Lord, Now You Let Your Servant
Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace
This hymn embodies Lutheran assurance of salvation through Christ, drawing on Simeon's testimony of fulfilled messianic hope. It reflects the Lutheran understanding of the Gospel as God's gracious completion of salvation history in Christ's incarnation and redemptive work.
History & Background
Luther's metrical adaptation of the Nunc Dimittis (Luke 2:29-32), published in his 1524 Geistliche Gesangbüchlein. The German original was translated into English by Richard Massie in 1852 and has since become standard in Lutheran hymnody.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 322
- The Hymnal 1982 — 499
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 411
- Lutheran Service Book — 937
- Lift Up Your Hearts — 78
- Lutheran Worship — 370
- The Lutheran Hymnal — p. 29
- Voices Together — 873
Translation
Bulletin Note
Martin Luther's 1524 hymn based on Simeon's canticle (Luke 2:29–32). A testimony to salvation's certainty in Christ—the very foundation of Lutheran confidence in God's gracious promises to all people.
Preaching Connection
This hymn proclaims the Gospel's fulfillment: the end of waiting, the completion of salvation history, and the universal scope of Christ's redemption—a joyful counter to any law-bound despair about whether God will truly deliver.
Stanza Arc
The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Trinitarian invocation moving from individual divine attributes (mercy, redemption, comfort) to unified corporate worship, culminating in doxological affirmation of eternal divine constancy
Themes
Simeon's canticle Salvation completed Peaceful death Christ the Light Messianic fulfillment