To cap off a busy and productive holiday season, his first one in Leipzig, Bach presented yet another new piece to his Leipzig congregations for the feast of Epiphany (January 6th) in 1724.

Epiphany is the holiday that commemorates the visit of the Three Wise Men (or Magi) to the newborn Jesus in the manger, presenting him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The anonymous poet created the libretto by skillfully blending references to both readings of the day: the Gospel (Matthew 2: 1-12) and the Epistle (Isaiah 60: 1-6). In fact, a segment of this Epistle reading is brought in as the dictum for the first movement. The libretto also incorporates two chorales, one as movement 2 (a stanza of the German version of the Christmas hymn “Puer Natus in Bethlehem”, dating from 1545) and a hymn by Paul Gerhardt of 1647, copied under the chorale on Bach’s autograph score by a different hand.

The libretto reflects on the Gospel story (movements 1, 2 and halfway through 3), then places the listener at the manger with the Magi and prompts him or her to offer their own heart as an offering (conclusion of movement 3 and movement 4). In movements 5 and 6, the believer heeds the advice and offers their heart to Jesus, reinforced by the prayer in the closing chorale.

The significance of the Epiphany holiday is highlighted by the large-scale orchestration of the cantata: two horns, two recorders, two oboes da caccia (tenor member of the double-reed family), strings and continuo. The choir is back from their short break, and two solo voices are required, tenor and bass.

The opening movement sets the dictum from Isaiah as an imposing choral fantasia. The horns (still relatively new as church instruments) and low oboes lend it a somewhat exotic sound, which may be an allusion to the legendary land of Sheba. The rocking meter of 12/8 and the back-and-forth between the different instrument pairs give the feeling of a procession, reinforced by the successive entrances of the voices in close imitation to each other. The fugal middle section, with its busy theme in sixteenth notes, continues to reinforce the idea of the “multitudes of camels” mentioned in the Epistle. The following chorale, so well-fitting semantically, perfectly represents the arrival of the procession at the manger.

The bass then gets a recitative / aria set. In its first half, the secco recitative reinforces and reflects on the Gospel story, and then it states the desire of the believer to be present at the manger and make an offer as well. In the last two lines, which deliver the request that the offer is accepted, the recitative turns into arioso with a wide leap upwards to highlight “noble” (“Edlers”). The aria, accompanied by the two oboes da caccia and continuo, dismisses the “vain gifts from the earth” (which are nevertheless highlighted with two long melismas of ascending sixteenths) in favor of the believer’s own heart.

The tenor then takes the stage with his set of recitative and aria. The concept of offering one’s heart to Jesus is now cemented with a personal vow. The recitative equates the three earthly gifts with personal virtues (faith, prayer, patience), and closes with a prayer for a place in heaven. The aria, in which the singer is joined by the entire orchestra, is an animated, celebratory dance in 3/8. Virtuosic flourishes in 32nd notes highlight the second utterance of “Alles, alles” to reinforce the significance of the offering.

The cantata concludes with a plain four-part harmonization of the Gerhardt hymn in which the instruments join the different voices according to their range. Bach used the same chorale tune in several other cantatas and in the first part of his St. Matthew Passion.