Fairest Lord Jesus

Taking on the language of this lovely, famous hymn takes guts.  Nonetheless, there are a few lines and words in the hymn that do not communicate well to contemporary singers.  Ask anyone to tell you (fast) what "O Thou of God and Man the Son" means.  When was the last time you referenced your day's outfit as your "garb"?  As a result, a few changes are in order.

Original lyrics:

Fairest Lord Jesus!
Ruler of all nature,
O THOU of God and man the Son!
THEE will I cherish,
THEE will I honor,
THOU, my soul’s Glory, Joy and Crown!

Fair are the meadows,
Fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring:
Jesus is fairer,
Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing.

Fair is the sunshine,
Fairer still the moonlight
And all the twinkling starry host:
Jesus shines brighter
Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels heav’n can boast.

Beautiful Savior!
Lord of the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor
Praise, adoration,
Now and forevermore be THINE.

Lyrics from German Folk hymn, trans. in Willis's Church Chorals & Choir Studies, 1850, v. 4 trans. Joseph A. Seiss, 1873.

Comments and Suggestions:

"Son of God to earth come down" communicates the essence of "O Thou of God and man the Son" and has the further benefit of restoring the rhyme scheme found in vv. 2 & 3.  Alternately, the phrasing used in v. 4 (SON OF GOD AND SON OF MAN) could be used.  Changing "Thine" to "YOURS" in v. 4 does not alter the rhyme scheme, as it was already broken, and no rhyme is really necessary for this type of doxology affirmation.

Renewal lyrics:

Fairest Lord Jesus!
Ruler of all nature,
SON OF GOD TO EARTH COME DOWN!
YOU will I cherish,
YOU will I honor.
YOU’RE my soul’s Glory, Joy and Crown!

Fair are the meadows,
Fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the LOVELY BLOOMS of spring:
Jesus is fairer,
Jesus is purer,
Who makes the DOWNCAST heart to sing.

Fair is the sunshine,
Fairer still the moonlight
And all the twinkling starry host:
Jesus shines brighter
Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels heav’n can boast.

Beautiful Savior!
Lord of the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor
Praise, adoration,
Now and forevermore be YOURS.

Renewal lyric changes by RH Reinhard (c) 2014