George Frederick Handel (February 23, 1685-April 14, 1759) was a German-born musical composer who settled in England, 1712, considered one of the foremost composers of the baroque era. He is renowned for having written the immortal oratorio, Messiah, 1742, completed in just twenty-five days. Written for the benefit program of the Dublin Foundling Hospital, this oratorio was so stirring that when King George II heard the "Hallelujah Chorus," he rose to his feet, at which point the entire audience stood.
George Frederick Handel wrote oratorios, operas, organ concertos, orchestra concertos, as well as music for the wind instruments, harpsichord and drums. A gifted composer, Handel was known for having a temper in his youth. Once, challenged to a sword duel by another young musician, Handel would have been killed had not his opponent's sword struck a button on his coat.
Handel's other great works include: Water Music, 1717; Saul, 1739; Israel in Egypt, 1739; Belshazzar, 1745; and Music for the Royal Fireworks, 1749.
In his masterpiece Messiah, 1742, George Frederick Handel wrote the line:
<I know that my Redeemer liveth.> 1685GH001
In reflecting on the "Hallelujah Chorus" in Messiah, 1742, Handel expressed:
<I did think I did see all heaven before me, and the great God Himself.> 1685GH002
In 1751-52, with the onset of blindness, Handel retired. As he was taken in this last illness, having been blind for seven years, George Frederick Handel expressed he was:
<In hopes of meeting his good God, his sweet (precious) Saviour, on the day of His resurrection.> 1685GH003
Dr. Jerry Newcombe, executive director of Providence Forum, a division of Coral Ridge Ministries, wrote in his article "Jesus Fulfilled Amazing Prophecies," December 25, 2024:
<A holiday favorite is Handel’s Messiah. This beautiful concert, first performed in 1742, resonates with many hearers, and it has throughout the ages. The fascinating thing about Messiah is that all the lyrics are Scripture. They all point to Jesus as the Christ, meaning “The Anointed One”—ultimately the Messiah.
Joel Woodruff of the C.S. Lewis Institute says this about Handel’s Messiah: “The libretto includes 81 Bible verses from 14 different books of the Bible, with the most coming from the book of Isaiah (21 verses).” 46 verses come from the Old Testament, while 35 come from the New. The Old Testament was completed c. 400 BC. 21 of the prophecies about Jesus in Messiah come from Isaiah, which was written about 700 to 750 years before Jesus.
Former skeptical journalist (Chicago Tribune) turned pastor and professor, Lee Strobel, once gave an analogy to the detailed predictions of Christ's suffering and crucifixion in Isaiah 53, written 700 years before the event: "That's like my trying to predict how the Cubs will do in the year 2693." (Lee Strobel, Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry & Mary, 1993, p. 36).>
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1685GH001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). George Frederick Handel, February 23, 1685, Messiah. Eliza Clark, The World's Workers. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, Oregon: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 213.
1685GH002. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). George Frederick Handel. Eliza Clark, The World's Worker. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 212.
1685GH003. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). George Frederick Handel, Eliza Clark, The World's Workers. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, Oregon: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 212.