All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name
"God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name."
Philippians 2:9
All hail the pow'r of Jesus' name!
Let angels prostrate fall, let angels prostrate fall;
bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
Crown him, ye martyrs of your God,
who from his altar call, who from his altar call;
extol the Stem of Jesse's rod,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
Ye seed of Israel's chosen race,
ye ransomed of the fall, ye ransomed of the fall,
hail him who saves you by his grace,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
Sinners, whose love can ne'er forget
the wormwood and the gall, the wormwood and the gall,
go, spread your trophies at his feet,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
Let ev'ry kindred, ev'ry tribe
on this terrestrial ball, on this terrestrial ball,
to him all majesty ascribe,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
O that with yonder sacred throng
we at his feet may fall, we at his feet may fall!
We'll join the everlasting song,
and crown him, crown him, crown him,
and crown him Lord of all!
- St. 1-5, Edward Perronet, 1779
- St. 6, John Rippon, 1787
HISTORY
Edward Perronet was a minister in the Church of England. Born into a Huguenot family from Switzerland, he was a friend of the Wesleys and highly regarded by them. Nevertheless, he had a sharp tongue and was known for his caustic sarcasm. Despite that, John Wesley thought highly of Perronet's preaching. According to Dr. Hawn of Perkins School of Theology,
"Wesley encouraged Perronet to preach, but Perronet preferred to defer to Wesley. The Methodism founder persisted, however, and [one time] announced that, 'Brother Perronet will now speak.' Perronet stood before a large crowd and declared, 'I will now deliver the greatest sermon ever preached on earth.' He then read the Sermon on the Mount and promptly sat down."
His preaching certainly found a lasting voice in the hymn "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name." He wrote the hymn in 1779, and it was published in Gospel Magazine in 1780 under the title "On the Resurrection, the Lord Is King." Since then, it has enjoyed longstanding and consistent popularity. In fact, judging by the number of hymnals that include one of the various translations, this hymn ranks in the top ten English hymns of all time. The edition we use today in the Trinity Hymnal was edited and amended by Rev. John Rippon in 1787.
THEOLOGY
This hymn is about worship -- worship of Jesus Christ, the King of Creation. At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow! There is no name above His Name on heaven or on earth, and one day ALL will worship at His feet. The imagery of this hymn is rich and enduring as angels, saints, and sinners all come and join in the coronation of King Jesus.
The hymn opens with a call to all to "hail the pow'r of Jesus' name!" as we see the angels falling on their faces before Jesus. The call to worship is followed with a call to crown him with a "royal diadem," and the refrain swells with increasing zeal to "crown him Lord of all!"
As the stanzas progress, the martyrs join in the worship, and then the chosen of Israel and the sinners. In the fifth stanza, we see all the nations coming to acknowledge Christ the King as "ev'ry kindred, ev'ry tribe" of the earth comes to ascribe Him majesty.
Finally, Rippon's sixth stanza brings the hymn to a soaring finish as we join in the expressed longing for our heavenly home where we might one day join the blessed saints in eternal worship and where our song of worship will never end.
SINGING IN HARMONY
"All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name!" is commonly sung to at least three tunes (CORONATION, MILES LANE, & DIADEM). Of these, we will sing the hymn to DIADEM, the least common of the three tunes, but perhaps the most magnificent. DIADEM was composed in 1838 by James Ellor as a setting for the lyrics of this hymn and named "DIADEM" after the crown in the hymn's refrain. Although the other tunes (particularly CORONATION) have remained more popular in hymnals, the brilliant choral harmonies of DIADEM make it the first choice for choirs and ensembles.
DIADEM is worth learning! The harmonies are rich and powerful, and few hymn tunes can match the triumph and jubilation of this one! There is terrific energy in every measure, and the refrain is glorious enough to transport the lowliest of congregations into the heavenly realms of worship. As the men and women alternate between repeating the resounding "crown him!" and singing the powerful and majestic melody progression, they evoke together something of the awesome fullness of all creation as they join together in worship of their great Creator.