If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee
If thou but suffer God to guide thee
If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee is a hymn text by Georg Neumark (1657) in 8.7.8.7.8.8.7 meter. Translated by Catherine Winkworth. Found in CW93 444, ELH 205, elw 738, lbw 453.
This hymn exemplifies Lutheran confidence in God's hidden providence working through all circumstances for the believer's good. It affirms the paradox that suffering itself, when received with faith, becomes an instrument of God's guidance and grace.
History & Background
Georg Neumark composed this hymn in German as 'Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten' in 1657 during a period of personal distress and uncertainty. Catherine Winkworth translated it into English in 1863, and it became one of the most beloved Lutheran hymns of patient trust in English-speaking churches.
Hymnal Appearances
- Christian Worship — 444
- Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary — 205
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 738
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 453
- Lutheran Service Book — 750
- Lutheran Worship — 420
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 518
- United Methodist Hymnal — 142
- With One Voice — 750
Translation
Bulletin Note
Composed by Georg Neumark in 1657 during religious upheaval, this hymn anchors faith in God's hidden but certain providence. A jewel of Lutheran hymnody, it transforms suffering into the pulpit of grace.
Preaching Connection
This hymn embodies the Lutheran paradox: the Law accuses us of trusting ourselves rather than God, yet the Gospel announces that our very suffering, when yielded to His guidance, becomes the arena where His fatherly love proves itself most real.
Catechism & Confessional Connections
- The Fourth Petition Small Catechism — The Lord's Prayer
Background Research
Georg Neumark (1621–1681). In autumn 1641 he left school at Gotha with merchants bound for the Leipzig fair, meaning to go on to study at Königsberg. Robbers on the Gardelegen Heath took everything except his prayer book and a little sewn-in money. He found no work in Magdeburg, Lüneburg, Winsen or Hamburg. In Kiel, in December, Pastor Nicolaus Becker helped him; at the end of the month a tutor's post suddenly opened in Judge Stephan Henning's house when the previous tutor fled. That sudden relief is tied to the writing of the hymn, a lesson in trusting God's timing. Neumark later became court poet and librarian at Weimar and went blind in 1681. From memory, not checked: Neumark wrote the tune himself, and both were published in his Fortgepflantzter Musikalisch-Poetischer Lustwald (1657). Bach based chorale cantata BWV 93 on it.
Sources: bach-cantatas.com (Neumark biography).
In the Church Year
Suggested in the one-year series
- Trinity 5 (4×)
- Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist (2×)
- Lent 3 (1×)
- St. Bartholomew (1×)
- Trinity 25 (1×)
Suggested in the three-year series
- Proper 14 (2×)
- Proper 8 (2×)
- Proper 5 (1×)
- Proper 7 (1×)
From LCMS Worship's published hymn suggestions, 2014–2026. The count is how many of those yearly lists suggested this hymn for that day.
Overview
A hymn of trust written by a young, impoverished student after unexpected employment rescued him. It addresses the singer's own soul ('thou'), counseling patience and trust in God's providence. It argues against worry (st. 2), for patient waiting (st. 3), that God knows the right time (st. 4), that suffering is not rejection (st. 5), that God can reverse fortunes (st. 6), and ends with practical counsel: sing, pray, work, trust (st. 7). Its theology is providence and the cross.
Central theme: Patient trust in God's fatherly providence in times of trial
Structure
Thesis (1); against worry (2); wait (3); God's timing (4); suffering ≠ abandonment (5); God reverses fortunes (6); counsel (7).
Law & Gospel Shape
Gospel of God's care, with gentle admonition against anxiety (Law used pastorally).
Confessional Connections
First Article (Small Catechism): God provides and protects 'out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me.'
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Trinity season, Sundays on worry or providence (Matt 6:25-34); funerals; times of hardship; Fifth Sunday after Pentecost-type readings.
Historical Notes
Neumark (1621-1681) was robbed on his way to university, then found a tutoring post in Kiel; he wrote text and tune that day. Bach's Cantata 93 sets it.
About the Tune
WER NUR DEN LIEBEN GOTT — Neumark's own melody; Mendelssohn quotes it in 'St. Paul.'
Scripture References
Ps 55:22 Matt 6:25-34 1 Pet 5:7 Rom 8:28 1 Sam 2:7-8 Luke 1:52-53 Heb 13:5
Stanza by Stanza
If you let God rule and hope in him always, he will strengthen and carry you through bad days; whoever trusts God's unchanging love builds on an immovable rock.
'Suffer' means 'allow' — the German 'walten lassen' is to let God rule. The hymn begins with a condition that is really an invitation to faith. 'He'll… bear thee through the evil days' echoes Ps 55:22 ('Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you') and Isa 46:4. The rock image recalls the wise builder (Matt 7:24-25) and Ps 18:2. Note that trust is in 'God's unchanging love,' not in circumstances.
- Scripture
- Ps 55:22, Isa 46:4, Matt 7:24-25, Ps 18:2, Prov 3:5-6
- Imagery & language
- Guiding; carrying; rock foundation.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel invitation to trust.
- Connection to previous
- Thesis.
What good are anxious worries and constant sighs? Lamenting every dark moment only makes our crosses heavier.
A pastoral rebuke of worry, paralleling Matt 6:27 ('which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?'). The final couplet is a keen psychological observation: bitterness adds weight to the cross. Worry is not neutral — it is a form of unbelief, though the hymn treats it gently.
- Scripture
- Matt 6:25-27, Phil 4:6, Luke 12:25-26
- Imagery & language
- Moans and sighs; pressing weight.
- Law / Gospel
- Gentle Law — worry exposed.
- Connection to previous
- Contrasts trust (st. 1) with worry.
Wait patiently for God's timing in cheerful hope, accepting whatever your Father sends in love; he knows our deepest needs and has chosen us.
'Await His leisure' means God's chosen time (Ps 37:7; Lam 3:25-26). 'Thy Father's pleasure' frames providence as fatherly, not fate. 'His discerning love' — God's love sees what we cannot. 'Him who chose us for His own' brings election in as comfort (Eph 1:4-5), exactly as FC XI recommends.
- Scripture
- Ps 37:7, Lam 3:25-26, Matt 6:8, 32, Eph 1:4-5, Rom 8:28-29
- Imagery & language
- Waiting; inmost wants known.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — fatherly care and election.
- Connection to previous
- Positive counsel replacing worry (st. 2).
God knows when joy is needed; after testing us with sadness and finding us sincere, he comes unexpectedly and shows his loving care.
God's timing again: there is a season for gladness (Eccl 3:4). Trials are described as testing and purifying (1 Pet 1:6-7; Jas 1:2-4). 'He comes to thee all unaware' — help arrives unexpectedly, as it did for Neumark. A Lutheran reader will note this is not earning relief by passing a test; it is God's fatherly discipline (Heb 12:5-11) with relief already planned.
- Scripture
- Eccl 3:1-4, 1 Pet 1:6-7, Jas 1:2-4, Heb 12:5-11, Ps 30:5
- Imagery & language
- Trial and refining; sudden arrival.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — God's timing.
- Connection to previous
- Explains why waiting (st. 3) is worthwhile.
Do not think in trials that God has rejected you, or that those whose hopes are always fulfilled must be God's favorites; time changes everything and sets limits to all things.
A direct attack on prosperity thinking: suffering is not proof of God's disfavor, and prosperity not proof of his favor (Ps 73; 1 Pet 4:12). This is the theology of the cross applied to daily life: God's love is often hidden under its opposite. 'Time… sets a bound to everything' recalls Eccl 3 — both trouble and others' good fortune are temporary.
- Scripture
- 1 Pet 4:12-13, Ps 73, Heb 13:5, Eccl 3:1, 2 Cor 4:17
- Imagery & language
- Fiery trial; time setting boundaries.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel against false conclusions from suffering.
- Connection to previous
- Addresses the doubt that trials create.
All people are equal before God; he easily raises the lowly and humbles the rich; he still works wonders, raising up and bringing down.
Based on Hannah's song (1 Sam 2:7-8) and the Magnificat (Luke 1:52-53): God lifts the humble and brings down the proud. 'All are alike before the Highest' levels human distinctions (Acts 10:34). The point for the sufferer: present lowliness is no obstacle to God.
- Scripture
- 1 Sam 2:6-8, Luke 1:51-53, Ps 113:7-8, Acts 10:34
- Imagery & language
- Raising and lowering; rich and poor.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — God's sovereign reversal.
- Connection to previous
- Supports st. 5's claim that circumstances change.
Sing, pray, follow God's ways, do your duties faithfully, and trust his Word even though you are unworthy; God has never forsaken anyone who truly trusted him.
Practical counsel: worship (sing), prayer, faithful vocation ('perform thy duties'), and trust in the Word. This resembles Luther's advice to work faithfully in one's calling and leave outcomes to God. 'Though undeserving' keeps grace central — the promise is not earned. The final couplet echoes Heb 13:5 and Ps 37:25.
- Scripture
- Col 3:16-17, 1 Thess 5:16-18, Heb 13:5, Ps 37:25, Ps 9:10
- Imagery & language
- Practical imperatives; never forsaken.
- Law / Gospel
- Third use with Gospel promise.
- Connection to previous
- Concludes with action and promise.
Themes
Divine providence Trust in God Patient suffering Faith in adversity God's guidance