Letters · Zweiter Band · Theil IV (1775)

Necessity of the continual going-out and dying to oneself.

Bd II · Th IV · Brief 146 · Der hundertundsechsundvierzigste Brief

Addressee, date, and source

Addressee — To a brother (unnamed). Salutation "N. N."
Date — Undated on the leaf (no dateline or place-line; closes …mit inniger Zuneigung.). Body: heute und etliche Tage her; verwichene Woche; auch noch vor dem Winter.
Provenance — Translated from the public-domain 1775 first edition (Theil IV, pp. 369–370), 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 Hundred and Forty-sixth Letter.

Necessity of the continual going-out and dying to oneself.

N. N.

Although I have already written myself tired today and for some days past, and have already left a greeting for you through brother N., yet I must also still enclose directly my brotherly greeting, which may the Lord Jesus accompany, and bring to your heart! I have already expected you here the past week, dear brother; but it seems the wet changeable weather will have hindered such a journey: Should God's goodness so order it that we here (even yet before the winter) see one another's face once more, it will be joyful to me.

For the rest our fellowship remains on our rock-foundation, with God, unshakable, and I believe we shall sometimes meet one another in the withdrawnness of the spirit, at our blessed rendezvous. Praised be the Lord!

Let us, my brother, follow and remain yielded to him who has deigned to call and to keep us on his beautiful though rough way. Rough winds frighten our timid faith, but they further our voyage. The more thorough the going-out — the freer the entrance. Miserable are the hearts plagued and held back that do not set themselves upon a continual going-out and dying to themselves, and go out even therein from themselves when they believe they cannot. Love itself leads, cares and does all; we are only to remain in her hand, consent, and accommodate ourselves, and have not our but her pleasure for our aim.

I offer you up, dear brother, to the Lord before his face, and greet you with inward affection.

❦

German

Der hundertundsechsundvierzigste Brief.

Nothwendigkeit des immerwährenden Ausgehens und Sterbens an sich selbst.

N. N. Ob ich mich gleich heute und etliche Tage her schon müde geschrieben, auch den Gruß an dich durch Bruder N. schon abgelegt, so muß doch auch noch direct meinen brüderlichen Gruß mit beilegen, den der HErr JEsus begleiten, und an dein Herze bringen wolle!

— 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. An undated short letter to a brother (N. N.; du): already tired from writing and a greeting already left through brother N., yet a direct brotherly greeting for Jesus to bring to his heart; hoped to see him the past week — wet weather; hope of one more meeting before winter; fellowship unshakable on the rock with God; follow him who called them on the beautiful though rough way; rough winds further the voyage; continual going-out and dying to oneself; Love herself leads — remain in her hand; he offers the brother before the Lord's face.

How to read the German. The panel is the 1775 first-edition wording in the house orthography used for Band II / Th IV (settled 2 Sep 2026). Distinctive KEEP forms (seyn / sey / Uebrigens / Nothwendigkeit / beförderen / Schiffahrt / Rendesvous / rencontriren / direct / thut / 146te) stand as on the leaf; grüsse→grüße. House folds include beylegen→beilegen, Hertze→Herze, Hertzen→Herzen, unwanckelbar→unwankelbar, freyerer→freierer, Versalien GOTTES→GOttes. KEEP seyn / sey / Uebrigens / Nothwendigkeit / beförderen / Rendesvous.

English choices. you/your for the brother (du); lieber Bruder → dear brother; Rendesvous / rencontriren → rendezvous / meet; blöden Glauben → timid faith; Schiffahrt → voyage. Divine names ordinary. Modern morphology in ordinary prose (Jarred Rule C, 2 Sep 2026) — no decorative -eth. No authorial emphasis (§9d).

How the German reads here. Panel KEEP forms (seyn / sey / Uebrigens / Nothwendigkeit / beförderen / Schiffahrt / Rendesvous / rencontriren / direct / thut) stand; grüsse→grüße; beylegen / Hertze / Hertzen / unwanckelbar / freyerer / GOTTES / HERR are folded by the house rules (Spec §3; CRITICAL Hertz*-class).

A few words and echoes.

"müde geschrieben" — written myself tired.
"an dein Herze bringen wolle" — may bring to your heart (leaf Hertze; tz→z keeps final e).
"auf unserem Felsen-Grund, mit GOtt, unwankelbar" — on our rock-foundation, with God, unshakable.
"seligen Rendesvous" — blessed rendezvous (KEEP Rendesvous).
"Je gründlicher Ausgang, je freierer Eingang" — the more thorough the going-out, the freer the entrance.
"immerwährendes Ausgehen und Sterben ihrer selbst" — continual going-out and dying to themselves.
"Die Liebe selbst führet, sorget und thut alles" — Love itself leads, cares and does all (KEEP thut).
"mit inniger Zuneigung" — with inward affection.

Cite this letter

Gerhard Tersteegen, Geistliche und erbauliche Briefe, Zweiter Band, IV. Theil, Brief 146 (Solingen, 1773–75); trans. Jarred Fenlason, https://gerhardtersteegen.com/letters/bdii-thiv-146.html.

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