Philippians 2:1-11
Today’s reading, especially verses 4-11, is probably a favorite for all of us. Certainly it is for me. Even now the refrain from “He is Lord” is running through my head. So many words that Paul wrote are so glorious, so beautiful. We are blessed to have his writings at our fingertips!
I could just leave it at that – which was my initial intention. But then something struck me in the following verse: …so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth… (v. 10) I was wondering what Paul meant when he wrote “in heaven and on earth and under the earth”. Did he mean angels, living humans, and dead (buried) humans? Or did he mean saints and angels in heaven, humans alive on earth, and souls in hell? Two verses in Revelation 5:3, 13 use the same terminology. Here’s 5:3, And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it. Looking online didn’t offer much guidance. But there is one item that is clear in that verse 10. The phrase, …at the name of Jesus… does not have a distinct time component. So wherever, whenever, Jesus’ name is mighty!
Slava Bohu!
Love this! I was particularly struck by vv. 4-8 and how Jesus as man showed us everything about God’s character that can be conveyed in human form.