Bartholomäus Crasselius was a
Lutheran pastor who studied in Halle
August Hermann Francke and was influenced by
Pietism. He wrote the text of "", published in 1695 with a melody from Hamburg. A different melody by
Johann Sebastian Bach appeared in as a four-part
chorale, "Dir, dir, Jehova, will ich singen", BWV 299, in the 1725
Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach. He adapted it to a version for voice and continuo in
Schemellis Gesangbuch, BWV 452. The hymn became commonly distributed and used. The song became part of many German hymnals. Under the Nazi regime, Protestant groups aimed at avoiding words regarded as Jewish, and "Jehova" was replaced by "Höchster" (Highest). Another interpretation is, that not uttering the name of God also has something to do with respect for people who believe in Judaism. In the Protestant hymnal
Evangelisches Kirchengesangbuch it was EG 237, and in the 1995 edition
Evangelisches Gesangbuch, it is EG 328. It was included in the Catholic hymnal
Gotteslob in regional sections, such as in the
Diocese of Limburg as GL 811, in three stanzas, and with the 1690 melody from Hamburg. == Text and translation ==