Authored by Rob Grunden
Introduction
The book of Hebrews begins with the reminder that God has spoken phets of old and ultimately through his Son, Christ Jesus. It says that Christ was appointed “heir of all things” (Heb. 1:2) and then goes on to state that Jesus, “having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3). Later the writer of Hebrews reiterates this by saying that “when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God” (Heb. 10:12). Jesus himself said to the High Priest after his arrest that they would soon see him “sitting at the right hand of the Power” (Mk. 14:62) and a mere two chapters later the reader is told that Jesus “was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God” (Mk. 16:19), where Stephen later saw him enthroned just before his own death (Acts 7:55).
When Edward Perronet penned the lyrics to All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name, the reality that these Scriptures reveal was at the forefront of his mind. Edward’s grandfather, David, arrived in England in 1680 as the Puritans’ persecution was nearing its end. It was a time marked by difficulty and division within the Church. Edward’s father, Vincent, was born only a few short years after the Act of Toleration was enacted (1689) and persecution was ended. Later he had documented connections to the ministry of John and Charles Wesley. Edward Perronet was born in 1726 and would go on to be a regular part of Wesley’s ministry. Both John and Charles Wesley were given to writing Hymns, so it may seem simply a part of the culture in which Edward ministered. Edward wrote many hymns unknown to the average congregant today, but All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name is sung by many worshipers across the world regularly. Its popularity is evidenced by “the fact [that] it appears in hymnals with as many as three different tunes.”
All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name
The Hymn itself has a complex past as it has taken more than one form over the years and, as mentioned above, has been set to more than one tune, and it can be found that way in some modern hymnals. The most popular tune associated with the hymn in the world today is that of Coronation, which can be found in most hymnals throughout America and Great Britain. Though it has taken various forms and has been edited from time to time throughout the years, its subject matter remains the same, the inauguration of Jesus Christ as King of kings and the obligation of all creatures to “kiss the Son” (Ps. 2:12). As one moves through the entirety of the hymn there is a noticeable redemptive progression taking place, as is common among the hymn genre.
“All hail the power of Jesus' name! Let angels prostrate fall. Bring forth the royal diadem, and crown him Lord of all. Bring forth the royal diadem, and crown him Lord of all!”
In the first word of the first verse, the congregant is reminded of that great biblical truth that the lordship of Christ the King is all-encompassing. It is everywhere and over everyone. There is no territory in all of existence that is not his. Jesus stated himself, that he was and is the owner of “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Mt. 28:18). As the Lord revealed through the Apostle Paul, “At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10-11). Though the Scriptures are filled with stories in which mankind falls prostrate before God’s messengers, Perronet is acutely aware that those terrifying, other-worldly creatures are themselves terrified when in the presence of the King.
The rest of the verse carries the entire picture of the song, the crowning of the rightful King. While this is relevant in all times and places, it surely carried special significance to Perronet and his contemporaries. The Puritans had just been under extreme persecution only a generation before Perronet’s birth, and it was likely still fresh in the minds of the surrounding world. The Protestants had been suffering for centuries under the reign of tyrants and kings. Persecuted under Roman Catholic Popes and kings of nations, the truth of the last lines of this verse resonates greatly and rightly teaches that there is but one ultimate Authority and King, Jesus Christ.
“O seed of Israel's chosen race now ransomed from the fall, hail him who saves you by his grace, and crown him Lord of all. Hail him who saves you by his grace, and crown him Lord of all!”
The second verse of the hymn acknowledges God’s choosing of a people. God chose a people from among all the peoples of the earth, not by their own merit or worth, but simply because God chose to set his love on them (Deut. 7:6-8). Jesus Christ, being the true seed of Israel (Gal. 3:16) and the culmination of that people, now saves all who call upon his name. Now, those who failed to represent the God of creation, whether Adam himself or Israel as a nation, are “ransomed from the fall.” Christ has now saved every one of the elect remnant of Israel, and just as in their having been chosen in the first place, it is simply by his grace.
The result of that is that the entirety of the chosen seed of Israel, made up of those who have been born again into Christ, is now obliged to “crown him Lord of all.” The chosen recognize their King, their Savior, and their God, and they worship. They acknowledge his status as King of all.
Let every tongue and every tribe responsive to his call, to him all majesty ascribe, and crown him Lord of all. To him all majesty ascribe, and crown him Lord of all!
Ephesians 3 speaks of the great mystery of the God of Israel making himself the God of all nations and peoples. It was a mystery because in Old Covenant times, there were mere hints of this truth. It hadn’t been revealed to God’s apostles and prophets of old the way it had been in the New Covenant age. Now, it is not only ethnic Israel who hears of, meets, knows, and worships the King of Glory. Now it is all nations under Heaven. Now it is “every tongue and every tribe” that is invited into the fold. Now the dividing wall of hostility has been torn down and is no more, and so Jew and Gentile alike receive the gospel call and must respond.
All who respond positively to that call are saved from the wrath of God, being saved from the power of sin, and will ultimately be saved from the presence of sin. However, they are not simply saved from something. They are also saved to something. The church has been given her commission, her marching orders. Jesus said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all that I commanded you” (Mt. 28:18-20a). This is the purpose of the church. This is how the church brings Christ glory. Christ’s kingship over all nations is apparent in his claim of “all authority in heaven and on earth”, which covers everywhere that exists. Jesus’ authority as king is without end. It is incomprehensible.
As he sends his church out, he intentionally makes it clear that it isn’t merely to the Jewish nation they are to go. The evangelization of mankind is not only to include the physical seed of Abraham that have gone wayward and need their Messiah. They are not to simply disciple those in the immediate area, but all the nations. This is the calling because Christ’s rule encompasses all peoples from every place, belonging to any time past, present, and future. He is the King of kings and is seated on his throne in the heavenly places right now, and because he is the owner of “all authority,” he is owed the ascription of “all majesty” from “every tongue and every tribe responsive to his call.”
Oh, that with all the sacred throng we at his feet may fall! We'll join the everlasting song and crown him Lord of all. We'll join the everlasting song and crown him Lord of all.
Though verse four begins with some archaic language that requires an explanation for an audience in the current culture, it remains a glorious testament to the reign of Christ as King. The word “throng” is used in this verse and is still found in hymnals today. This is a word that simply points to the magnitude of the number of the people of God being gathered in this present age. As both Jew and Gentile have now been brought together, the church, by the power of the Spirit, is busy gathering the elect throughout the world. There will come a day in which that task concludes, the last person, chosen from “before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4), will have the last heart of flesh given, and then the great worship Perronet has in view will commence.
There is no doubt that the picture of this prodigious worship service is that great scene found in the Revelation of Christ. There will come a moment, a moment that the apostle John saw in his vision, in which “a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, [will be] standing before the throne and before the Lamb…[crying] out with a loud voice, saying, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9-10). This crowd will be so vast that it will mimic the sound of “many waters and like the sound of might peals of thunder” when it says in glorious unison “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns” (Rev. 19:6). This is the future consummation of Christ’s kingship. This is the moment in which all of creation will no longer groan. The waiting will be over. The deer will no longer pant for water, for it will be abundant. The rocks will finally cry out in adoration of their maker. And all who have ever called upon the name of the Lord will worship him for all eternity.
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