Text No. 3, 5, 6
Poet unknown

Text No. 4
Jacobus Fabricius, 1632

Text No. 7
Martin Luther 1528/29
Johann Walter 1566

First performance
Quasimodogeniti,
8 April 1725

That Easter would in time be celebrated as a triumph of life over death could hardly have been foreseen by Christ’s disciples. For them, Good Friday and Easter Sunday brought not joy, but immeasurable pain: a reeling confusion between dashed hopes and perseverance, combined with anxiety about the future and fear of religious reprisal. Precisely this moment is captured by cantata BWV 42: “The evening, though, of the very same Sabbath, the disciples assembled, and the doors had been fastened tightly for fear of the Jews”. With this opening tenor recitative, the depth of the disciples disquiet is palpably underscored by the throbbing of the continuo. Before long, however, a wonder of music and text takes place; the resurrected himself comes and walks among the disciples, and the morose B minor transforms into a G major aria of heavenly breadth and beauty. Over a flowing basso continuo of tender, piano strings, two obbligato oboes eclipse one another with decorative figures and the throbbing bass semiquavers of the recitative give way to gentle, offbeat quavers from the bassoon. “Where two and three assembled are for Jesus’ precious name’s sake, there cometh Jesus in their midst, and speaks o’er them his Amen” – the entire ten-minute aria is a testimony of consolation, reassurance and peace.
The animated B section, by contrast, is more defensive in style, serving as a reminder that the disciples were not sectarians or conspirators, but rather a community appointed by the “Highest”. Here, something of the power of the Easter message that transcends all social classes and borders was transported to the hierarchical baroque society.
The chorale duet “Do not despair” then transforms the aria’s comforting words into a call to the “little flock” of believers to remain steadfast in the face of persecution. Here, the unflinching drive of the two-part continuo section carries the vocal parts through all attempts at destruction. That the story of the bible can serve as inspiration for all time is heard in the following recitative which culminates in a triumphant bass aria accompanied by two virtuosic violins: “Jesus shall now shield his people when them persecution strikes”.
The closing chorale commences somewhat surprisingly in F sharp minor, but then returns to the theme of peace and concludes with a prayer for a “peaceful and good life” under “good governance” – the great vision of Easter is over and the good citizens of Leipzig must return to overcoming the trials of everyday life. It remains only to say a few words on the opening A major sinfonia in da capo form. This introduction is generally assumed to derive from a previously existing concerto movement; in the context of the cantata, however, it takes on a different function and bears a striking similarity in key and vigour to the bass aria “Jesus shall now shield his people”. At the same time, it is hard not to interpret the tender cantabile episode at the beginning of the middle section as that moment in which Christ, on the path to Emmaus, opens the eyes of his disciples. In this sense, the cantata commences with a presentiment of its liberating conclusion.