Holy God, We Praise Thy Name NLPHB 95

I blogged this as “Holy God, We Praise Your Name” in As On Voice 2 many years ago. This version leaves the archaic language intact.

The text is a German paraphrase of the”Te Deum Laudamus” attributed to Ignace Franz and translated by Clarence Alphonsus Walworth. It is set to GROSSER GOTT, which is C18 German.

It is a scattergun song of praise that goes from Trinitarian, to supplication, to heavenly choirs – it has a bit of everything, praise wise. The text below is as found in this hymnal, but there are many variations out there.

NLPHB has John de Luca’s own arrangement. My BIAB organ backing is less out of control this time:

1 Holy God, we praise thy name;
Lord of all, we bow before thee!
All on earth thy sceptre claim,
All in heav’n above adore thee;
Infinite thy vast domain,
Everlasting is thy reign.

2 Hark! the loud celestial hymn
Angel choirs above are raising,
Cherubim and Seraphim,
In unceasing chorus praising;
Fill the heav’ns with sweet accord:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord.

3 Lo! th’ apostles all proclaim
“Christ is Lord, his name be hallowed”;
Prophets swell the loud refrain,
And the white-robed martyrs follow;
And from morn to set of sun,
Through the Church the song goes on.

4 Holy Father, Holy Son,
Holy Spirit, three we name thee,
While in essence only one,
Undivided God we claim thee;
And adoring bend the knee,
While we own the mystery.

5 Spare thy people, Lord, we pray,
By a thousand snares surrounded;
Keep us without sin today;
Never let us be confounded.
Lo, I put my trust in thee —
Never, Lord, abandon me.

I found a couple of other verses not in this hymnal:

Thou art King of glory, Christ!
Son of God, yet born of Mary;
For us sinners sacrificed,
And to death a tributary;
First to break the bars of death,
Thou hast opened Heav’n to faith.

From thy high celestial home,
Judge of all, again returning,
We believe that thou shalt come
On the dreadful doomsday morning,
When thy voice shall shake the earth,
And the startled dead come forth.