Mendelssohn's Three Motets for female chorus and organ, Op. 39, were completed in Rome on December 31, 1830, at about the time he wrote the Three Sacred Pieces, Op. 23. The Motets were published the next year in Bonn. Mendelssohn composed the Three Motets for the nuns of Trinità de Monti in Rome. The second and third of the Motets have multiple sections.

The opening Grave of the "Veni Domine" (Come, Lord) is the chorus' call to get the attention of their Lord, after which a con moto section moves quickly in 6/8 meter. The central section, "Excita Domine" is in 3/4 meter, but continues the key of G minor, shifting back to the opening 6/8 meter and melodies of the con moto section before a close on G major. The three-part texture is generally homophonic.

Mendelssohn bases the second of the Motets, "Laudate pueri" (Praise the Lord), on the Gregorian antiphon, "Assumpta est." In E flat major, the piece spins out in three-part counterpoint (the sopranos divided), the second sopranos following the altos at the unison, the first soprano entering at a fourth above. After a canonic beginning the counterpoint becomes free, with extended melismas on the second syllable of "laudate." At "Sit nomen Domini" the texture becomes homophonic and arpeggios begin in the organ accompaniment. When Mendelssohn freely repeats portions of the text he repeats the music setting the words, passing once again from polyphony to homophony at "Sit nomen Domini." The second half of the motet is a Terzetto for one alto and two soprano soloists and a three part chorus. Beginning with "Beati omnes," the soloists and chorus alternate, never singing together until the last measures, which close on A flat major.

"Surrexit pastor bonus" (Good Shepherd) is in four parts and is the most impressive of the Three Motets. The pastoral nature of the setting reflects the text as the four voice parts move in rhythmic unison. Segments for soloists alternate with those for chorus, each taking a turn declaiming the same text between organ flourishes. Staggered entrances for the soloists and chorus on "Alleluia" close section on G major. Sentimentality pervades the ensuing duet, "Tulerunt dominum meum," for two sopranos. No. 3, a solo for alto, is a brief, chant-like intonation in D major ending with a modal cadence. The finale, marked Allegro molto and beginning with "Surrexit Christus," is polyphonic. After a homophonic opening, the sopranos and altos exchange imitative phrases, repeating sections of the text. At the "Alleluia" begins what seems like a fugue, but becomes free counterpoint in Baroque style with repeated figures.

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