“All People That on Earth Do Dwell” is a perfect hymn for our global times where many seek to create multicultural worship experiences celebrating all the variety God has made. Lyrics based on Scripture can be a unifying force and have Holy Spirit-inspired power. “All People That on Earth Do Dwell” was inspired by Psalm 100 and is likely the oldest hymn sung continuously in North America. However, its beginnings were in Europe during the Reformation.
It’s no mistake that many of our earliest hymns are based on Psalms. Martin Luther (in Germany) and John Calvin (in Switzerland) differed in their approach to appropriate worship music. Luther encouraged hymn writing and wrote many himself (most famously, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”). However, Calvin worried about false doctrine sneaking in through songs and encouraged only lyrics tied directly to Scripture. Many in the early Protestant movement in Europe relied on the Geneva Psalter for worship songs, and this book traveled with them across oceans and centuries.
To understand the history of this hymn is to receive an education in church history, as you will see when we discuss its author.
What Are the Lyrics for 'All People That On Earth Do Dwell'?
The lyrics of the hymn are these:
All people that on earth do dwell,
sing to the Lord with cheerful voice.
Serve him with joy, his praises tell,
come now before him and rejoice!
Know that the Lord is God indeed;
he formed us all without our aid.
We are the flock he comes to feed,
the sheep who by his hand were made.
O enter then his gates with joy,
within his courts his praise proclaim.
Let thankful songs your tongues employ.
O bless and magnify his name.
Trust that the Lord our God is good,
his mercy is forever sure.
His faithfulness at all times stood
and shall from age to age endure.
In the King James Version (KJV), the opening line of Psalm 100 is “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.” There are five lines to the KJV of Psalm 100—the first two lines inspired verse 1 of the hymn. Line 3, “Know ye that the Lord he is God,” inspired verse 2. Line 4 opens, “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,” and comprises verse 3. Line 5 begins “For the Lord is good” and clearly inspired verse 4. The earliest settlers, likely in Jamestown, arriving from Europe, would have brought with them their Psalter. It’s inspiring to imagine this hymn’s words hymn ringing through the trees of our land when the country was still wild and nature was in its glory, as well as through every generation until today.
The hymn, as the Psalm, is a hymn of praise. It invites the global community to celebrate God in song, serve Him joyfully, and join voices to praise Him. The Psalmist and the hymn writer are confident in God’s existence and trust Him as Creator and Shepherd. They encourage all believers everywhere to come before Him with joy and thanksgiving, magnify His name, and trust in His goodness, mercy, and faithfulness forever.
In Exodus 17:15 ESV, Moses celebrates a great battle victory: “And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The LORD Is My Banner.” When the tribes of Israel gathered and camped, each tribe would fly its flag or banner. But when they all marched into battle or gathered for worship, they united under one banner, The LORD. This is a powerful image for us today. The Lord is still our banner. Every nation, ethnicity, tribe, language, and skin color can unite in Jesus. This hymn is a call to us all to sing His praise. It was written during a time when people of various nations interacted due to the persecution of Protestants.
Who Wrote the Hymn 'All People That on Earth Do Dwell'?
William Kethe wrote the hymn, and here is where we travel around Europe with some rich church history. Kethe was a Scottish clergyman as well as a hymn writer and Bible translater.
When Catholic Queen Mary (also known as Mary Tudor or “Bloody Mary”) came to power, she persecuted and burned hundreds of Protestant believers at the stake. Her anger against Protestants was fueled by a long and tortured family history between her father and the Catholic Church. Mary suffered greatly due to this conflict.
Mary was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his wife, Catherine of Aragon. When Catherine produced no other children, thus no male heir, Henry sought to have the marriage annulled and warred with the Roman Catholic church over this. Henry eventually declared himself the head of the “Church of England” and married Anne Boleyn. Their daughter was Elizabeth I. Mary was separated from her mother and not even allowed to visit her before her death.
When Henry had Anne Boleyn beheaded and married Jane Seymour, Jane encouraged him to reconcile with Mary, but he insisted that she renounce papal authority. Jane died giving birth to Edward. Edward succeeded him on the throne when Henry died but was still a child. Edward’s Protestant counselors continued Henry’s reforms, and the division between Mary and her brother became worse. When Edward died at 15, political manipulations aimed to keep Mary off the throne and Elizabeth I out of the line of succession, but Mary formed an army and took her place by force with Elizabeth’s support.
During her reign, Mary had over 300 Protestant “heretics” burned at the stake. Many Protestants fled to other countries and became known as the Marian Exiles. Kethe was among them. Kethe first fled to Frankfurt in Germany, which was then Lutheran. Eventually, he left Frankfurt (possibly influenced by Scottish reformed theologian John Knox) and traveled to Geneva, Switzerland, where John Calvin was the chief influence. While in Switzerland, he helped to translate the Geneva Bible. When Elizabeth I replaced Mary on the English throne, she established the Protestant Church of England and became its supreme “governor.” Kethe eventually became a rector in England and died in Dorset in 1594.
What Else Did William Kethe Write?
While in Switzerland, besides translating the Bible, Kethe also contributed to the Geneva Psalter. “Metrical psalters,” psalms translated in meter so they could be easily sung, were quite popular at the time. The hymn’s tune, “The Old Hundredth,” is said to have been composed by French composer Louis Bourgeois, who contributed many compositions to the Geneva Psalter. “The Old Hundredth” is one of church history’s best-known melodies. Many will recognize it as the tune to the Doxology (whose lyrics were also written by Kethe): “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.”
Other hymns by Kethe include “O, Worship the King All Glorious Above,” “My Soul, Praise the Lord,” “O God, Thou Art Great,” and “Praise Ye the Lord, for He is Good, His Mercy Dures for Aye.”
The Martins - All People That on Earth Do Dwell [Live] from the-martins on GodTube.
Further Reading:
The Powerful Story Behind the Hymn "I Love to Tell the Story"
The Beautiful Meaning behind the Old Hymn "Blessed Assurance”
Who Wrote the Hymn 'Bless the Lord O My Soul'?
Who Wrote The Hymn 'No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus'?
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Jantanee Rungpranomkorn
