Publisher's Synopsis
Luther's hymns are among the most influential texts in the history of Protestant piety. They have been written between 1523/24 and the early 1540s and became most popular at the time and stayed so ever since. The latest edition of the hymns during Luther's lifetime was a hymnbook published by the Leipzig publisher Valentin Bapst in 1545 - as it were a definite edition. The very beautifully designed hymnbook was a great pleasure for Luther as he emphasized in his preface specially written for this edition. The present small volume contains the texts of all hymns of Luther in the version of the Bapst edition, and in addition the new preface. Besides a general introduction and a characterization of Luther's hymn writing, all texts are annotated to facilitate an easy understanding of the texts, situating them in the context of the history of the church and of piety.
