"Christ, the Life of All the Living"
                         by Ernst C. Homburg 1605-1681
                                  Text From:
                      THE HANDBOOK TO THE LUTHERAN HYMNAL
          (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1942), pp. 118-119.


       1. Christ, the Life of all the living,
       Christ, the Death of death, our foe,
       Who, Thyself for me once giving
       To the darkest depths of woe,--
       Through Thy sufferings, death, and merit
       I eternal life inherit:
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

       2. Thou, ah! Thou, hast taken on Thee
       Bonds and stripes, a cruel rod;
       Pain and scorn were heaped upon Thee,
       O Thou sinless Son of God!
       Thus didst Thou my soul deliver
       From the bonds of sin forever.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

       3. Thou hast borne the smiting only
       That my wounds might all be whole;
       Thou hast suffered, sad and lonely,
       Rest to give my weary soul;
       Yea, the curse of God enduring,
       Blessing unto me securing.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.


       4. Heartless scoffers did surround Thee,
       Treating Thee with shameful scorn,
       And with piercing thorns they crowned Thee.
       All disgrace Thou, Lord, hast borne
       That as Thine Thou mightest own
       And with heavenly glory crown me.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.


       5. Thou hast suffered men to bruise Thee
       That from pain I might be free;
       Falsely did Thy foes accuse Thee,--
       Thence I gain secruity;
       Comfortless Thy soul did languish
       Me to comfort in my anguish.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.


       6. Thou has suffered great affliction
       And hast borne it patiently,
       Even death by crucifixion,
       Fully to atone for me;
       Thou didst choose to be tormented
       That my doom should be prevented.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.
       
       7. That Thou wast so meek and stainless
       Doth atone for my proud mood;
       And Thy death makes dying painless,
       All Thy ills have wrought our good;
       Yea, the shame Thou didst endure
       Is my honor and my cure.
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.
       
       8. Then, for all that wrought my pardon,
       For Thy sorrows deep and sore,
       For Thine anguish in the Garden,
       I will thank Thee evermore,
       Thank Thee for Thy groaning, sighing,
       For Thy bleeding and Thy dying,
       Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
       Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

       ____________________________________________________________
       Notes:
       Hymn #151 From the Handbook to TLH (stanza 7 omitted in TLH. 
                                           Text from Handbk to TLH)
       Text: Matt. 26: 64-67
       Author: Ernst C. Homburg, 1659 ab.
       Titled: Jesu, meines Lebens Leben
       Translated by: Catherine Winkworth, 1863, alt.
       Tune: "Kirchengesangbuch"
       Darmstadt, 1687

       _________________________________________________________________

       This text was converted to ascii format for Project Wittenberg
       by Rev. Cindy A. Beesley and is in the public domain.  You may
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       comments or suggestions to: Rev. Robert E. Smith of the Walther
       Library at Concordia Theological Seminary.                 

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