Let All Together Praise Our God
Let all together praise our God
This hymn embodies Lutheran theology of the incarnation, celebrating God's self-disclosure in Christ's birth as an event of cosmic significance worthy of universal praise. It reflects the Reformation emphasis on joy in salvation and the accessibility of God's grace to all believers regardless of station.
History & Background
Martin Behm composed this German carol text in the early 17th century as a joyful nativity hymn emphasizing the incarnation. Catherine Winkworth translated it into English in 1863, making it widely accessible to English-speaking Lutheran and Reformed congregations.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 278
- Glory to God — 138
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 47
- Lutheran Service Book — 389
- Lift Up Your Hearts — 78
- Lutheran Worship — 44
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 105
Translation
Bach Cantatas
- BWV 79: God the Lord is sun and shield (1725)
Bulletin Note
Martin Behm (1557–1622) wrote this carol during the Reformation, when the church reclaimed the joy of Christmas as a people's feast. Set to the jubilant tune Lasst Uns Erfreuen, it reflects Lutheran conviction that God's grace overflows to all.
Preaching Connection
This hymn transforms the Law's revelation of God's transcendent majesty into the Gospel's proclamation that this same God has chosen radical nearness to us in Christ's nativity.
Stanza Arc
The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Invocation of creation to praise God → enumeration of creatures' gifts → call to gratitude and eternal adoration
Themes
Nativity of Christ Joy and celebration Praise and worship God's incarnation Universal rejoicing