We Plough the Fields and Scatter

"We Plough the Fields and Scatter" is an English hymn commonly associated with harvest festival. The hymn was originally German, by poet Matthias Claudius, 'Wir pflü­gen und wir streu­en' published in 1782, and set to music in 1800, and attributed to Jo­hann A. P. Schulz.^[1] It was translated into English by Jane Montgomery Camp­bell in 1861. It appears in a shortened form in the musical Godspell, as the song, "All Good Gifts".^[2] It is amongst the most performed of hymns in the United Kingdom.^[3]

Lyrics

As published 1861 in A Garland of Songs.

We plow the fields, and scatter the good seed on the land;
But it is fed and watered by God's almighty hand:
He sends the snow in winter, the warmth to swell the grain,
The breezes and the sunshine, and soft refreshing rain.

Chorus All good gifts around us
Are sent from heaven above,
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all His love.

He only is the maker of all things near and far;
He paints the wayside flower, He lights the evening star;
The winds and waves obey Him, by Him the birds are fed;
Much more to us, His children, He gives our daily bread.

Chorus
We thank Thee, then, O Father, for all things bright and good,
The seed time and the harvest, our life, our health, and food;
No gifts have we to offer, for all Thy love imparts,
But that which Thou desirest, our humble, thankful hearts.

Chorus
Verse 3 was revised to make it better suited to the harvest in Hymns Ancient and Modern, 1868 Appendix:

We thank Thee, then, O Father, for all things bright and good,
The seed time and the harvest, our life, our health, and food;
Accept the gifts we offer, for all Thy love imparts,
But what Thou most desirest, our humble, thankful hearts.

The hymn references Acts 14:17 ^[4] (verse 1), James 1:17 ^[5] (chorus), Psalm 65:7 ^[6] Matthew 6:26 ^[7] (verse 2, line 3), and the Lord's Prayer (verse 2, line 4).

References