Crown Him The King of Kings

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 210

March 23, 2012

Crown Him The King Of Kings

            “Crown Him With Many Crowns” has three main writers: two lyricists and one music composer.  Matthew Bridges, who wrote verses 1 and 4 through 9 , was inspired to write this song after reading Revelation 19:12 which states, “his eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns,”  (the “eyes of blazing fire” are mentioned in verse 6).  Bridges, who initially condemned Catholicism, later converted to Catholicism and wrote six stanzas to this song in 1852.  Bridges was born in Maldon, Essex, England.  This hymn would make much more sense to someone born under a monarchy or parliamentary monarchy.  Godfrey Thring, an Anglican from Alford, Somerset, England, thought this song was too Catholic sounding, so he added at least six stanzas to the song to make this song acceptable for singing in Protestant churches in 1874 (it is not known in Bridges and Thring ever met) ("Sharefaith, Letters & Arts, Inc.")  George J. Elvay composed the famous tune, “Diademata,” in 1868.  In this paper, I will be going through the song, searching for references to Jesus, and parallel references in the Bible.  “Crown Him With Many Crowns” is a hymn that depicts the entire life if Jesus Christ.  One should note that there is a constant reminder to praise God for sending Jesus down to save us from the bondage of sin.

            The first verse exclaims that a savior has come and has died to save us from the bondage of sin, and that we should praise him and thank him for it.  “Awake my soul, and sing of Him who died for thee.  All hail him as thy matchless King through all eternity.”  We will see again later this same theme in the last verse.

            The theme of this hymn is Jesus Christ and his exaltation.  Verse 2 mentions Jesus being born of the Virgin Mary.  Luke 2 is seen in this verse.  Luke 2:7 states, “…she gave birth to her firstborn, a son…” This verse’s first line even states that Jesus is God incarnate, meaning that Jesus was fully God.  This has a very Trinitarian view on Jesus’ life (God is one being in three persons; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit).  Thring wrote this verse, as mentioned before, to counteract what he thought was a very Catholic-sounding hymn.

            The third verse (second verse written by Thring) reflects the Gospel of John.  John 1:1 states, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God, and the Word was with God.”  The hymn states, “Crown him the Son of God, before the world began.  John 1:14 shows us that the Word became flesh, meaning that God took on human characteristics and was born.

            Verse five reflects Hebrews 1:9-10, which states, “…we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone,” ("preceptaustin".)  Also in verse five is the word scepter.  According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word scepter means, “a staff or baton borne by a sovereign as an emblem of authority.”  Hebrews 1:8 states that righteousness is the scepter, or the authority, of God’s kingdom. 

            The crucifixion is the main theme for verse number six.  This verse shows us the wounds in Jesus’ hands, feet, and side.  This verse states that Jesus’ crucifixion should be seen as a beautiful thing, because he died to save us from our sins.  “[Behold] his hands and side.  These wounds yet visible above in beauty glorified.”

            The ascension is the main theme for verse seven.  This verse states that Jesus is “enthroned in worlds above,” possibly stating that currently, Jesus is at the right hand of God.  “[As] thrones before him fall,” could mean that as time passes, empires rise up and empires fall (like the Roman empire of the previous millennium or the Ottoman empire of the last century).  Even though these empires fall, Jesus is still sitting there at the right hand of God, waiting for the opportune time to return.

            Verse eight describes God’s forgiveness of our sins through the death of Jesus.  “Who once on earth, the incarnate Word, for ransomed sinners slain,” tells us that Jesus, or the word (logos), was in fact brought into this world to save us.   

            As mentioned before, the last verse reflects the first verse, closing out the song.  The final verse tells us that God was, God is, and God will be to come, and we are to praise him for being merciful to us until the end of time. “Thy praise and glory shall not fail throughout eternity.”  This hymn constantly reminds us to praise God for sending Jesus down to save us.  I feel this hymn describes the masculinity of Jesus, because of the marching feeling that one gets when listening to this song, since it’s in 4/4 time.  Marching, to me, reminds me of war, which reminds me of masculinity, so this hymn has a very masculine feel to it.  Overall, this very beautiful and thought provoking hymn pictures Jesus as the savior, which is one of the most important ways we are to view Jesus as a person.

           

Works Cited

"Crown Him With Many Crowns." CyberHymnal. N.p., 08/18/2007. Web. 22 Mar 2012. <http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/r/crownhim.htm>.

"Hebrews 1:8-10 Commentary." preceptaustin. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar 2012.             <http://www.preceptaustin.org/hebrews_18-14.htm>.

"Story behind the song - Crown Him with Many Crowns." Sharefaith, Letters & Arts, Inc.. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar 2012. <http://www.faithclipart.com/guide/Christian-Music/hymns-the-songs-            and-the-stories/crown-him-with-many-crowns-the-song-and-the-story.html