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SDAH 659
May the grace of Christ our Savior
And the Father’s boundless love,
With the Holy Spirit’s favor,
Rest upon them from above.
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For Worship Leaders
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Introductions for Sabbath School Song Service (based on specific lesson quarterlies):
This is a metrical paraphrase by John Newton (1725-1807; see Biographies) of 2 Corinthians 13:14: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all.” He wrote it to be sung as a benediction after the sermon; it was printed in Olney Hymns, 1779. The original was a single stanza of eight lines, which has been made into two stanzas. Newton included himself with the congregation in this benediction and wrote “us” instead of “them” and “we” where SDAH has “they.” This present version is most appropriate for the congregation to sing at the marriage ceremony.
STUTTGART was first published in Psalmodia Sacra, 1715, by A. C. Ludwig and Christian Friedrich Witt. It was probably composed or arranged by the latter. The original melody contained some florid grace notes; this simpler adaptation was made by Henry J. Gauntlett (1805-1876; see SDAH 149) for the text “Earth has many a noble city” and included in the 1861 Hymns Ancient and Modern. The tune name is unusual in that most of the German chorales are identified by the first line of the text.
Christian Friedrich Witt (c. 1660-1716), the son of a court organist, also became a court organist at Gotha, in Germany, in 1868, and music director at his birthplace, Altenburg, in 1713.
📖 Reference: Companion to the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal by Wayne Hooper and Edward E. White. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1988.
Text
1
May the grace of Christ our Savior
And the Father’s boundless love,
With the Holy Spirit’s favor,
Rest upon them from above.
2
Thus may they abide in union
With each other and the Lord,
And possess, in sweet communion,
Joys which earth cannot afford.
Hymn Info
Biblical Reference
(a) 2 Cor 13:14
Author
John Newton (1725-1807)
Hymn Tune
STUTTGART
Metrical Number
8.7.8.7.
Adapted
Henry J. Gauntlett (1805-1876)
Tune Source
Psalmodia Sacra, Gotha, 1715
