Poems and Songs of Vladimir Vysotsky. There Was Once a Man.
Commentary to the song “Thank Thee, O Good Lord, for Thy grace...”
This song calls to mind the words of the prophet Isaiah, peace be upon him, which relate to the awaited messenger: “He was despised, and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and as one from whom men hide their face he was despised; and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”
The song was performed in the film “Vertical” (1967).