Studies in the Hymnody of Isaac Watts / / by David W. Music.

• Superior document: Studies in religion and the arts ; volume 18
• VerfasserIn: Music, David W., 1949-
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden ;, Boston : : Brill,, 2022.; ©2022.
• Year of Publication: 2022
• Language: English
• Series: Studies in religion and the arts ; v. 18
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (298 pages)

The hymns of Isaac Watts are a remarkable blend of biblical, theological, liturgical, poetic, musical, and practical dimensions, some of which have seldom been touched upon in previous studies of the hymn writer. In this book, you will find analyses of Watts's texts from each of these perspectives. As shown by this study, it is not only these individual factors but their combination that made Watts's hymns innovative but also effective and long lasting in his own time -- and that makes many of them still useful and widely sung today. -- Publisher.

Table of Contents

Introduction. This book -- Sources, definitions, and orthography -- Biography and hymn publications -- Early life and education -- English congregational song before Watts -- The beginning of Watts's hymn writing -- Final years -- 1. The Bible and the hymns of Watts. The relationship between hymns and the Bible -- Watts's use of the Bible -- 2. The theology of Watts's hymns. Holy scripture -- God and the Holy Trinity -- God's eternal decree -- Creation and providence -- Fall of humanity, sin, and punishment -- God's covenant with humanity through Christ the Mediator -- Free will and the calling of God -- Justification, adoption, sanctification, and saving faith -- Repentance -- Good works -- Perseverance of the saints -- Assurance of salvation -- The law of God -- the gospel and grace -- Christian liberty and liberty of conscience -- Religious worship and the Sabbath day -- The civil magistrate -- The church -- The communion of saints -- The sacraments : baptism and Lord's Supper -- The soul after death, the Resurrection, and the Last Judgment -- Additional topics -- General theological perspectives -- 3. Watts's hymns and liturgy. Worship at Bury Street Church -- The liturgical functions of hymns -- The sermon hymn -- The Lord's Supper and baptism -- Hymns for other aspects of worship -- Liturgical texts -- Public and private worship -- The liturgical use of Watts's hymns -- 4. The literary dimension of Watts's hymns. The functional nature of Watts's writing -- Hymnic meter -- Poetic meter -- Rhyme -- Poetic devices -- Form -- Watts's borrowings -- Textual revision -- Watts and the poetry of the hymn -- 5. Watts's hymns and music. Hymnic meters and psalm tunes -- Watts and the singing of hymns -- Early publications of Watts's hymns with music -- Watts and the music of hymnody -- 6. An analysis of four hymns from Hymns and spiritual songs. "Infinite grief! Amazing woe!" -- "God of the morning, at whose voice" -- How are thy glories here display'd -- Lo, what a glorious sight appears -- 7. An analysis of four hymns from The Psalms of David imitated. "I lift my soul to God" -- "Great God, the heaven's well-order'd frame" -- Deep in our hearts let us record -- How pleas'd and blest was I -- Conclusion.