Hymns: The Head That Once Was Crowned with Thorns

I’ve been exploring some of the very modern worship songs as an old guy 😀. But now, I’ve decided to alternate between very modern hymns, old hymns, and in-between hymns, namely the worship songs from the 60s to the 90s that feature in hymnbooks such as Mission Praise. Today it’s the turn of the old hymns.

Today’s song is The Head That Once Was Crowned with Thorns from 1820.

1. The head that once was crowned with thorns
Is crowned with glory now;
A royal diadem adorns
The mighty victor's brow.
The highest place that Heav'n affords
Is his, is his by right,
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords,
And Heav'n's eternal light.

2. The joy of all who dwell above,
The joy of all below,
To whom he manifests his love
And grants his name to know.
To them, the cross, with all its shame,
With all its grace is giv'n;
Their name an everlasting name,
Their joy the joy of Heav'n.

3. They suffer with their Lord below,
They reign with him above;
Their profit and their joy to know
The myst'ry of his love.
The cross he bore is life and health,
Tho' shame and death to him;
His people's hope, his people's wealth,
Their everlasting theme.

This one contrasts the treatment with Christ on the day in which He was crucified with His position now. Even on the day of the crucifixion, Jesus promised the repentant thief that he would be with Jesus in paradise on that very day. And on the third day, Jesus rose from the dead, and He ascended into heaven weeks later. And the final book of the Bible, Revelation, speaks of His position now – the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

He always was and always will be the Son of God. But when He became human, people rarely recognized Him for who He truly was. And He didn’t choose to reveal it to everyone from the beginning. He gradually allowed people to come to the correct conclusion. After the resurrection, it was obvious to hundreds and within weeks, thousands, and within centuries millions. Now it’s billions. It’s true that many are mere nominal, cultural Christians, but I’m pleased that so many are aware of Christ, and my prayer is that billions will personally respond to his offer of salvation for all who repent and trust in Him.

And when we believe, we’re adopted into God’s family, so we will reign with Him. I’m curious as to how that works out in practice. For example, who would we reign over? Some see it as a very literal kingdom. Others see it as metaphorical language emphasizing the general glory of heaven, when we’ll no longer be subjected to spiritual or human tyranny, sin or suffering.

The hymn was written by an Irishman, Thomas Kelly. His evangelical preaching was considered too radical by some of his Church of Ireland bishops. So, he was prohibited from preaching in Church of Ireland pulpits, leading him to form independent chapels. Something similar happened to John Wesley in England. But no denomination emerged from Thomas Kelly’s chapels. Such things often happen with new movements within evangelicalism. They have a huge influence on wider evangelicalism but don’t become a denomination or if they do, they might not last very long. Kelly wrote 765 hymns, making him one of the most prolific hymn writers in evangelical history. And these are sung across all denominations.

Here are some other audio and visual performances of the hymn: