"—
If one, settling a pillow by her head,
Should say: "That is not
what I meant at all.
That is not it, at all."
T. S. Eliot (1888-1965)
And would it have been worth it,
after all,
Would it have been worthwhile,
After the sunsets and the dooryards
and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups,
after the skirts that trail along the floor
And this, and so much more?—
It is impossible to say just what I mean!
But as if a magic lantern threw
the nerves in patterns on a screen:
Would it have been worth while
If one, settling a pillow or throwing off
a shawl, and
Turning toward the window, should say:
"That is not it at all, that is
not what I meant, at all."
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (extract)

Sacred songs, secular singers
And so, this study examines only a tiny and admittedly arbitrary selec-
tion of sacred songs (favorites of this study’s writer) that represent the
somewhat infrequent case...
...of a sacred song becoming a secular hit, one that enters the main-
stream of pop culture.
One is from the first musical written by a now-famous duo.
One is a Christmas song with a refrain
meant for children to sing that is not at
all saccharine and bears comparison to
“Silent Night.”
And then there is a prayer that all
Christians know by heart. Maybe
because it is not poetry it is hard to set
to music.

Turn! Turn! Turn! (1965)
Pete Seeger wrote this song in the 1950s as a
plea for world peace, adapting the lyrics, except
for the title, repeated throughout the song, and
the final two lines are word-for-word from the
3rd chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes.
The song was recorded by The Limeliters on the
album Folk Matinee (1962), by Seeger himself
for his album The Bitter and the Sweet, and by
Judy Collins for Judy Collins 3 (1963).
But it became an international hit only when
adapted by The Byrds. Their single entered
US charts at #80 in October of 1965, reaching
#1 (Billboard Hot 100) a mere two months later.

Refrain: To everything [turn, turn, turn]
There is a season [turn, turn, turn]
And a time to every purpose,
Under heaven.
Turn! Turn! Turn!
1. A time to be born, a time to die
A time to plant, a time to reap
A time to kill, a time to heal
A time to laugh, a time to weep.

2. A time to build up, a time to break down
A time to dance, a time to mourn
A time to cast away stones,
A time to gather stones together
Refrain
3. A time of love, a time of hate
A time of war, a time of peace
A time you may embrace,
A time to refrain from embracing
Refrain
4. A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rend, a time to sew
A time for love, a time for hate
A time for peace
(I swear it's not too late)*.
Refrain
* This line is the only one not taken from Scripture

2. A time to build up, a time to break down
A time to dance, a time to mourn
A time to cast away stones,
A time to gather stones together
Refrain
3. A time of love, a time of hate
A time of war, a time of peace
A time you may embrace,
A time to refrain from embracing
Refrain
4. A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rend, a time to sew
A time for love, a time for hate
A time for peace
(I swear it's not too late)*.
Refrain
What do you think?
This is a beautiful poem, but what does it mean that
“There is a time...”?
Is there really a time for hate? Jesus commanded us to
do good to those who hate us (Lk. 6:27) and Paul to hate
what is evil (Rm. 12:9). Neither put a time restriction on
our concern for others.
What about killing, war, and gaining-losing?

Not just any dreamwill do (1968)
Scripture made another pop cul-
ture appearance in 1968 with the
first publically performed musical
from the team of Tim Rice (lyrics)
and Andrew Lloyd Webber (music).
The musical is based on the story,
related in Genesis chapters 37-50,
of Joseph and his eleven brothers.
These sons of Jacob, who become
the heads of the twelve tribes of
Israel, are caught up in dramatic
events whose outcome, centuries
later, shapes the course of history.

Not just any coat will do
The story begins in
jealousy and an un-
forgivable (maybe?)
act of betrayal trig-
gered by Joseph’s
God-given ability to
interpret dreams
and by his (mis-
guided?) father’s
love, shown by a
special gift to his
youngest son of an
ornate robe (or
“coat of many
colors”).
Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors Tefillin Bag by Suzanne Tornquist.

The theme "Any Dream Will Do" and the plaintive “Close Every Door“
are the musical’s most popular songs.
“Close Every Door" is the next-to-last song of the first act, sung by the
lead vocalist in the role of Joseph.
Accused of consorting with the wife of the captain of Pharaoh’s elite
guard, he is imprisoned and may be executed anytime.
Not just any dreamwill do
It is the only serious song in the otherwise
light-hearted production, easily the most
spiritual.
It voices his despair at being jailed for a crime
he did not commit and yet trust in God.
The song also makes reference to the horrific
dehumanizing of Jews (and peoples of other
ethnic groups) by Nazi forces in the concen-
tration camps of WW2.

Close every door to me, hide all the world from me
Bar all the windows and shut out the light.
Close Every Door (vs. 1)
If my life were important I would ask: "Will I live or die?"
But I know the answers lie far from this world.
For I know I shall find my own peace of mind
For I have been promised a land of my own
Do what you want with me, hate me and laugh at me
Darken my daytime and torture my night.
What do you think? Although not explicit, the line
“children of Israel are never alone” is a testimony
to what/who? Does this have meaning to you?
Close every door to me,
Keep those I love from me
Children of Israel are never alone.

Just give me a number instead of my name
Forget all about me and let me decay.
I do not matter, I'm only one person
Destroy me completely, then throw me away.
Close Every Door (vs. 2)
For I know I shall find my own peace of mind
For I have been promised a land of my own
If my life were important I would ask: "Will I live or die?"
But I know the answers lie far from this world
Close every door to me, keep those I love from me
Children of Israel are never alone.
Close every door to me, hide all the world from me
Bar all the windows and shut out the light.
What do you think? Do you feel that you do not matter, that your life
is not important? Or have you found peace of mind and feel you’ve
been promised “a land of {your} own?” If so, share why/how.

The Gospels rock (1971)
It is chockfull of upbeat and memorable music. The Passion of Christ is
not ignored, appearing briefly near the end.
Godspell is a folk-rock musical based on the Gospel of Matthew. Com-
posed by Stephen Schwartz and opening off-Broadway in 1971, it
became a long-running success and had a revival on Broadway in 2011.

Several albums were released. "Day by Day", from the original cast
album, reached #13 on the Billboard pop singles chart in 1972.
The song's refrain follows a prayer ascribed to the 13th-century
English bishop and saint, Richard of Chichester:
Lord Jesus, grant that I may know Thee more clearly,
Love Thee more dearly, and follow Thee more nearly.
Day by Day (1971)

The version in Godspell follows more closely the wording in Hymn
#429 of the Hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church (1940):
Day by Day (1971)
Day by day,
Dear Lord,
Of Thee three things I pray
To see Thee more clearly,
Love Thee more dearly,
Follow Thee more nearly,
Day by day.

Morning Has Broken (1971)
This hymn first appeared in the 2nd edition of “Songs of Praise” (1931),
set to the traditional Scottish tune "Bunessan.“
The song book’s editor, Percy Dearmer, explains that as there was a
need for a hymn to give thanks for each day.
English poet and children's author Eleanor Farjeon had been "asked
to make a poem to fit the lovely Scottish tune.“
She also wrote a variation that she
contributed to the anthology
“Children's Bells” titled "A Morning
Song (For the First Day of Spring)“
The hymn gained widespread popular-
ity when Cat Stevens performed it on
his 1971 album Tea for the Tillerman.

Morning has broken,
like the first morning.
Blackbird has spoken,
like the first bird.

Praise for the singing,
praise for the morning,
Praise for them springing
fresh from the world.

Sweet the rain's new fall
sunlight from heaven.
Like the first dewfall
on the first grass.
Praise for the sweetness
of the wet garden,
Sprung in completeness
where His feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight
mine is the morning
Born of the one light
Eden saw play
Praise with elation
praise every morning
God’s new creation
on the new day

What do you think? How many of us
begin the day with a prayer of praise?
Or do we begin the day by praying the
prayer that Jesus himself taught us?

Jesus answers a request for a prayer
One day Jesus was praying... When he finished, one of his disciples
said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
{Jesus} said {in answer}... “When
you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be
your name, your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, for we also
forgive everyone who sins against
us. And lead us not into
temptation.” - Lk. 11:1-4
(see also Mt. 6:19)

Jesus answers a request for a prayer
But is it poetry?
What we know as the “Our Father” or “Lord’s Prayer” is more
a sketch or outline of what to prayer about than a prayer.
*Jesus most likely knew the Psalms by
heart. There is one reference to him
singing with his disciples (Mt. 26:30).
No NT text suggests that Jesus was a poet*
Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
And lead us not into temptation.

The Lord’s Prayer (1973)
Because the “Our Father” is not a poem, it presents a challenge to
anyone trying to convert it into a hymn.
This has not deterred composers! Many have offered versions.
Did any succeed musically? Popularly?
But a bouncy folk version was a “one-hit-wonder” in 1973 for a
little- known Australian religious, Sister Janet Mead.
By far the most recorded (and probably the most lyrical) is that of A. H.
Malotte* (1935) now the de facto “standard” version. About 30 prominent
vocal artists include it on one of their albums, including Elvis Presley,
Glenn Campbell, the Beach Boys, Marvin Gaye, and Susan Boyle.
*Philadelphia-born organist, composer and educator (1895-1964).
He composed a number of other religious pieces, including settings
of the Beatitudes and of the Twenty-third Psalm.

The surprise hit (music by Arnold Strals) reached #3 on the Australian
Singles Chart and #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1974.
The single earned Sister Mead a Grammy Award nomination and
Golden Gospel Award in 2004.
The Lord’s Prayer is a hit
It sold over one and a half million
copies, and was awarded a gold disc
by the RIAA on 8 April 1974.
Sister Mead taught music at Saint
Aloysius College, Adelaide, where a
video for the song was filmed.
Now 82 years old, she still makes
occasional visits there to teach basic
music skills.

The St. Louis Jesuits
In response to the liturgical
reforms of the Second
Vatican Council, a new gen-
eration of composers re-
vitalized Roman Catholic
hymnody, most visibly as
the “guitar Mass.”
Some friends studying to
become Jesuit priests at St.
Louis University in the 70’s,
composed and recorded
music for this new form of
worship in a folk style.

The St. Louis Jesuits
In time, Bob Dufford, John Foley,
Tim Manion, Roc O'Connor, Dan
Schutte, and became known as the
St. Louis Jesuits.
Their music, recorded in seven
albums and sold as sheet music
through Oregon Catholic Press
gained a worldwide audience.
A few of their hymns (e.g. “Here I
Am, Lord” and “One Bread, One
Body”) gained a place even in
some Protestant hymnals.
Their Christmas album, “Gentle
Night” is an oasis of reverent,
joyful, and beautiful Christian
music in the desert of the standard
sappy or silly holiday fare.

Children, Run Joyfully
Children, run joyfully,
Jesus is born
Tell all the mountains to sing
Pray to our Father
in heaven this day
Thank you for Jesus is born.
For children’s choir and adult
soloist by Bob Dufford, S. J.
Shepherds stood watching,
keeping their sheep
And suddenly angels appeared,
“Don’t be afraid,
we bring you great joy,
Your Savior is born this night.

Children, Run Joyfully
And this will be a sign to you,
The baby will lie
in a manger
In the city of David,
in Bethlehem
Go now, visit your Lord.
Children, run joyfully,
Jesus is born
Tell all the mountains to sing
Pray to our Father
in heaven this day
Thank you for Jesus is born.

WHY NOT TRY YOUR HAND AT SACRED POETRY?
There on many helps available online – google
“how to write sacred poetry” to get started.
If you meet with friends at your place of
worship, read your poem to them.
If you have a musical gift, you might even try
converting your words into a hymn.

Inspired Songs
End of Session 3
This concludes Part 2

This concludes our study of
Inspired Songs
Many more introductory-level studies of Scripture and
Christian history suitable for use “on-the-go” are
available on SlideShare.
Comments or questions may be sent to:
msp.291@charter.net

The Bible As Hymnal Part 2: Beyond Psalms

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to The Bible As Hymnal Part 2: Beyond Psalms

Similar to The Bible As Hymnal Part 2: Beyond Psalms (20)

More from Mark Pavlin

More from Mark Pavlin (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

The Bible As Hymnal Part 2: Beyond Psalms