Born: Feb­ru­a­ry 11, 1660, Nürn­berg (Nur­em­berg), Ger­ma­ny.

Died: March 11, 1722, Nürn­berg, Ger­ma­ny.

Son of jew­el­er Ni­co­laus Dess­ler, Wolf­gang stu­died the­ol­o­gy at the Un­i­ver­si­ty of Alt­dorf, though he was un­a­ble to com­plete his de­gree there. Up­on re­turn to Nürn­berg, he sup­port­ed him­self as a proof­read­er, worked as an aman­u­en­sis for Eras­mus Finx (or Fran­cis­ci), and trans­lat­ed ma­ny re­li­gious works into Ger­man. In 1705, he was ap­point­ed Con­rec­tor of the School of the Ho­ly Ghost in Nürn­berg, un­til resigning due to pa­ral­y­sis in 1720. His works in­clude:

• Gottgeheiligter Christ­en nützlich er­getz­ende Seel­en­lust un­ter den Blum­en gött­lich­es Worts, oder an­däch­ti­ge Be­tracht­ung­en und Ge­dank­en über un­ter­schied­liche er­läut­erte Schrift­sprüche (Nürn­berg, Ger­ma­ny: 1692)

Sources

Hymns

1. Frisch, frisch hinnach, mein Geist und Herz
2. Ich lass dich nicht, du musst mein Jesus bleiben
   • I Leave Thee Not
   • I Will Not Let Thee Go
3. Mein Je­su dem die Ser­a­phi­nen
   • Into Thy Gracious Hands I Fall
   • Jesus, Whose Glory’s Streaming Rays
   • My Jesus, If the Seraphim
   • My Jesus, Whom the Seraph Host
   • My Savior, Whom in Heavenly Places
   • O Jesu! ’Fore Whose Radiation
   • O Jesu, Lord, Enthroned in Glory
4. Öffne mir die Perlenpforten
   • Now the Pearly Gates Unfold
5. Wie wohl ist mir, O Freund der Seelen
   • How Well I Am, Thou My Soul’s Lover
   • My Soul’s Best Friend, What Joy and Blessing
   • O Friend of Souls
   • O Lord, How Happy Is the Time
   • ’Tis Well with Me, O Friend Unfailing