The hymn tells the story of a boy, described as "the son of the king of kings" who is sent to Egypt to retrieve a pearl from a serpent. During the quest, he is seduced by the people in Egypt and forget his origin and family. However a letter is sent from the king of kings to remind him, and when he recieves this letter, he remember his mission, snatch the pearl and return.

The hymn can be interpreted as a gnostic view of the human condition: we are lost in this world of matter and do not remember our true origin, but our father sends a message (by way of jesus) and make use remember through gnosis.

Influences

The character Aragorn in the fictional The Lord of the Rings have doubts about his origin that reminds a lot about the character from The Hymn of the Pearl, though the influence is not obvious.

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