Letters · Zweiter Band · Theil IV (1775)

Instruction for inner prayer-exercise, to find the precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of the heart.

Bd II · Th IV · Brief 87 · Der siebenundachtzigste Brief

Addressee — To Schwester Griesenbeck, Essen. Salutation "Vielgeliebte Schwester in der Gnade JEsu, der euer einziges Leben und Wohlleben sey!" — not Rule B (vielgeliebte, not herzlich geliebte; "Much-beloved sister in the grace of Jesus, who be your only life and well-being!"). Body ihr / euch / euer / eurem / eures / Eure / Euer (polite Ihr) → you/your. Standalone Euer on the close → Your. geneigter Freund und Bruder → kind friend and brother. No God-apostrophe. No du.
Date — Mülheim, 17 May 1766.
Provenance — Translated from the public-domain 1775 first edition (Theil IV, pp. 213–215), 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 Eighty-seventh Letter.

Instruction for inner prayer-exercise, to find the precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of the heart.

Much-beloved sister in the grace of Jesus, who be your only life and well-being!

I will try whether I am in a state to be able to answer a few lines to your writing. You seem to have no conception of my grave sicknesses and weaknesses endured the whole winter and spring; nor to consider that age is no longer as youth is. Days and weeks have often gone by when I could scarcely write a few lines. After E. my writing has consisted only in this, when I had something outward to commission to Mr. N. Meanwhile my love and heart-concern for your bodily and soul's well-being has not for that reason withered. I have sought to commend you to the oversight and grace-working of the good God, and this I still do.

O! might the Lord give you only a deep and remaining impression, that He is so unspeakably-near to you inwardly, at and in your heart, in the gracious name of Jesus, as your Friend and Eternally-satisfying Good; that He there inwardly waits upon you, and expects that you let your heart, desire, love and whole trust collect out of all else, and turn it in to Him gently, but with truth. Let your own thinking, willing and working in His presence become still and rest, in expectation that He may think, will, work and live in you! In this inner prayer-exercise and in this being-still before the inwardly-near God is the noble pearl and the whole power of godliness to seek and to find. We seek God outwardly in this and in that, and He is inwardly. We want much good-seeming self-working, and should only give room to His working. We want always to muse, think and speak, and give Him neither time nor place that He may speak to us and in us. O! how so little does our God require the work of our hands, of our head, or of our lips! He will and must live in the heart, if we would otherwise live truly holy and blessed.

If we thus seek and find God present in our heart, according to John 14:23 and 2 Cor. 6:16, then we shall in deepest delight and sweet reverence also walk the day through before His face, serve Him and be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth: Everything else, let it seem so good and holy as it ever will, is very little use, when it does not serve hereto. O! how so happy would I esteem you, my worthy sister! if you would seek and happily find this precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of your heart (not in the head, thoughts, and well-meaning bodily exercises)! May the Lord grant that of grace!

Concerning your journey to N., I can say nothing express, because I do not know what you have to do there. If it is most at rest for you that you travel thither, then I have just nothing against it. Only you must then so consider it, that your vocational business not come into disorder thereby, and therefore make the journey short.

Now my sick head can no more. I greet you once more quite heartily. My housemates greet likewise. Let us wait with the disciples, then we too get a Pentecost with the disciples. I remain

Your Mülheim, kind friend and the 17th of May, 1766. brother.

❦

German

Der siebenundachtzigste Brief.

Anweisung zur inneren Gebäts-Uebung, um die köstliche Perle, JEsum selbst, im Acker des Herzens zu finden.

Vielgeliebte Schwester in der Gnade JEsu, der euer einziges Leben und Wohlleben sey!

Ich will versuchen, ob ich im Stand bin, einige Zeilen auf euer Schreiben zu können antworten. Ihr scheinet keinen Begrif zu haben von meinen den ganzen Winter und Frühjahr ausgestandenen wichtigen Krank- und Schwachheiten; auch nicht zu bedenken, daß das Alter nicht mehr ist, wie die Jugend.

— 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 May letter of the 17th, 1766, from Mülheim to Jungfer Griesenbeck in Essen. He will try whether he is in a state to answer a few lines; she seems to have no conception of the winter and spring's grave sicknesses, nor that age is no longer as youth is. Love and heart-concern for her bodily and soul's well-being have not withered; he still commends her to God's oversight and grace-working. Would the Lord give a deep and remaining impression that He is unspeakably-near inwardly in the name of Jesus; let her own thinking, willing and working become still and rest, that He may think, will, work and live in her. In this inner prayer-exercise and being-still before the inwardly-near God is the noble pearl to seek and to find. If they thus seek and find God present in the heart, then they will walk before His face the day through, serve Him and worship Him in spirit and in truth. How happy he would esteem her, if she would seek and find this precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of her heart. Of the journey to N. he can say nothing express; if it is most at rest that she travel thither, then he has just nothing against it — only she must then so consider it that her vocational business not come into disorder, and therefore make the journey short. Now his sick head can no more. Let us wait with the disciples; then we too get a Pentecost with the disciples. Mülheim, the 17th of May, 1766.

The pearl in the field of the heart. Would the Lord give a deep and remaining impression that He is so unspeakably-near inwardly, at and in the heart, in the gracious name of Jesus, as Friend and Eternally-satisfying Good; that He there waits, and expects that heart, desire, love and whole trust be collected out of all else and turned in to Him gently, but with truth. Let one's own thinking, willing and working in His presence become still and rest, in expectation that He may think, will, work and live within. In this inner prayer-exercise and in this being-still before the inwardly-near God is the noble pearl and the whole power of godliness to seek and to find. We seek God outwardly in this and in that, and He is inwardly. We want much good-seeming self-working, and should only give room to His working. We want always to muse, think and speak, and give Him neither time nor place that He may speak to us and in us. How so little does our God require the work of our hands, of our head, or of our lips! He will and must live in the heart, if we would otherwise live truly holy and blessed.

Walk, serve, worship; the journey short. If we thus seek and find God present in the heart, according to John 14:23 and 2 Cor. 6:16, then we shall in deepest delight and sweet reverence also walk the day through before His face, serve Him and be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth. Everything else, let it seem so good and holy as it ever will, is very little use, when it does not serve hereto. How so happy would he esteem her, if she would seek and happily find this precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of her heart — not in the head, thoughts, and well-meaning bodily exercises. May the Lord grant that of grace. Concerning the journey to N., he can say nothing express, because he does not know what she has to do there. If it is most at rest that she travel thither, then he has just nothing against it; only she must then so consider it that her vocational business not come into disorder, and therefore make the journey short. Now his sick head can no more. Let us wait with the disciples; then we too get a Pentecost with the disciples. Mülheim, the 17th of May, 1766.

A few words and echoes.

Much-beloved sister in the grace of Jesus. who be your only life and well-being.
You seem to have no conception. of my grave sicknesses and weaknesses endured the whole winter and spring.
age is no longer as youth is. Days and weeks have often gone by when I could scarcely write a few lines.
After E. my writing has consisted only in this, when I had something outward to commission to Mr. N.
my love and heart-concern. has not for that reason withered.
I have sought to commend you. to the oversight and grace-working of the good God. (Ps. 25:8)
so unspeakably-near to you inwardly. in the gracious name of Jesus, as your Friend and Eternally-satisfying Good.
Let your own thinking, willing and working become still and rest. that He may think, will, work and live in you.
In this inner prayer-exercise and in this being-still. is the noble pearl and the whole power of godliness to seek and to find. (Matt. 13:44–46)
We seek God outwardly in this and in that. and He is inwardly.
We want much good-seeming self-working. and should only give room to His working.
how so little does our God require the work of our hands. of our head, or of our lips.
He will and must live in the heart. if we would otherwise live truly holy and blessed.
If we thus seek and find God present in our heart. according to John 14:23 and 2 Cor. 6:16.
then we shall walk the day through before His face. serve Him and be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth. (Ps. 89:16; John 4:24)
Everything else is very little use. when it does not serve hereto.
this precious pearl, Jesus Himself, in the field of your heart. not in the head, thoughts, and well-meaning bodily exercises.
Concerning your journey to N. I can say nothing express.
If it is most at rest for you that you travel thither. then I have just nothing against it.
make the journey short. that your vocational business not come into disorder.
Now my sick head can no more. I greet you once more quite heartily.
Let us wait with the disciples. then we too get a Pentecost with the disciples. (Acts 2:1–4)
Your kind friend and brother. Mülheim, the 17th of May, 1766.

Cite this letter

Gerhard Tersteegen, Geistliche und erbauliche Briefe, Zweiter Band, IV. Theil, Brief 87 (Solingen, 1773–75); trans. Jarred Fenlason, https://gerhardtersteegen.com/letters/bdii-thiv-087.html.

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