All that I Was My Sin My Guilt
All that I was my sin my guilt
All that I Was My Sin My Guilt is a hymn text by Nikolaus Leonhard Zinzendorf (1740) in L.M. (8.8.8.8) meter. Translated by John Christian Jacobi. Found in lw 370, tlh 378.
This hymn articulates the Lutheran doctrine of justification by faith through the forensic image of guilt-transfer, wherein Christ assumes the sinner's condemnation while the believer receives Christ's righteousness in exchange. It reflects the Reformation principle of simul iustus et peccator applied christologically, making it essential to Lutheran passion theology.
History & Background
Originally composed as a German passion hymn by Zinzendorf during the Moravian renewal, this text exemplifies the Moravian emphasis on Christ's substitutionary work. It was first translated into English by John Christian Jacobi and became widely used in Lutheran hymnals through the 19th and 20th centuries.
Hymnal Appearances
- Lutheran Worship — 370
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 378
Translation
Bulletin Note
Written by Count Zinzendorf in 1740, this Moravian hymn expresses the Reformation doctrine of imputed righteousness through the image of guilt-transfer, making forensic justification singable and spiritually palpable.
Preaching Connection
This hymn crystallizes the Law-Gospel dialectic: it names our true condition under the law while announcing the gospel's radical reversal through Christ's substitutionary atonement, deepening the congregation's grasp of justification.
Catechism & Confessional Connections
- Confession of Sin Small Catechism — Confession
- Of Justification Augsburg Confession
Overview
Horatius Bonar's 'I am what I am by the grace of God' (1 Cor 15:10). A sharp before-and-after: all that I was — sin, guilt, death — was mine; all that I am I owe to God (st. 1); the evil was mine, the good is his (st. 2); the darkness and bondage were mine, the light and liberty are his (st. 3). St. 4 tells how: 'Thy Word first made me feel my sin, / It taught me to believe' — Law, then Gospel — 'Then, in believing, peace I found, / And now I live, I live!' St. 5: all I am and hope to be I owe to him.
Central theme: Sin wholly mine, salvation wholly God's — worked through the Word by Law and Gospel
Structure
Five common-meter quatrains built on 'mine / Thine' antithesis (1-3), the means (4), the future (5).
Law & Gospel Shape
Law: 'my sin, my guilt, my death'; darkness and bondage (1-3). Gospel: 'All that I am I owe to Thee'; light and liberty; 'in believing, peace I found' (1-4).
Confessional Connections
1 Cor 15:10 (TLH's text): 'By the grace of God I am what I am.' The 'mine / Thine' antithesis is the Lutheran account of conversion: sin and death are ours (AC II, XIX — God is not the cause of sin); all good is God's (FC II.25-26). St. 4 is a model of the means of grace and the order of Law and Gospel: 'Thy Word first made me feel my sin' (Rom 3:20; FC V), 'It taught me to believe' (Rom 10:17; AC V), 'Then, in believing, peace I found' (Rom 5:1; Ap IV).
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Reformation; Trinity season; confirmation; conversion.
Historical Notes
Bonar (1808-1889), Scottish Free Church minister; published in Songs in the Wilderness (1843-44) or Hymns of Faith and Hope (verify); TLH dates it 1845.
About the Tune
ST. BERNARD (Tochter Sion, Cologne, 1741).
Scripture References
1 Cor 15:10 Rom 3:23 Rom 6:23 Eph 2:1-5 Jas 1:17 Eph 5:8 John 8:12 John 8:36 Rom 3:20 Rom 10:17 Rom 5:1 Gal 2:20 1 John 3:2
Stanza by Stanza
All that I was — my sin, my guilt, my death — was entirely my own; all that I am I owe to you alone, my gracious God.
'By the grace of God I am what I am' (1 Cor 15:10). 'The wages of sin is death' (Rom 6:23).
- Scripture
- 1 Cor 15:10, Rom 6:23, Rom 3:23
- Imagery & language
- Sin, guilt, death mine; all owed to God.
- Law / Gospel
- Law — sin mine; Gospel — all from God.
- Connection to previous
- Mine and Thine.
The evil of my former condition was mine and only mine; the good I now rejoice in is yours and only yours.
'Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above' (Jas 1:17). AC XIX: God is not the cause of sin. FC II: all good is God's work.
- Scripture
- Jas 1:17, Eph 2:1-5
- Imagery & language
- Evil mine; good Thine.
- Law / Gospel
- Law and Gospel antithesis.
- Connection to previous
- Evil and good.
The darkness of my former condition, the slavery, was all mine; the light of life I walk in, the freedom, is yours.
'At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord' (Eph 5:8). 'The light of life' (John 8:12). 'If the Son sets you free' (John 8:36).
- Scripture
- Eph 5:8, John 8:12, John 8:36
- Imagery & language
- Darkness and bondage; light and liberty.
- Law / Gospel
- Law — bondage; Gospel — freedom.
- Connection to previous
- Darkness and light.
Your Word first made me feel my sin; it taught me to believe; then, in believing, I found peace, and now I live, I live!
'Through the law comes knowledge of sin' (Rom 3:20). 'Faith comes from hearing… the word of Christ' (Rom 10:17). 'Justified by faith, we have peace with God' (Rom 5:1). 'It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me' (Gal 2:20).
- Scripture
- Rom 3:20, Rom 10:17, Rom 5:1, Gal 2:20
- Imagery & language
- Word; sin felt; believe; peace; I live!
- Law / Gospel
- Law then Gospel through the Word.
- Connection to previous
- The Word's work.
All that I am even here on earth, all that I hope to be when Jesus comes and glory dawns, I owe to you, Lord.
'When he appears we shall be like him' (1 John 3:2). Glorification too is grace.
- Scripture
- 1 John 3:2, Phil 3:20-21
- Imagery & language
- Here on earth; hope; glory dawning; owed.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — grace present and future.
- Connection to previous
- All owed.
Themes
substitutionary atonement forensic justification guilt and innocence exchange Christ's passion imputation