All Glory, Laud and Honor

He was in the center of the procession, and the crowds all around him were shouting, "Praise God! Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Bless the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Praise God in highest heaven!"

Not the revolutionary they expected

When Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey, hopeful crowds filled the streets waving palm branches and praising God. But less than a week later, when it became clear that Jesus was not the revolutionary they expected, this same crowd demanded His crucifixion.

For Theodulf, whom King Charlemagne had made bishop of Orléans in the late 700s, praise was born of painful circumstances. After Charlemagne's death, Theodulf was exiled to Angers, France, on charges of conspiracy. In the dark prison at Angers, Theodulf apparently wrote the text of this hymn, which became the great Palm Sunday processional of the Western church—a celebration of God's grace sung by millions through the centuries.