The librettist is unknown; it has been speculated that the text was written by Georg Christian Eilmar, minister of Marienkirche, who had earlier prompted the composition of Bach's cantata "Aus der Tiefen rufe ich, Herr, zu dir", BWV 131. It has also been thought that Bach himself may have assembled the text, although the suggestion is unlikely since Bach's musical setting of the final part of the text departs from its bi-strophic form. There is no evidence either way to indicate the authorship of the cantata's text. Along with other early cantatas, "Gott ist mein König" is of a pre-Neumeister character, not featuring the combination of recitative and arias found in later cantatas.