Scripture Verse

His Word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones. Jeremiah 20:9

Introduction

portrait
Catherine Winkworth
(1827–1878)

Words: Carl B. Garve, 1825 (Dein Wort ist, Herr, ein flam­men Schwert). The Ger­man text is from a long­er hymn, Dein Wort, O Herr, ist mild­er Tau, start­ing at the se­cond stan­za. Trans­lat­ed from Ger­man to Eng­lish by Ca­the­rine Wink­worth, 1855, alt.

Music: Old 107th com­posed or adapt­ed by Lou­is Bour­geois, 1543 (as in the Scot­tish Psal­ter, 1635) (🔊 pdf nwc).

Alternate Tunes:

If you know where to get a good pic­ture of Garve or Bour­geois (head & shoul­ders, at least 200×300 pix­els),

Lyrics

God’s Word is like a flam­ing sword,
A wedge that cleaves the stone;
Keen as a fire, so burns His Word,
And pierc­es flesh and bone.
Let it go forth o’er all the earth
To cleanse our hearts with­in,
To show God’s pow­er in Sa­tan’s hour
And break the might of sin.

God’s Word, a won­drous guid­ing star,
On pil­grim hearts does rise,
Leads those to God who dwell afar,
And makes the sim­ple wise.
Let not its light e’er sink in night,
But in each spir­it shine,
That none may miss Hea­ven’s fi­nal bliss,
Led by God’s light di­vine.