Miss Winkworth possessed a marvelous ability of preserving the spirit of
the great German hymns while she clothed them in another language. It was
she who gave us in English dress such magnificent hymns as Rinkart's "Now
thank we all our God," Luther's "Out of the depths I cry to Thee,"
Decius' "All glory be to God on high," Neander's "Praise to the Lord, the
Almighty, the King of creation," Schmolck's "Open now thy gates of
beauty," and Gerhardt's "All my heart this night rejoices." Miss
Winkworth, more than any other one person, is responsible for having
aroused in England and America an appreciation of the treasure store of
German hymnody. She died in 1869.
The two Borthwick sisters, Jane Laurie and Sarah, were born in Edinburgh,
Scotland, the former in 1813 and the latter in 1823. They came from an
old Scotch family. Sarah married a Rev. Eric Findlater and lived for a
time in Perthshire.
The Borthwick sisters collaborated in the preparation of the translations
entitled "Hymns from the Land of Luther." These appeared first in 1854
and continued in four series until 1862. Although it is difficult to
distinguish the individual work of the sisters, Jane is generally
credited with the translation of such noble hymns as Zinzendorf's "Jesus,
still lead on," and Schmolck's "My Jesus, as Thou wilt," while Sarah is
believed to be the translator of Tersteegen's "God calling yet," Spitta's
"O happy home, where Thou art loved the dearest," Schmolck's "My God, I
know that I must die," and a large number of other famous German hymns.
Jane Borthwick died in 1897, and her younger sister followed her ten
years later.
The Voice of Jesus
I heard the voice of Jesus say:
"Come unto Me and rest;
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down
Thy head upon My breast."
I came to Jesus as I was,
Weary, and worn, and sad;
I found in Him a resting-place,
And He has made me glad.
I heard the voice of Jesus say,
"Behold, I freely give
The living water, thirsty one,
Stoop down, and drink, and live."
I came to Jesus and I drank
Of that life-giving stream;
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived,
And now I live in Him.
I heard the voice of Jesus say,
"I am this dark world's Light;
Look unto Me, thy morn shall rise,
And all thy day be bright."
I looked to Jesus, and I found
In Him my Star, my Sun;
And in that Light of life I'll walk,
Till traveling days are done.
Horatius Bonar, 1846.
BONAR, THE SWEET SINGER OF SCOTLAND
One of Scotland's most earnest soul-winners was also its greatest
hymnist. He was Horatius Bonar, a name that will be forever cherished by
all who are filled with a fervent love for the Saviour and who find that
love so beautifully expressed in the spiritual songs of the noble
Scotchman.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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