Letters · Zweiter Band · Theil IV (1775)

Christian New Year's wish.

Bd II · Th IV · Brief 54 · Der vierundfünfzigste Brief

Addressee — To Johann Engelbert Evertsen, Barmen. Salutation "Liebster Bruder!" — not Rule B (Liebster Bruder → "Dearest brother"). Body du / dir / dich / dein (the brother) and euch (the remaining acquaintances) → you/your. Jesus-du in the close (lebe du in uns) → you; no God-apostrophe. No standalone Dein on the close → no Your. No verbundener.
Date — Mülheim, 15 January 1760.
Provenance — Translated from the public-domain 1775 first edition (Theil IV, pp. 130–131), in normalized GS 1845 house orthography, collated against the 1798/99 second edition (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin). All rendered words come from public-domain prints.

The Fifty-fourth Letter.

Christian New Year's wish.

Dearest brother!

Already in the first New Year's night I have bound myself with you, dearest brother, so then also with the remaining dear acquaintances there, anew in the Spirit, and have earnestly prayed for you, as for myself, a renewed influence of divine blessing, power, grace and peace out of the fullness of Jesus.

O! may the Lord let us also this year (or so far as we may bring it therein) be right fruitful toward the furtherance of the great work of God in our hearts, every day smaller, purer, more foreign to us and to all, but more known to God and to the sweet eternity! May He grant also you, me and the remaining, unto the cross and suffering, much sweet and gentle yieldedness unto the end!

It shall then remain with us by the apostle's explanation (2 Cor. 7:3)! You are in our hearts, to live together before God, and to die together in God. Amen! Jesus! do you live in us, then it will thus come to pass.

Mülheim, the 15th of January, 1760.

❦

German

Der vierundfünfzigste Brief.

Christlicher Neu-Jahrs-Wunsch.

Liebster Bruder!

Schon in der ersten Neu-Jahrs-Nacht habe mich mit dir, liebster Bruder, so dann auch mit den übrigen lieben Bekannten daselbst aufs Neue im Geist verbunden, und euch, wie mir selbst, einen erneuerten Einfluß göttlichen Segens, Kraft, Gnade und Friedens aus der Fülle JEsu angelegentlich ausgebäten.

— Opening lines of the original German. The complete transcription of all 605 letters appears in the forthcoming Encounter Press critical edition; Brief 1 is shown in full as a sample.

German text: public domain (1773–75 first edition / 1845 Gesammelte Schriften).

Translator’s notes

What this letter is. A New Year letter of the 15th of January, 1760, from Mülheim to Johann Engelbert Evertsen. Already in the first New Year's night he has bound himself with the brother, and then also with the remaining dear acquaintances there, anew in the Spirit, and has earnestly prayed for them, as for himself, a renewed influence of divine blessing, power, grace and peace out of the fullness of Jesus. May the Lord let them also this year be right fruitful toward the furtherance of the great work of God in their hearts — every day smaller, purer, more foreign to themselves and to all, but more known to God and to the sweet eternity. Unto the cross and suffering, much sweet and gentle yieldedness unto the end. It shall then remain with them by the apostle's word: you are in our hearts, to live together before God, and to die together in God. Amen! Jesus, live in us. Mülheim, the 15th of January, 1760.

A New Year's binding. Already in the first New Year's night he has bound himself with the brother, so then also with the remaining dear acquaintances there, anew in the Spirit. He has earnestly prayed for them, as for himself, a renewed influence of divine blessing, power, grace and peace out of the fullness of Jesus. O! may the Lord let us also this year — or so far as we may bring it therein — be right fruitful toward the furtherance of the great work of God in our hearts.

Smaller, purer, more known. Every day smaller, purer, more foreign to us and to all, but more known to God and to the sweet eternity. May He grant also you, me and the remaining, unto the cross and suffering, much sweet and gentle yieldedness unto the end. It shall then remain with us by the apostle's explanation: you are in our hearts, to live together before God, and to die together in God. Amen! Jesus! do you live in us, then it will thus come to pass.

A few words and echoes.

already in the first New Year's night. bound anew in the Spirit.
a renewed influence of divine blessing. power, grace and peace out of the fullness of Jesus.
right fruitful. toward the furtherance of the great work of God in our hearts.
every day smaller, purer. more foreign to us and to all.
more known to God and to the sweet eternity. the year's one wish.
unto the cross and suffering. much sweet and gentle yieldedness unto the end.
you are in our hearts. to live together before God, and to die together in God. (2 Cor. 7:3)
Amen! Jesus! do you live in us. then it will thus come to pass.

Cite this letter

Gerhard Tersteegen, Geistliche und erbauliche Briefe, Zweiter Band, IV. Theil, Brief 54 (Solingen, 1773–75); trans. Jarred Fenlason, https://gerhardtersteegen.com/letters/bdii-thiv-054.html.

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