God's Word Is Our Great Heritage Explained

"God's Word Is Our Great Heritage" is the title of a popular hymn sung in many churches, especially the Lutheran Church. This hymn was inspired by Psalm 16:6: "...yea, I have a goodly heritage." KJV[1]

History

God's Word Is Our Great Heritage was written in 1817 by N. F. S. Grundtvig, a Danish Lutheran Pastor. Gruntvig wrote the hymn as the 5th verse to Martin Luther's Ein feste Burg http://www.hymntime.com/tch/mid/e/i/n/ein_feste_burg.mid. The hymn was translated into English by Ole Gulbrand Belsheim in 1909. In 1916, Friedrich Otto Reuter, then a professor at Dr. Martin Luther College, put the hymn to a tune of his creation. Many hymnals use this arrangement, including The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Service Book (LCMS) and Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal (WELS), though the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary (ELS) has retained the original melody to the hymn. The hymn is also the school hymn of Michigan Lutheran Seminary.

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Notes and References

  1. The Holy Bible (King James Version). London: Thomas NelsonPublishers.