C l a s s i c a l
H Y M N S
***
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
Words: Martin Luther. Translated to
English by Frederic H. Hedge
Music:
"Ein Feste Burg" by Martin Luther
A mighty
fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper
He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still
our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft
and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is
not his equal.
Did we in
our strength confide, our striving would be losing;
Were not the
right Man on our side, the Man of God's own choosing:
Dost ask who
that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord
Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must
win the battle.
And though
this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not
fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The prince
of darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we
can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little
word shall fell him.
That word
above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit
and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods
and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body
they may kill: God's truth abideth still,
His kingdom
is forever.