All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name!

Text by: Edward Perronet 1779 & 1780

Generally sung to: “Coronation” and “Miles’ Lane”

Here is a recording of “Coronation:”  http://youtu.be/UuWn5zpheFE

Here is a recording of “Miles’ Lane:”  http://youtu.be/FtyapsdCwMw

Here is a recording of “Diadem:” http://youtu.be/jqmDKgp4ExE

Here is a recording of “Fields:” https://youtu.be/MJ0qDuUgy0s

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.

Let highborn seraphs tune the lyre, and as they tune it, fall
Before His face Who tunes their choir, and crown Him Lord of all.
Before His face Who tunes their choir, and crown Him Lord of all.

Crown Him, ye morning stars of light, who fixed this floating ball;
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might, and crown Him Lord of all.
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might, and crown Him Lord of all.

Crown Him, ye martyrs of your God, who from His altar call;
Extol the Stem of Jesse’s Rod, and crown Him Lord of all.
Extol the Stem of Jesse’s Rod, and crown Him Lord of all.

Ye seed of Israel’s chosen race, ye 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.

Hail Him, ye heirs of David’s line, whom David Lord did call,
The God incarnate, Man divine, and crown Him Lord of all,
The God incarnate, Man divine, and crown Him Lord of all.

Sinners, whose love can ne’er forget the wormwood and the gall,
Go spread your trophies at His feet, and crown Him Lord of all.
Go spread your trophies at His feet, and crown Him Lord of all.

Let every tribe and every tongue before Him prostrate fall
And shout in universal song the crownèd Lord of all.
And shout in universal song the crownèd Lord of all.

All Hail The Power of Jesus’ Name has been described by some as the “National Anthem” of Christianity; as much for it unabashed declaration of the power the Name which is above all other names, but also that it has been translated into nearly every language found on earth. It can be found in almost 2800 different hymn books from around the world. The three tunes most commonly associated with this text also allow for a variety of musical traditions to have a comfortable musical context. The “Miles’ Lane” tune was actually written by a friend of Perronet, 19-year-old William Shrubsole.

The Bible is replete with stories of misfits and the socially unacceptable being regularly used for God’s purposes.  Edward Perronet (1726-1792) came from a family of Huguenots who were refugees, fleeing France, first to Switzerland and then to England to escape religious persecution. Vincent Perronet, (Edward’s father) became a vicar of the Church of England and settled in Shoreham where he served for the rest of his long life. The family eventually came under the influence of Charles and John Wesley.

Edward also started his service within the Church of England, but his short temper and inability to submit to authority led to his separation from both the Church of England and eventually the Wesleys after the Methodist split from the Church of England. He settled with a congregation known as a “dissenter” congregation; a congregation which was independent of any denomination. So a man who could not fit into any of the larger socio-religious organizations of his time, wrote a hymn which transcends all socio-religious boundaries.

One of the challenges we experience in the 21^st century while reading text written centuries earlier is the presence of unfamiliar words and phrases. Yet, it is these unfamiliar words which actually contain the most important ideas.

“All hail the power of Jesus’ Name! Let angels prostrate fall”

Philippians 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;” The power of Jesus’ name is such that everything on the earth, under the earth, and in heaven will bow before Him. The angels falling prostrate shows their submission to their Lord, who is our Lord.

“Let highborn seraphs tune the lyre, and as they tune it, fall”

Isaiah 6:1-3 6 “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. ² Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain (two) he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. ³ And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.”

The seraphs or seraphim are considered the highest order of angels. In continuing with the first stanza, even the highest angels, whose function is to declare the holiness of God fall before the name of Jesus.

“Crown Him, ye martyrs of your God, who from His altar call;
Extol the Stem of Jesse’s Rod, and crown Him Lord of all.”

Isaiah 11:1-6 contains some of the most poetic references to the coming Messiah containing the reference to the “rod of Jesse:

1And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: 2And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; 3And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: 4But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. 5And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. 6The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.

“Ye martyrs calling from the alter” comes from Revelations 17:5-6 5”And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the Great, The Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. 6And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus”

The “seed of Israel’s chosen race” declares that Christ is of the house of David. The rest of mankind are heirs to David’s line through God incarnate who is Man divine and is crowned Lord of all.

We are all sinners who love wormwood and gall. Wormwood is a plant whose leaves are used to add a bitter flavor to alcoholic drinks in the middle-east and gall is generally understood as the contents of the gall bladder, also known for its very bitter taste. In the same way an alcoholic will return to that which is destroying his life, we sinners, regularly return to the bitterest of sins which separate us from the love of God.

Yet, in the end every tongue will confess and all of mankind, those above the earth and those beneath, those in heaven and those who are not, will confess the Name which is above all names as the one Crowned Lord.