Blessed Is the Man

Representative Text

1 Blessed is the man that never
Doth in godless counsel meet;
Nor in sinners' way stands ever,
Nor sits in the scorner's seat,
But on God's all-perfect law
Meditates with holy awe;
Day and night he delves for treasure
In the Word--'tis all his pleasure.

2 As a tree that has been planted
By the flowing waters fair,
In its season e'er is granted
Fruits and foliage to bear;
So is he, the righteous, seen
Ever fruitful, ever green,
And his leaf shall wither never,
All he does shall prosper ever.

3 To the wicked 'tis not given
Such a happy lot to share;
As the chaff by wind is driven
So shall the ungodly fare;
They in judgment shall not stand,
Nor be in the righteous band:
These the Lord forsaketh never,
Those shall be cast off forever.

4 For the Lord His people knoweth,
His pure eyes behold their way,
And the blessing He bestoweth
Is their heritage for aye:
But the wicked ever tend
To their doom and to their end:
God will all the righteous cherish,
But the wicked ones shall perish.

Source: Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary #457

Author: Paul Gerhardt

Paul Gerhardt (b. Gräfenheinichen, Saxony, Germany, 1607; d. Lubben, Germany, 1676), famous author of Lutheran evangelical hymns, studied theology and hymnody at the University of Wittenberg and then was a tutor in Berlin, where he became friends with Johann Crüger. He served the Lutheran parish of Mittenwalde near Berlin (1651-1657) and the great St. Nicholas' Church in Berlin (1657-1666). Friederich William, the Calvinist elector, had issued an edict that forbade the various Protestant groups to fight each other. Although Gerhardt did not want strife between the churches, he refused to comply with the edict because he thought it opposed the Lutheran "Formula of Concord," which con­demned some Calvinist doctrines. Consequently, he was r… Go to person page >

Author: M. B. Landstad

Magnus Brostrup Landstad (born 7 October 1802 in Måsøy, Norway and died 8 October 1880 in Kristiania) was a Norwegian minister, psalmist and poet who published the first collection of authentic Norwegian traditional ballads in 1853. This work was criticized for unscientific methods, but today it is commonly accepted that he contributed significantly to the preservation of the traditional ballads. Landstad lived with his father Hans Landstad (1771–1838) who was also a minister, first in 1806 to Øksnes, to Vinje in 1811 and to Seljord in 1819. He took a theological degree (cand. theol) in 1827, and worked after that as the resident chaplain in Gausdal for six years. After that he worked in different parishes in Telemark, Østfold befo… Go to person page >

Translator: Carl Doving

Born: March 21, 1867, Nord­dal­en, Nor­way. Died: Oc­to­ber 2, 1937, Chi­ca­go, Il­li­nois. Buried: De­cor­ah, Io­wa.  Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Blessed is the man that never
Title: Blessed Is the Man
German Title: Wohl dem Menschen, der nicht wandelt
Author: M. B. Landstad
Author: Paul Gerhardt
Translator: Carl Doving
Meter: 8.7.8.7.7.7.8.8
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Tune

WERDE MUNTER

JESU JOY is a form of the tune WERDE MUNTER, MEIN GEMUETE by Johann Schop (b. Hamburg [?], Germany, c. 1595; d. Hamburg, 1667). In 1614 Schop was appointed court musician in the Hofkapelle at Wolfenbüttel. A virtuoso violinist, he also played the lute, cornetto, and trombone. He became a musician f…

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Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary #457

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