All texts deal with old age. The section begins with the image of a descending continuo line. The tenor melody expresses sadness about the condition of old age. The chorale tune, sung with embellishments is not the most usual one for the hymn, possibly chosen to match the theme. 3 Another choral movement, (May your old age be like your youth, and God is with you in everything that you do) sets more biblical passages, assuring that God is with people both old and young. It is set as a permutation fugue. 4 A bass arioso sets two more verses from the psalm, (Day and night are Yours). In ternary form, the outer sections are a sarabande, dealing with day and night, while the middle section describes light and sun, with a joyful motif in the continuo and word-painting in the voice. 5 An alto aria, (Through powerful strength You maintain our borders) is based on contemporary poetry. Set in C major with the trumpets and timpani as the only obbligato instruments, it is in two sections: the first in triple time marked Vivace corresponds to God's power and glory, while the second in common time is a prayer for peace on Earth. 6 Another psalm verse is again set as a chorus, (You would not give the soul of Your turtledove to the enemy). The voices are set in homophony on a cello in undulating motion. Gardiner notes that it is a very personal setting, "a movement of extraordinary reticence, delicacy and the utmost tonal subtlety". He notes an upward semitone as a feature to express both yearning and the sound of the turtledove. The instruments are grouped to achieve subtle colour: recorders and cello, reeds, and strings. 7 The last chorus (The new regime) expresses wishes for peace and well-being under the new council. Importance Gott ist mein König is a significant early work of Bach. It differs from the other extant cantatas from Bach's time in Mühlhausen by its elaborate instrumentation. It was so positively received that it was the first of Bach's works to be printed (paid for by the city council); it is the only cantata to have been printed in his lifetime, at least in a version which has survived to this day. The printing is all the more remarkable as Gott ist mein König appears to have been intended for not more than