“Jesus, Priceless Treasure,” LBW 457 & 458
1 Jesus, priceless treasure,
Source of purest pleasure,
Truest Friend to me:
Ah, how long I've panted,
And my heart has fainted,
Thirsting, Lord, for thee!
Thine are mine,
O spotless Lamb;
I will suffer naught to hide hee,
Naught I ask beside thee.
2 In thine arm I rest me;
Foes who would molest me
Cannot reach me here.
Though the earth be shaking,
Ev'ry heart be quaking,
Jesus calms my fear.
Sin and hell in conflict fell
With their bitter storms assail me,
Jesus will not fail me.
3 Hence, all fears and sadness,
For the Lord of gladness,
Jesus, enters in.
Those who love the Father,
Though the storms may gather,
Still have peace within.
Yea, whate'er we here must bear,
Still in thee lies purest pleasure,
Jesus, priceless Treasure!
Devotion
One has to wonder if the differences between German and Scandinavian temperaments aren’t irreconcilable. Crüger (a German) wrote one tune for this text when it first appeared, and Lindemann (a Norwegian) wrote another a couple centuries later. The two melodies are quite different, both appearing on facing pages in the Lutheran Book of Worship. Crüger’s tune is written from the perspective of one caught in the bitter storms of sin and hell, Lindemann’s from the perspective of one resting in Jesus’ arms. It is a credit to Johann Franck that he wrote a hymn that voices both the hunger pangs of humanity and the satisfaction of Jesus’ table—the pangs and table that we have encountered in this week’s readings. It is an even more important credit to Jesus Christ that he has filled hungry sinners like us (German, Norwegian, or otherwise) with his mercy, sinners who so rarely recognize their own hunger.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, in the midst of storms, calm my fears. Protect me from foes, and preserve me in your arms unto eternal life. Amen