Letters · Zweiter Band · Theil IV (1775)

New-Year wish.

Bd II · Th IV · Brief 70 · Der siebzigste Brief

Addressee — To Johann Schmitz, Solingen. Salutation "N. N.". No Rule-B lexeme (no herzlich geliebte). Body dir / deiner / deinem (the brother, his wife, his son) → you/your. Prayer from Ach GOtt Immanuel! through seyn möge! is God-apostrophe (dich / dein / deine / deines / deiner) → thee / thy. No standalone Dein. No verbundener.
Date — Mülheim, 13 January 1764.
Provenance — Translated from the public-domain 1775 first edition (Theil IV, pp. 170–171), 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 Seventieth Letter.

New-Year wish.

N. N.

Since I have a few minutes of free time, I must wish you, your dear wife, your son and the other acquaintances there also with the pen (for with the heart it already happened at the beginning) God's powerful blessing for the New Year.

God with us is the great salvation- and blessing-word, that can truly make us all comforted, strengthened, glad, and the whole year, or as many days as we shall have of it, happy. To live or die without God, that is to be unhappy. To live or die, and have God against oneself, that is hell. O God Immanuel! Be then with us! Let us rather die the first day, than live longer without thee! Let rather all the world and evil spirits be against us, than that thy favorable Father-heart should be shut against us. Pour, from this Father-heart opened to us in Jesus, into us all, also in this year, thy divine grace, power, and love-life from within, that this year may be to us a blessed year of salvation, for the furthering of thy work of grace in our hearts, and for drawing near to thy fellowship, and for acquaintance with thy dear sweet eternity!

Mülheim, the 13th of January, 1764.

❦

German

Der siebzigste Brief.

Neu-Jahr-Wunsch.

N. N. Da einige Minuten freie Zeit habe, so muß dir, deiner lieben Frau, deinem Sohn und übrigen dasigen Bekannten doch auch mit der Feder (denn mit dem Herzen ist es bald Anfangs geschehen) GOttes kräftigen Segen zum Neuen Jahr anwünschen.

— 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 January letter of the 13th, 1764, from Mülheim to Johann Schmitz at Solingen. A few minutes of free time: he must wish him, his dear wife, his son, and the other acquaintances there God's powerful blessing for the New Year with the pen — for with the heart it already happened at the beginning. God with us is the great salvation- and blessing-word. To live or die without God is to be unhappy; to live or die and have God against oneself is hell. O God Immanuel! Be then with us. Pour from the Father-heart opened in Jesus, that this year may be a blessed year of salvation. Mülheim, the 13th of January, 1764.

God with us. God with us is the great salvation- and blessing-word, that can truly make us all comforted, strengthened, glad, and the whole year, or as many days as we shall have of it, happy. To live or die without God, that is to be unhappy. To live or die, and have God against oneself, that is hell. The name Immanuel is the verse: God with us.

Be then with us. O God Immanuel! Be then with us! Let us rather die the first day, than live longer without thee! Let rather all the world and evil spirits be against us, than that thy favorable Father-heart should be shut against us. Pour, from this Father-heart opened to us in Jesus, into us all, also in this year, thy divine grace, power, and love-life from within, that this year may be to us a blessed year of salvation, for the furthering of thy work of grace in our hearts, and for drawing near to thy fellowship, and for acquaintance with thy dear sweet eternity. Mülheim, the 13th of January, 1764.

A few words and echoes.

a few minutes of free time. he must wish you with the pen.
your dear wife, your son, and the other acquaintances there. in Solingen.
with the pen. for with the heart it already happened at the beginning.
God's powerful blessing for the New Year. the wish of the letter.
God with us. the great salvation- and blessing-word. (Matt. 1:23)
to live or die without God. that is to be unhappy.
to live or die, and have God against oneself. that is hell.
O God Immanuel! Be then with us.
rather die the first day. than live longer without thee.
thy favorable Father-heart. let it not be shut against us.
pour from this Father-heart opened in Jesus. into us all, also in this year.
thy divine grace, power, and love-life from within. that this year may be a blessed year of salvation.
the furthering of thy work of grace in our hearts. and drawing near to thy fellowship.
acquaintance with thy dear sweet eternity.
Mülheim, the 13th of January, 1764.

Cite this letter

Gerhard Tersteegen, Geistliche und erbauliche Briefe, Zweiter Band, IV. Theil, Brief 70 (Solingen, 1773–75); trans. Jarred Fenlason, https://gerhardtersteegen.com/letters/bdii-thiv-070.html.

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