Luther: Lord Jesus, You are my righteousness, I am your sin. You took on you what was mine; yet set on me what was yours. You became what you were not, that I might become what I was not

Did Luther say, "Lord Jesus, You are my righteousness, I am your sin. You took on you what was mine; yet set on me what was yours. You became what you were not, that I might become what I was not"?

This quote has a healthy cut-and-paste life throughout cyberspace. Unlike many of the spurious sayings of Luther covered on this blog, this one is genuine! The only minor debate about the quote is whether Luther intended it to be part of prayer or praise. There are a number of websites (and also books) that say it's a prayer written by Luther. We'll see, it was not intended as a prayer, although it certainly would function as a good prayer!

Documentation
Most often the quote is cited without documentation; fortunately, there are exceptions, making this an easier investigation. There are two frequent references. The first is to Luther's Letters of Spiritual Counsel, a collection put together by Theodore Tappert (Louisville: Westminster Press, 1955), p. 110 (Library of Christian Classics series). The second is to Luther's Works 48:12 (LW). The original English translation was done by Tappert. LW utilized it with "minor changes." Tappert is the one who translated it as a prayer.

The context is a letter from Luther to the Augustinian friar George Spenlein, April 8, 1516. The original Latin text can be found here. The text reads, 

Context

Now I should like to know whether your soul, tired of its own righteousness, is learning to be revived by and to trust in the righteousness of Christ. For in our age the temptation to presumption besets many, especially those who try with all their might to be just and good without knowing the righteousness of God, which is most bountifully and freely given us in Christ. They try to do good of themselves in order that they might stand before God clothed in their own virtues and merits. But this is impossible. While you were here, you were one who held this opinion, or rather, error. So was I, and I am still fighting against the error without having conquered it as yet.

Therefore, my dear Friar, learn Christ and him crucified. Learn to praise him and, despairing of yourself, say, “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, just as I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and have given to me what is yours. You have taken upon yourself what you were not and have given to me what I was not.” Beware of aspiring to such purity that you will not wish to be looked upon as a sinner, or to be one. For Christ dwells only in sinners. On this account he descended from heaven, where he dwelt among the righteous, to dwell among sinners. Meditate on this love of his and you will see his sweet consolation. For why was it necessary for him to die if we can obtain a good conscience by our works and afflictions? Accordingly you will find peace only in him and only when you despair of yourself and your own works. Besides, you will learn from him that just as he has received you, so he has made your sins his own and has made his righteousness yours. (LW 48:12-13)

Conclusion
Tappert's original translation reads slightly different, making the quote a prayer:

Therefore, my dear brother, learn Christ and him crucified. Learn to pray to him and, despairing of yourself, say: "Thou, Lord Jesus, art my righteousness, but I am thy sin. Thou hast taken upon thyself what is mine and hast given to me what is thine. Thou has taken upon thyself what thou wast not and hast given to me what I was not."

Tappert translates, "disce ei cantare et de te ipso desperans dicere ei" as "Learn to pray to him and, despairing of yourself," whereas LW says "Learn to praise him and, despairing of yourself." LW appears to be a more accurate translation.

An interesting aspect of this letter and quote is its date of 1516 (previous to the posting of the Ninety-Five Theses of 1517). Many probably do not realize there's been a long debate as to the exact dating of Luther's evangelical breakthrough and his understanding of Romans 1:17-18. It's not uncommon to find Luther's detractors putting forth the myth of Luther discovering justification by faith alone on the toilet. More meaningful and scholarly debate focuses on the year. There are three main perspectives:

View A: 1514 or earlier
View B: 1515 or 1516
View C: 1518 (after the Ninety-Five Theses).

Some years ago I listened to lectures by Dr. Kolb. He stated that Luther discovered something about the grace of God quite early (perhaps in his early lectures on Peter Lombard's Sentences in 1509). One finds a strong emphasis on the grace of God in these early lectures. Dr. Kolb said that Luther's theology finally came together in 1518 and 1519 with his solidifying his concepts of promise, faith, justification, and the proper distinction of the law. Dr. Kolb said the contemporary debate on this topic originated with Roman Catholic historian Hartmann Grisar, and was furthered by the scholarship of Saarnivaara, Bizer, and Green.

The dating of Luther’s discovery and its meaning for his theology have been the subject of wide discussion and debate. In his Road to Reformation (Philadelphia, 1946, pp. 87–117) Heinrich Boehmer says that Luther’s discovery took place in April or May, 1513. Uuras Saarnivaara argues that the great discovery took place as late as the autumn or winter of 1518–1519. He makes this assertion in his book, Luther Discovers the Gospel (St. Louis, 1951, especially pp. 92–120). In Luther’s Progress to the Diet of Worms (Greenwich, 1951, p. 39) Gordon Rupp says, “It is clear, in all essentials, his [Luther’s] theology was in existence before the opening of the church struggle in 1517.” Robert Herndon Fife, siding with Boehmer’s dating, provides documentation, bibliography, and discussion of Luther’s discovery in The Revolt of Martin Luther (New York, 1957, pp. 197–202). For introductory and interpretive material, cf. WA 54, 176–178, and Ernst Stracke’s Schriften des Vereins für Reformationsgeschichte (Leipzig, 1926), Vol. 44, No. 140: “Luthers groszes Selbstzeugnis 1545 über seine Entwicklung zum Reformator historisch-kritisch untersucht.” (LW 34:326)

Whichever date it may be, the quote in question from the young Martin Luther certainly highlights Luther's grappling with sin and the righteousness of Christ as the possession of a sinner!