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Updated 09/08/2020

 

Praise to The Lord, The Almighty


Juachim Neander

Joachim Neander (Neumann) (1650 - May 31, 1680) was a German Reformed (Calvinist) Church teacher, theologian and hymn writer.  Neander wrote about 60 hymns and provided tunes for many of them. He is considered by many to be the first important German hymnist after the Reformation and is regarded as the outstanding hymn writer of the German Reformed Church.
 

Joachim Neander was born in Bremen, the son of a Latin teacher. His grandfather, a musician, had changed the family name from the original "Neumann" ("New man" in English) to the Greek Neander following the fashion of the time. After the death of his father he could not afford to study at a famous university. He therefore studied theology in his home town from 1666 to 1670. At first, his heart was not in it. It was only when he heard a sermon of Theodor Undereyk (shortly before the end of his course) that his beliefs became serious.

In 1679 Neander became a pastor in Bremen, as his popularity with the common people had caused problems with the church administration in Düsseldorf. One year later, at the age of 30, he died of tuberculosis.

The words to “Praise To The Lord, The Almighty” were translated from German to English by Catherine Winkworth.  The music is Lobe den Her­ren.  Winkworth lived most of her life in Man­chest­er, Eng­land. The not­a­ble ex­cept­ion was the year she spent in Dres­den, Ger­ma­ny. Around 1854, she pub­lished Lyra Ger­man­i­ca, con­tain­ing nu­mer­ous Ger­man hymns trans­lat­ed in­to Eng­lish. She went on to pub­lish ano­ther ser­ies of Ger­man hymns in 1858. In 1863, she came out with The Chor­ale Book for Eng­land, and in 1869, Christ­ian Sing­ers of Ger­ma­ny. More than any other sin­gle person, she helped bring the Ger­man chor­ale tra­di­tion to the Eng­lish speak­ing world.


Lyrics by Joachim Neander

 

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear, now to His temple draw near;
Praise Him in glad adoration.

 

Praise to the Lord, who over all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen how thy desires ever have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?

 

Praise to the Lord, who hath fearfully, wondrously, made thee;
Health hath vouchsafed and, when heedlessly falling, hath stayed thee.
What need or grief ever hath failed of relief?
Wings of His mercy did shade thee.

 

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;
Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee.
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord, who, when tempests their warfare are waging,
Who, when the elements madly around thee are raging,
Biddeth them cease, turneth their fury to peace,
Whirlwinds and waters assuaging.

 

Praise to the Lord, who, when darkness of sin is abounding,
Who, when the godless do triumph, all virtue confounding,
Sheddeth His light, chaseth the horrors of night,
Saints with His mercy surrounding.

 

Praise to the Lord, O let all that is in me adore Him!
All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him.
Let the Amen sound from His people again,
Gladly for aye we adore Him.