If angels sang a Saviour’s birth

The words beginning “If angels sung a Saviour’s birth” first appeared in 1707 in The Divine Companion, 2nd edition, by Henry Playford. I have not found the 2nd edition, but the 1722 4th edition has these words in eight stanzas, Common Meter, Hymn III, “An Hymn for Easter-Day,” on page 20. It is unclear who wrote these words.

The first stanza of hymn is popularly paired with Joseph Stephenson’s great fuging tune Milford. Many folks, used to hearing only the first stanza in The Sacred Harp 1991 Edition, think of this as an hymn for Christmas. The entire context, however, shows only the first two lines of the first stanza relate to the birth of Jesus. The rest is about his resurrection and resurrection in general.

1. If angels sung a Saviour’s birth,
On that auspicious morn,
Then let us imitate their mirth,
Now He again is born.

2. He frail mortality shook off,
Puts incorruption on;
And he that late was crowned in scoff,
Now fills the eternal throne.

3. Grieve not, vain man, who mortal art,
That thou to earth must fall;
It was his portion, ’twas the part
Of him, who made us all.

4. Himself he humbled to the grave,
Made flesh, like us, to show,
That we as certainly shall have,
A resurrection too.

5. Let Heav’n and Earth in contract joined,
His boundless mercies sing;
Ev’n Hell does now a conq’ror find,
And death has lost his sting.

6. If when in Eden, Adam fell,
The whole creation groan’d;
The whole creation, sure should smile
Now justice is atoned.

7. Hence all ye faithless, far away,
That this great mystery slight;
They that deny an endless day,
Will find an endless night.

8. Beyond times short and scanty bounds
The soul shall surely live;
But when the last loud trumpet sounds,
You’ll then too late believe.

This following stanza has been added in some books, though it is not part of the original:

Then with perpetual hymns, let Christ,
Who from the dead was raised,
With Father and the Holy Ghost,
Eternally be praised.

Joseph Stephenson (1723-1810) was a singing master in Dorset, England. He produced a song book titled Church Harmony, Sacred to Devotion, which went through several editions. The original title of the tune was Easter Hymn, and was probably changed to Milford by American publishers.

Words you have to look up, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• 120 Together -- “In the year 2015 the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland (formerly Baptist Union of Ireland until 2000) will have been in existence for 120 years.”
• Words You Always Have to Look Up -- “But there is a further point of confusion that can send someone to the dictionary…”
• WM 320 Initial Response: ESV Text Update (2025) -- “A response to the announcement by Crossway of a 2025 update to the English Standard Version.”
• WM 319: A Response to Mark Ward’s Offer to “Translate” the 1689 Confession -- “He makes no mention of the fact, however, that ‘circumstances’ has long been a technical term among Reformed theologians in discussions especially over the Regulative Principle of Worship.”
• William Tyndale: Why he is up there with Chaucer, Cranmer and Shakespeare. -- “Glossing over his theological works, including the highly influential Obedience of the Christian Man, Tyndale’s magnum opus was his English translation of the New Testament which was published in 1526.”
• Why Members Voting on Members Is Their Most Important Job -- “When church members vote on new members, they’re deciding on those with whom they’ll share the highest authority in the church.”
• What Today’s Christian Needs to Know About Dr Kurt Aland, Textual Critic -- “Dr Kurt Aland is perhaps the most renowned Biblical textual critic of the 20th century. Born in Berlin in 1915...”
• Unshakable -- “Billy Gene “Shakey” Holder...was the country’s oldest active full-time firefighter when he hung up his boots after 56 years with the [Irving, Texas] department.”
• Twelve Reasons Why Membership Matters -- “Jesus established the local church and all the apostles did their ministry through it. The Christian life in the New Testament is church life.”
• The Last Six Verses of Revelation -- “Erasmus has sometimes been criticised for his treatment of the last six verses of Revelation.”
• The Battle of the Theological Politicians -- “It is true that every politician will put their own country before others, but that does not mean that they should do so at the expense of others.”
• Speaking the truth to power – a letter to Bishop Budde -- “Does it not make you feel a little uncomfortable that those who don’t believe in God think that your sermon was the best thing since the Communist Manifesto?”
• Presuppositional Analysis of The King James Only Controversy by James R. White -- “White’s epistemological framework leans heavily on evidentialism, which prioritizes empirical investigation and scholarly agreement as the primary means of ascertaining textual authenticity.”
• ESV Text Changes (2025) that Reflect KJV Readings -- “It has been interesting to see the once “permanent” text of the English Standard Version change over the years.”
• Comparing Creeds of Nicaea (325) and Constantinople (381) -- “The creed drawn up at the Council of Constantinople in AD 381 is often referred to as the “Nicene Creed” (and recited in churches under that name). Nevertheless, this is a significant revision of the creed drawn up at the Council of Nicaea in AD 325.”
• Charles Taze Russell on the Comma Johanneum -- “That the Jehovah’s Witnesses felt this way about 1 John 5:7 does not prove the verse’s authenticity, but it does prove the inaccuracy of those who suggest that omitting a single verse affects no doctrine...”
• A Cowboy’s Distinctive Trail -- “A New Yorker living in Paris after World War I captured Texas and the West in an iconic statue.”

Exhortation to Discipleship

To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts (Hebrews 3.15). Join your response with the old hymn:

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 travelling days are done.

…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. II Corinthians 6:2 Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. Job 14:1 for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God … and … the wages of sin is death; Romans 3:23; 6:23 Behold, now is the day of salvation.

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. John 1:5 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: I John 1:6 …cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 25:30

Hear the word of the Lord. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. John 8:12

For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. I Peter 1:24-25

Arise, and be baptized

And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Quoting Henry Ripley, Acts 22:16 -

The Gospel regards all men as sinners, needing not only forgiveness, but also the purifying of their hearts from sin. This purity of heart, produced by the Holy Spirit’s influences, and a reception of Christ as the crucified and risen Saviour, is emblematically signified by the ordinance of baptism in the purifying element of water. Hence a believer in Christ, when receiving baptism, may justly be said, in a figure, to be washing away his sins; as he is, by that ordinance, showing externally what has been commenced in his soul, and is manifesting his serious purpose, through divine influences, perpetually to cultivate holiness of heart and life. Baptism is the external public entrance on the Christian life; so that the Christian may be said at his baptism to lay aside his sins, to cleanse himself from moral defilement, and to commence a new life. As the body is made clean by water, so the soul is cleansed by divine grace; and what is thus inwardly performed, is outwardly expressed by this significant emblem. It was customary, also, in the first years of the Gospel, for some external token to be granted from above at the administration of baptism, as showing God’s approval of the act, and acceptance of the persons; and thus the finishing evidence of pardon and of acknowledged discipleship was bestowed in connection with baptism; so that that ordinance was eminently a washing away of the person’s sins. The external token to which reference is made, was the imparting of special gifts by which God manifested his approbation of the Saviour’s followers, and fitted them for giving effectual testimony to the Gospel. And not unfrequently, in every succeeding age, has it been the case, that the reception of baptism has been honored by the Lord, as the occasion of a peculiar manifestation to the soul of his pardoning mercy and sanctifying power.[1]

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[1] Ripley, The Acts of the Apostles, 1843, pp. 287-288.

The Texas Triangle

The Texas Triangle (also dubbed the Texaplex by author David Winans) is the triangular region framed by the cities of Austin, Dallas–Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio (and the Interstates 10, 35, and 45). This region contains about 60,000-square-miles, the state’s five largest cities (see above), and over half of the state's population.

Image by Spaceboyjosh - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, (licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license) https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=48170414

Investigating John 11:19

In mid-February, I was pointed to the site “Variations Between the Textus Receptus and the King James Bible.” I was particularly interested to see what claims they made concerning the KJV following the Latin Vulgate.

The site includes a table which purports to show a complete list of differences between the text that underlies the King James Version (apparently they mean the 1881 Scrivener text, though that is not stated) and “the texts of Stephanus 1550 and Beza 1598 Textus Receptus.” 

Additionally, if “the reading of the KJV is not supported by both the Stephanus 1550 and the Beza 1598,” a source is proposed in the right column for that KJV reading. The other proposed sources are:

• Complutensian Polyglot 1522
• Clementine Vulgate 1592
• Erasmus New Testament 1516
• Tyndale Bible 1534
• Bishops’ Bible 1568
• Geneva Bible 1560

“Where a question mark appears support for the KJV reading is unknown” to the compiler. Of the sources in the right column, 29 that are credited to the Vulgate (which is noticeably less than 1/2 Scrivener’s figure of 60).[i]

John 11:19 is an intriguing translation to attribute to the Vulgate, when other Reformation-era Bibles follow much the same pattern of translation. In fact, the only translations I have found (at least so far) with “came to (or, joined) those women around Martha and Mary” were two modern ones (NKJV & WEB). Even the supposed to be literal Robert Young translation had, “and many of the Jews had come unto Martha and Mary, that they might comfort them concerning their brother” (no insertion of the word “women”).

The Greek Traditional Text reading:[ii]

• καὶ πολλοι ἐκ τῶν ιουδαίων ἐληλύθεισαν πρὸς τὰς περὶ μάρθαν καὶ μαριὰν ἵνα παραμυθήσωνται αὐτὰς περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐυτῶν

Here is what I found in some of the prominent Reformation-era translations:[iii]

• Tyndale: And many of the iewes cam to Martha and Mary to comforte them over their brother.
• Geneva: And many of the Iewes were come to Martha and Marie to comfort them for their brother.
• Diodati Italian Bible: E molti de Iudei erano venuti a Marta, e Maria per consolarle del lor Fratello (And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother.).
• Dutch Statenvertaling: En velen uit de Joden waren gekomen tot Martha en Maria, opdat zij haar vertroosten zouden over haar broeder (And many of the Jews came unto Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother).
• German Luther Bible: und viele Juden waren zu Martha und Maria gekommen, sie zu trösten über ihren Bruder (And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother).
• Olivetan French Bible: Et pfusieurs des Juifs estoient venus a Marthe & a Marie, affinqss les consolassent de leur frère (And many Jews came to Martha and Mary, to console them concerning their brother.).
• Spanish Reina Valera: Y muchos de los Judíos habían venido á Marta y á María, á consolarlas de su Hermano (And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother).

It seems passing strange to say this is based on the Vulgate when so many other translators seemed to think the Greek of the TR could be translated with the same meaning as the KJV translators thought.[iv] Additionally, this verse is not included in the 60 places that Scrivener thought were based on the Vulgate.

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[i] I am uncertain of the provenance of this material, other than to know the site is owned and managed by MasonSoft Technology Ltd, a Christian Internet Publishing and Service company in the United Kingdom, Keith Mason, Managing Editor.
[ii] There is a slight difference in the Critical Text versus the Traditional Text, but it not something that affects the translation. CT:  πολλοὶ δὲ ἐκ τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἐληλύθεισαν πρὸς τὴν Μάρθαν καὶ Μαριὰμ ἵνα παραμυθήσωνται αὐτὰς περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ is usually translated almost the same “[And] many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother.”
[iii] English translations were made with the help of Google Translate. I do not know all these different languages.
[iv] Multi autem ex Judaeis venerant ad Martham et Mariam, ut consolarentur eas de fratre suo. (Biblia Sacra Vulgata)

This clip from the NKJV Interlinear (p. 376) demonstrates their thinking (and that women is assumed).

Definition of textual criticism

Textual criticism is a science, and, since it comprises recension and emendation, it is also an art. It is the science of discovering error in texts and the art of removing it. That is its definition, that is what the name denotes.

It is purely a matter of reason and of common sense. We exercise textual criticism whenever we notice and correct a misprint. A man who possesses common sense and the use of reason must not expect to learn from treatises or lectures on textual criticism anything that he could not, with leisure and industry, find out for himself.

textual criticism is not...an exact science at all.

Alfred Edward Housman (March 26, 1859 – April 30, 1936) was an English classical scholar and poet.

The strife is o’er, the battle done

The following English hymn is a translation of a Latin hymn which translation first appeared in print as No. 91 on page 82 of Hymns Fitted to the Order of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England. To which are added, Hymns for Certain Local Festivals. This book was first published in 1861, and its editor, Francis Pott, is also the translator of the hymn. Other English translations have been made, the first possibly being that by John Mason Neale in 1851.

The original author of the words is unknown. The hymn appeared without attribution in a Latin hymnal that was published in Germany in 1695. However, some hymnologists believe the hymn itself is much older. This hymn celebrates the victory won over death and hell by Christ’s resurrection.

[Revelation 19:6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.]

Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

1. The strife is o’er, the battle done!
The victory of life is won!
The song of triumph has begun!
Alleluia!
 
2. The pow’rs of death have done their worst,
But Christ their legions hath dispersed!
Let shout of holy joy outburst!
Alleluia!
 
3. The three sad days have quickly sped,
He rises glorious from the dead;
All glory to our risen Head!
Alleluia!
 
4. He closed the yawning gates of hell;
The bars from Heav’n’s high portals fell,
Let hymns of praise his triumph tell!
Alleluia!
 
5. Lord, by the stripes which wounded thee,
From death’s dread sting thy servants free,
That we may live and sing to thee!
Alleluia!
Amen.

Francis Pott was born in England in 1832. He studied at Brasenose College, Oxford. Pott earned a B.A. in 1854, and M.A. in 1857. He served as a curate and rector in the Church of England. Pott was editor of Hymns Fitted to the Order of Common Prayer, &c. and made a number of hymn translations, as well as writing original hymns. He died at Speldhurst, October 26, 1909, and is apparently buried at the St. Mary Church there.

The tune paired with “The strife is o’er” is Victory (sometimes called Palestrina), No. 114 in Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861). William Henry Monk (1823-1889) arranged the tune from choral music written by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594). The meter is 8.8.8.4. with introductory Alleluias. Some song books add three Alleluias as a conclusion to be sung after all the stanzas. The tune is presented in shape notes at No. 293 in Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs by Melody Publications.

Monk was the English organist and church musician who served as musical editor of Hymns Ancient and Modern. He is possibly best known through his hymn Eventide. Hymns Ancient and Modern connects “The strife is o’er” to Psalm 98:1, “O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvellous things…”