Edward Perronet may be a name you are unfamiliar with, and many are only familiar with one of his hymns. But that one hymn has been sung in many churches throughout the world and across the globe and is probably one you are very familiar with: All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name.
Born in England in 1726, Edward Perronet was brought up in the Church of England. Not much appears to be known of his youth or personal life, but we do know that he planned on becoming a minister in the Anglican Church. Those plans were changed when he became familiar with the teaching of John and Charles Wesley.
In 1746, Perronet became a Methodist preacher and often traveled with the Wesley brothers, but when John Wesley would ask him to preach, he always preferred to defer to Wesley. In his lifetime, Perronet wrote both books and poetry as he was a skilled writer, all of which were written anonymously. He was very strong in his opinion against the Anglican church after becoming Methodist, which became known in 1756 when he wrote (anonymously) a satire on the Church of England entitled The Mitre: A Satyricall Poem. The Wesley brothers did their best to silence this publication and almost managed to completely destroy the work, which unfortunately broke their friendship. This event led to Perronet's departure from the Methodist movement, after which he became a pastor until his death.
It was in 1780 that Perronet wrote the lyrics for his popular hymn, All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name. Though he wrote several hymn lyrics, this one has become his most popular and loved. Despite what little we know of Perronet, his legacy lives on through this majestic song.
Information adapted from:
https://www.hymnologyarchive.com/edward-perronet
https://www.challies.com/hymn-stories/hymn-stories...
https://hymnary.org/person/Perronet_Edward
https://www.blueletterbible.org/hymns/bios/bio_p_e...
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