I Know of a Sleep in Jesus' Name
I know of a sleep in Jesus' name
I Know of a Sleep in Jesus' Name is a hymn text by Gottlob Benjamin Sized (1781) in 8.7.8.7.8.7 meter. Translated by Catherine Winkworth. Found in elw 311, lbw 342, lw 281, tlh 592.
This hymn expresses the Lutheran understanding of death as a peaceful rest for believers through Christ's redemptive work, not as the final end but as sleep preceding resurrection. It reflects the comfort of the Gospel's promise that death has lost its power through Christ's victory.
History & Background
Written by Gottlob Benjamin Sized, a German pietist hymn writer, and first published in 1781. Catherine Winkworth's English translation appeared in her 1858 collection, becoming the standard English version in Lutheran hymnals.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 311
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 342
- Lutheran Worship — 281
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 592
Translation
Bulletin Note
Written in 1781 by Gottlob Benjamin Sized, this German chorale expresses the Lutheran comfort that death, through Christ, becomes rest and resurrection hope—not punishment, but sleep in the Savior's arms.
Preaching Connection
This hymn amplifies the Gospel's victory over death by reframing mortality as sleep—a sermon on the Resurrection might use this image to show how Christ's rising guarantees our own, turning Law's condemnation into grace's consolation.
Overview
The best-loved Norwegian funeral hymn, by Magnus Brostrup Landstad. I know of a sleep in Jesus' name: earth shelters the weary body until morning, while the soul is at home with God (st. 1). I know of a peaceful eventide that the tired pilgrim longs for (st. 2). I know of a bright morning when Jesus will bid us rise (st. 3). I already see its light in spirit on the mountain peaks and sing like birds in the lindens (st. 4). Christ comes to the graves; 'Ye dead, come forth!' (st. 5). The hymn closes: 'This child is not dead, but sleeping' (st. 6).
Central theme: Confident knowledge of the body's sleep, the soul's homecoming, and the resurrection morning in Jesus' name
Structure
Six six-line stanzas (9.8.9.8.9.8). 'I know' anaphora: sleep (1), eventide (2), morning (3); the morning seen in hope (4); the resurrection call (5); deathbed prayer (6).
Law & Gospel Shape
Law implied: toil, sorrow, weariness, the grave (1-2, 5). Gospel: 'My soul is at home with God'; 'Jesus shall bid us rise'; 'Ye dead, come forth!'; 'not dead, but sleeping' (1, 3, 5-6).
Confessional Connections
Rev 14:13 (TLH's text): 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord… they may rest from their labors.' St. 1 holds together what Lutheran teaching holds together: the body rests in the earth 'till the morrow,' while 'my soul is at home with God in heaven' (2 Cor 5:8; Luke 23:43), so the sleep is not soul-sleep. The repeated 'I know' is the certainty of faith resting on Christ's promise (Job 19:25; AC IV; Ap IV, the certainty of grace). St. 5: Christ's own voice raises the dead (John 5:28-29; AC XVII). St. 6 applies Jesus' word over Jairus' daughter, 'not dead, but sleeping' (Mark 5:39), to the believer's death. Christ's word makes death a sleep.
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Funerals; burial; All Saints; Last Sundays of the Church Year; Easter.
Historical Notes
Landstad (1802-1880), Norwegian pastor and hymnologist, compiled the Landstad hymnal (1869) that shaped Norwegian Lutheran worship. TLH abridges the 1861 text. The hymn came into TLH by way of the Norwegian Synod tradition.
About the Tune
DEN SIGNEDE DAG (Christoph E. F. Weyse, 1826).
Scripture References
Rev 14:13 1 Thess 4:13-14 Gen 3:19 2 Cor 5:8 Phil 1:23 Matt 11:28 Heb 4:9 1 Cor 15:52 Mal 4:2 Isa 52:7 John 5:28-29 John 11:43 Matt 27:51-53 Rev 20:13 1 Thess 4:17 Mark 5:39 Luke 8:52 Ps 23:4
Stanza by Stanza
I know of a sleep in Jesus' name, a rest from all work and sorrow. The earth folds my tired body in her arms and shelters it until morning; my soul is at home with God in heaven, and her sorrows are past and over.
'Those who have fallen asleep in Jesus' (1 Thess 4:14). 'They may rest from their labors' (Rev 14:13). 'To dust you shall return' (Gen 3:19). 'Away from the body and at home with the Lord' (2 Cor 5:8).
- Scripture
- 1 Thess 4:13-14, Rev 14:13, Gen 3:19, 2 Cor 5:8
- Imagery & language
- Sleep in Jesus' name; rest; earth's arms; till the morrow; soul at home.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: body at rest, soul with God.
- Connection to previous
- Sleep in Jesus' name.
I know of a peaceful evening; and when I am faint and weary, sometimes sorely tried by the journey through long and dreary hours, I often long to lie down and sink into blissful sleep.
'Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest' (Matt 11:28). 'There remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God' (Heb 4:9). 'My desire is to depart' (Phil 1:23).
- Scripture
- Matt 11:28, Heb 4:9, Phil 1:23
- Imagery & language
- Peaceful eventide; faint and weary; journey; yearning.
- Law / Gospel
- Law: weariness. Gospel: promised rest.
- Connection to previous
- Eventide.
I know of a bright and beautiful morning when news of joy will wake us, when songs from on high will fill the air and God will take us to his glory, when Jesus will tell us to rise from sleep. How joyful that hour of waking!
'The trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised' (1 Cor 15:52). 'How beautiful… are the feet of him who brings good news' (Isa 52:7). 'The sun of righteousness shall rise' (Mal 4:2).
- Scripture
- 1 Cor 15:52, Isa 52:7, Mal 4:2
- Imagery & language
- Morning; tidings of joy; songs on high; bid us rise; joyous waking.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: resurrection morning.
- Connection to previous
- Morning of waking.
That is a morning dear to me, and often in spirit I see its heavenly light streaming over the mountains as the peaks shine golden. Then I sing for joy like the birds at dawn that sing high in the linden trees.
'Faith is the assurance of things hoped for' (Heb 11:1). 'The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn' (Prov 4:18). 'The time of singing has come' (Song 2:12).
- Scripture
- Heb 11:1, Prov 4:18, Song 2:12
- Imagery & language
- Morning dear; light over mountains; golden peaks; birds at dawn; lindens.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: hope that sings.
- Connection to previous
- Golden peaks.
Then God's Son goes to our graves, and all tribes and nations hear his voice; the gates that guard our bodies are torn open and the foundations of the sea are moved. He calls out loudly, 'You dead, come out!' and we rise in glory to meet him.
'All who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out' (John 5:28-29). 'He cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come out' (John 11:43). 'The tombs also were opened' (Matt 27:52). 'The sea gave up the dead who were in it' (Rev 20:13). 'To meet the Lord in the air' (1 Thess 4:17).
- Scripture
- John 5:28-29, John 11:43, Matt 27:51-53, Rev 20:13, 1 Thess 4:17
- Imagery & language
- God's Son at the graves; all nations; portals rent; sea moved; 'Come forth!'; rise in glory.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: Christ raises the dead.
- Connection to previous
- Ye dead, come forth.
Jesus, come near my deathbed and take me into your keeping; and when my spirit has left, say, 'This child is not dead, but sleeping.' Do not leave me, Savior, until I rise to praise you in eternal life.
'The child is not dead but sleeping' (Mark 5:39; Luke 8:52). 'Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death… you are with me' (Ps 23:4). 'Into your hand I commit my spirit' (Ps 31:5).
- Scripture
- Mark 5:39, Luke 8:52, Ps 23:4, Ps 31:5
- Imagery & language
- Dying bed; keeping; not dead but sleeping; leave me not; life eternal.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: Christ's word over our death.
- Connection to previous
- Not dead, but sleeping.
Themes
Death and resurrection Rest in Christ Comfort in bereavement Hope in eternity Jesus as Savior