This beloved hymn is actually a combination of two separate poems by Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf (1700– 1760). Stanzas 1, 3, and 4 are from an eleven-stanza hymn, and stanza 2 from a separate fifteen-stanza poem; in 1778, the Moravian musician Christian Gregor distilled all twenty-six original stanzas into the four we sing today. The text mirrors Zinzendorf’s own life: he traveled extensively, welcomed refugees onto his estate, and devoted himself to guiding all people to their “Father’s side.” The hymn promises not a life free from struggle but rest for the soul, an echo of Matthew 11:29. Jane Borthwick’s 1854 English translation originally began “Jesus, still lead on” before later editors gave us the familiar opening we sing today.
Sung at Our Saviour
2025