Bach wrote the cantata in his third year in Leipzig for the Second Day of Christmas. That year, as every other year in Leipzig, the day was the feast of the martyr St. Stephanus (Stephen). The prescribed readings for the day are from the Acts, the Martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 6:8–7,22, Acts 7:51–59), and from the Gospel of Matthew, Jerusalem killing her prophets (Matthew 23:35–39). The cantata text was written by Georg Christian Lehms, who drew on all the readings and connected them to more biblical allusions. The first line is taken from James 1:12, the crown mentioned is in Greek "stephanos". Lehms set the development as a dialogue of "Jesus" and the Soul ("Anima"). He intended to use as a closing chorale a verse from Johann Heermann's "Gott Lob, die Stund ist kommen", but Bach instead chose the 6th verse of Ahasverus Fritsch's "Hast du denn, Jesus, dein Angesicht gänzlich verborgen", called Seelengespräch mit Christus (Talk of the soul with Christ), in order to continue the dialogue.

Original Name Selig ist der Mann
Librettist James I:12 (No.1) Georg Christian Lehms (1684–1717) (Nos.2-7) Ahasverus Fritsch (1629-1701) (No.8)
Date of composition 1725
Premiered 1725, December 26th in Leipzig, Germany
First published 1863 (BGA)
Dedicated to For the Second day of Christmas (St. Stephen’s Day)
Type Sacred Cantata
Tonality G Minor
Catalogue BWV 57
Spoken language German
Instruments 2x Voice
Chorus/Choir
Orchestra
Links
Autotranslations beta Jean-Sébastien Bach: Blessed is the man en sol mineur, BWV 57 "Dialogus"
Johann Sebastian Bach: Blessed is the man in sol minore, BWV 57 "Dialogus"
Johann Sebastian Bach: Blessed is the man g-moll, BWV 57 "Dialogus"