Story Behind The Hymn, “Crown Him With Many Crowns”
This worshipful text is the combined effort of two distinguished Anglican clergymen, each of whom desired to write a hymn of exaltation to our suffering but now victorious Lord.
Matthew Bridges’ version first appeared in 1851 with six stanzas. Twenty-three years later Godfrey Thring wrote six additional stanzas, which appeared in his collection Hymns and Sacred Lyrics. The hymn’s present forrn includes stanzas one, two, and four by Bridges and the third verse by Thring.
Each crown in this hymn text exalts Christ for some specific aspect of His person or ministry
(1) Stanza one for His eternal Kingship;
(2) stanza two for His love demonstrated in redemptive suffering; (
(3) stanza three for His victorious resurrection and ascension, and
(4) stanza four as a member of the Triune Godhead ever worthy of worship and praise.
The tune, Diadernata (the Greek word for crowns), was composed especially for this text by George Elvey, a noted organist at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor, England, where British royalty often attend.
Crown Him With Many Crowns Hymn Lyrics
(1) Crown Him with many crowns
The Lamb upon His throne:
Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns
All music but its own!
Awake, my soul, and sing
Of Him who died for thee;
And hail Him as thy matchless King
Through all eternity.
(2) Crown Him the Lord of love:
Behold His hands and side,
Rich wounds, yet visible above,
In beautiful glorified;
No angel in the sky
Can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends His wondering eye
At mysteries so bright.
(3) Crown Him the Lord of life:
Who triumphed o’er the grave,
Who rose victorious to the strife
For those He came to save;
His glories now we sing,
Who died and rose on high.
Who died eternal life to bring,
And lives that death may die.
(4) Crown Him the Lord of heaven:
One with the Father known,
One with the Spirit through Him given
From yonder glorious throne.
To Thee be endless praise,
For Thou for us hast died;
Be Thou, O Lord, through endless days
Adored and magnified.
(5) Crown Him the Lord of years:
The potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres,
Ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail!
For Thou hast died for me,
Thy praise and glory shall not fail
Throughout eternity.