Andreas Gryphius (1616–64) published this text in 1676, under a section of the Nürnbergisches Gesang-Buch devoted to “the Word of God and the Christian churches.” The first stanza was not entirely his own work; he based it on an earlier prayer-book hymn by Josua Stegmann from 1627. The hymn deploys vivid imagery throughout: God’s Word is “the mirror of Your glory,” “living water,” and the “dew of heavenly grace.” The Church is a “storm-tossed little flock” and, in the final stanza, a ship with Christ standing at the helm as pilot. An original fifth stanza specifically connected the Word to the Sacraments—praying for the Lord’s Supper and Baptism, and asking Christ to clothe His people in garments “bought with Thy precious blood”—but it does not appear in modern hymnals. William Schaefer provided the English translation for The Lutheran Hymnal in 1941.
Sung at Our Saviour
2025