far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
Parallel translations
- WEB far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come.
- KJV Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
- NKJV far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
- NASB far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
- NLT Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Christ is exalted far above every ruler, authority, and power in this age and the age to come. It declares Christ's supremacy over all spiritual and earthly powers.
Overview
Paul stresses the absolute supremacy of the exalted Christ over every conceivable power — 'rule, authority, power, dominion' — terms that include spiritual forces. His lordship spans 'not only in this age, but also in that which is to come.' For readers in a world rife with fear of unseen powers, this is profound assurance of Christ's total dominion.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- Phil 2:9–11Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
- Col 2:10And you have been made complete in Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.
- Col 1:15–16The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
- 1 Pet 3:22who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him.
- Heb 1:4So He became as far superior to the angels as the name He has inherited is excellent beyond theirs.
- Dan 7:27Then the sovereignty, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will serve and obey Him.’
- Acts 4:12Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
- Col 2:15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
- Matt 28:18–19Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
- Rev 20:10–15And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, into which the beast and the false prophet had already been thrown. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
- Eph 3:10His purpose was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
- Eph 6:12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
- Heb 4:14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess.
- Rev 19:12–13He has eyes like blazing fire, and many royal crowns on His head. He has a name written on Him that only He Himself knows.
- John 5:25–29Truly, truly, I tell you, the hour is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
- Rom 8:38–39For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,
- Matt 25:31–36When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His glorious throne.
- Matt 12:32Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.
- Heb 2:5For it is not to angels that He has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.
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Christ at the center
Every spiritual blessing is 'in Christ,' the head over all things for the church, in whom Jew and Gentile are made one new man by his blood.
How Ephesians 1:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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