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Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
Philippians 2:9 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name;
  • BSB Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
  • NKJV Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
  • NASB For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
  • NLT Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,

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

Therefore God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name above every name. The path of humility led to supreme exaltation.

Overview

In response to Christ's obedience, the Father raised and enthroned Him in the highest honor. The "name above every name" signals His supreme lordship and authority. The pattern of humiliation followed by exaltation both vindicates Christ and assures His people that the lowly way is God's way to glory.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 40

  • Rev 19:16And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
  • Matt 28:18And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
  • 1 Pet 3:22Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.
  • Heb 2:9But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
  • Isa 52:13Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.
  • Eph 1:20–23Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
  • Rev 5:12Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
  • Dan 7:14And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
  • Heb 1:4Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
  • Ps 89:27Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.
  • Ps 72:17–19His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.
  • Ps 110:1The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
  • John 17:5And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
  • Isa 53:12Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
  • Heb 12:2Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
  • John 5:22–27For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
  • John 17:1–3These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
  • Acts 2:32–36This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
  • Ps 91:14Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
  • Ps 110:5The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.
  • Rev 3:21To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
  • Luke 10:22All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.
  • John 3:35–36The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
  • Ps 2:6–12Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
  • Acts 5:31Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
  • Ps 45:6–7Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.
  • Rev 11:15And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
  • Isa 9:7Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
  • Gen 3:15And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
  • Col 1:18And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
  • 2 Pet 1:17For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
  • John 13:3Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God;
  • Rev 1:5And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
  • Matt 11:27All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
  • Ps 8:5–8For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
  • Ps 69:29–30But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high.
  • Dan 2:44–45And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
  • Isa 49:6–8And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
  • 1 Cor 15:24–27Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
  • Rom 14:9–11For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Philippians videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Philippians 2:9YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PhilippiansMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The one who, being in the form of God, emptied himself to the point of death on a cross and was exalted to the name above every name — the joy and prize of the believer.

How Philippians 2:9 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

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.