O Lord My God I Cry to Thee
O Lord my God, I cry to Thee
O Lord My God I Cry to Thee is a hymn text by Martin Behm (1610) in L.M. (8.8.8.8) meter. Translated by Catherine Winkworth. Found in ELH 573, lw 297, tlh 600.
The hymn expresses the Lutheran emphasis on the sinner's cry for mercy and God's gracious response through Christ. It reflects the law-gospel pattern central to Lutheran theology, acknowledging human sinfulness while affirming divine forgiveness.
History & Background
Martin Behm composed this German hymn in the early 17th century as a penitential prayer. Catherine Winkworth translated it into English in 1863, and it appeared in The Chorale Book for England.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary — 573
- Lutheran Worship — 297
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 600
Translation
Bulletin Note
Martin Behm (1557–1622) composed this hymn during the Reformation's maturation, giving voice to the Lutheran conviction that God's hearing itself is an act of grace—the sinner's cry finds a merciful Father.
Preaching Connection
This hymn powerfully embodies the law-gospel dialectic: the sinner's desperate plea before God's throne becomes the occasion for proclaiming the grace that answers all our crying with the assurance of divine compassion.
Background Research
TLH 600. German: "O Herre Gott, in meiner Not" by Nikolaus Selnecker (1572). A prayer in distress and at death, commending body and soul to God and asking for angels' escort. Its three stanzas are addressed to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Winkworth's English (Lyra Germanica II, 1858, "The final conflict and heaven") compresses each stanza's six 4-syllable German lines into three 8-syllable lines (Lutheran Chorale Book). Tune VATER UNSER IM HIMMELREICH; alternates by Handl and Franck. See r1151 for Selnecker (also TLH 321).
Overview
A Trinitarian deathbed prayer by Nikolaus Selnecker, one of the authors of the Formula of Concord. To the Father: I commend soul and body; send your angel to guide me home (st. 1). To the Son, the Lamb of God: let your cross and agony save me, and your death open heaven (st. 2). To the Spirit, faithful Friend: comfort me to the end and carry me through the struggle into life (st. 3).
Central theme: A dying prayer addressed in turn to Father, Son and Holy Spirit
Structure
Three six-line long-meter stanzas (8.8.8.8.8.8). Father: committal and angel (1); Son: cross and heaven (2); Spirit: comfort to the end (3).
Law & Gospel Shape
Law: 'distress'; 'our load'; 'death and hell assail me sore' (1-3). Gospel: 'Thou helpest me'; 'Thy cross… avail to save'; 'Thy death to open heaven'; 'As Thou hast promised' (1-3).
Confessional Connections
Ps 116:9 (TLH's text): 'I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.' The three stanzas follow the Creed's three articles at the hour of death: the Father's care for body and soul (SC Creed I), the Son's redemption by his 'cross… agony… death' (SC Creed II: 'with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death'), and the Spirit who 'keeps me in the true faith' to the end (SC Creed III). St. 1: the angel carrying the soul home (Luke 16:22). St. 2: the Agnus Dei (John 1:29). St. 3: 'As Thou hast promised', the Spirit as Comforter who will not leave us (John 14:16-18).
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Funerals; deathbed; visitation of the dying; Trinity Sunday.
Historical Notes
Selnecker (1532-1592), Leipzig superintendent and co-author of the Formula of Concord (1577). The hymn dates from 1572. Winkworth translated it in Lyra Germanica, second series (1858).
About the Tune
VATER UNSER IM HIMMELREICH (Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539).
Scripture References
Ps 116:9 Ps 18:6 Ps 31:5 Luke 16:22 Heb 1:14 John 1:29 Rev 5:9 1 Pet 2:24 Heb 10:19-20 Luke 15:10 John 14:16-18 John 14:26 Rom 8:26 Phil 1:6
Stanza by Stanza
Lord my God, I cry to you; you help me in my distress. I commend my soul and body into your hands; send your angel to guide me home and cheer my heart when you call me to depart.
'In my distress I called upon the LORD' (Ps 18:6). 'Into your hand I commit my spirit' (Ps 31:5). 'The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side' (Luke 16:22).
- Scripture
- Ps 18:6, Ps 31:5, Luke 16:22, Heb 1:14
- Imagery & language
- Cry; distress; soul and body commended; angel; depart.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: the Father's help.
- Connection to previous
- To the Father.
Jesus Christ, Lamb of God, once slain to take away our burden: let your cross and agony now work to save and comfort me, and your death to open heaven, and tell me there to share the joy of the angels.
'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!' (John 1:29). 'You were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God' (Rev 5:9). 'A new and living way… through the curtain, that is, through his flesh' (Heb 10:20). 'Joy before the angels of God' (Luke 15:10).
- Scripture
- John 1:29, Rev 5:9, 1 Pet 2:24, Heb 10:19-20, Luke 15:10
- Imagery & language
- Lamb of God; slain; cross and agony; death opens heaven; angels' joy.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel: atonement.
- Connection to previous
- To the Son.
Holy Spirit, faithful Friend, give me your comfort to the end. When death and hell attack me hard, never, never leave me, but carry me safely through the struggle into life, as you have promised.
'Another Helper, to be with you forever… I will not leave you as orphans' (John 14:16-18). 'The Spirit helps us in our weakness' (Rom 8:26). 'He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion' (Phil 1:6). SC Creed III.
- Scripture
- John 14:16-18, John 14:26, Rom 8:26, Phil 1:6
- Imagery & language
- Spirit; faithful Friend; comfort; death and hell; promised life.
- Law / Gospel
- Law: death and hell assail. Gospel: the Spirit's promise.
- Connection to previous
- To the Spirit.
Themes
Repentance and confession Divine mercy Supplication Trust in God's grace