The Bible on Crowns

First of all, I would like very much to know how long the average Byzantine emperor could expect to wear this object without acquiring a headache. I estimate it at about three minutes. No wonder Justinian always looked oppressed in the mosaics---he was!

On to the important point, however. What follows is something that I wrote upon the ascension of PHC's one and only High Queen. Since I had to do the coronation ceremony, I figured that I should see what Scripture has to say about crowns. The results bowled me over, which is why I present them for your consideration. For the sake of time, I am simply going to append my whole speech from the ceremony.

Upon the Occasion of Sarah's Coronation Ceremony

When Clarice asked me, “What do you think we should do for Sarah?” my immediate response was “we should crown her High Queen.” I knew that Sarah wouldn’t like it. I knew she wouldn’t like it because she is humble, and hates her own pride, and she knows that being crowned High Queen would be for her a temptation to pride.

So, I went to see what Scripture says about crowns and crowning. I was astonished at the overall theme of the verses throughout Scripture on the subject. There’s a reason why it just seemed right to me, and right to Clarice and all of us, to want to crown you, Sarah. As far as I can tell, this is a profoundly Biblical way of honoring, encouraging, and exhorting, someone whom we all desire to bless.

The first time I found “crown” mentioned in the Bible was in Exodus 29. In order to consecrate the priests, God orders that “. . . you shall set the turban on his head and put the holy crown on the turban” (Exodus 29:6). Accordingly, “They made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote on it an inscription, like the engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to the Lord’” (Exodus 39:30). Sarah, the first thing that I want to point out about crowning is that it first meant, and means for us here tonight, that you are holy to the Lord. We distinguish you as belonging to God by crowning you.

The second thing that I want to point out to you about crowning is that it has a dual significance. Isaiah tells us, “You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God” (Isaiah 62:3), and Isaiah also tells us, “In that day the Lord of hosts will be a crown of glory, and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people” (Isaiah 28:5). So Sarah, the second thing for you to see is that you are a crown in the hand of the Lord, just as the Lord himself is your crown. You glorify him, and he is your life and joy, your very glory.

The third thing I want to point out to you is that crowns do not exist to be served, but to serve, and to give their lives up. Zechariah writes, “On that day the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land” (Zech. 9:16). A crown shines on the land of the Lord. A crowned head is one that must be constantly bent to care for others. Elizabeth I of England, on the field of battle, told her troops that,

“I am come amongst you at this time, not as for my recreation or sport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live or die amongst you all; to lay down, for my God, and for my kingdom, and for my people, my honor and my blood, even [in] the dust.”

Such devotion, first to God, and then to God’s people, is the duty of a crowned head. We see this ultimately in the figure of Christ, who wore his crown of thorns in order to save us. As the High Priest he was set apart for God by a crown, not of gold, but of thorns. He was the crown in God’s hand that was to shine over God’s land, and God was his crown, whom he obeyed even unto death on a cross. Thirdly, then, you must remember the calling which a crown represents. Sarah, we would not all desire to give you this crown if we had not seen your persistent love for your God and for his people, your brothers and sisters. We give you this crown to honor you for the way you have laid down your life for us, and to remind you that, as an imitator of Christ, you must always be ready to lay it down in his service.

Elizabeth II, at her coronation, said,

“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great Imperial family to which we all belong. . . .”

Sarah, we are the great Imperial family, the family of God, and you have devoted your life to serving God and serving us.

Fourth and finally, this is an awesome responsibility. Stand firm under it. James writes, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).

Sarah, we are sending you out from PHC. We charge you to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, as a member of a royal priesthood, crowned and set apart. We charge you to fix God in your heart and soul as your crown and diadem of beauty, always, as you are a crown and a royal diadem in his hands. We charge you to remember that the crown is to serve and shine from God’s hand, that you are an imitator of Christ, who is in the world to spread the Gospel of Christ in Christ’s love, and not to be served. Finally, we charge you to remain steadfast under trial, so that you may receive the crown of life, which is greater than any crown that we could give you, and receive the commendation of your Lord and Savior—“Well done, my good and faithful servant.” We charge you with all these things, and we crown you.

Bear it well, Daughter of Eve.