Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam, BWV 7

Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam
BWV 7
Chorale cantata by J. S. Bach
Baptism of Jesus (topic of the chorale) by José de Ribera, 1643
English	Christ our Lord came to the Jordan
Occasion	Feast of St John the Baptist
Chorale	"Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam" by Martin Luther
Performed	24 June 1724 (1724-06-24): Leipzig
Movements	7
Vocal	SATB choir solo: alto, tenor and bass
Instrumental	2 oboes d'amore 2 violins viola continuo

Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam (Christ our Lord came to the Jordan), BWV 7, is one of several church cantatas which Johann Sebastian Bach composed for the Feast of St. John the Baptist. He wrote it in Leipzig and led its first performance on 24 June 1724.

It is the third cantata Bach composed for his chorale cantata cycle, the second cantata cycle he started after being appointed Thomaskantor in 1723. The cantata is based on the seven stanzas of Martin Luther's hymn "Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam", about baptism. The first and last stanza of the chorale were used for the outer movements of the cantata, while an unknown librettist paraphrased the inner stanzas of the hymn into the text for the five other movements. The first movement, a chorale fantasia, is followed by a succession of arias alternating with recitatives, leading to a four-part closing chorale.

The cantata is scored for three vocal soloists (alto, tenor and bass), a four-part choir, two oboes d'amore, two solo violins, strings and continuo.