For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
Parallel translations
- WEB For it is written, “‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘to me every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess to God.’”
- BSB It is written: “As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.”
- NKJV For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.”
- NASB For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, to Me every knee will bow, And every tongue will give praise to God.”
- NLT For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will declare allegiance to God.’”
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
Paul cites Isaiah: as surely as God lives, every knee will bow and every tongue confess to Him. Universal accountability to God underlines why we must not usurp His judgment.
Overview
Quoting Isaiah 45:23, Paul affirms that all will ultimately acknowledge God. This same passage Paul applies to Christ in Philippians 2, showing the divine glory shared by the Son. The point in context is that every person answers to God, so judging a brother intrudes on prerogatives that belong to the Lord before whom all will bow.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Isa 45:22–25Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.
- Phil 2:10–11That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
- Ps 72:11Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him.
- Rom 10:9That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
- Matt 10:32Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
- 1 Jn 4:15Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
- Isa 49:18Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.
- Rom 15:9And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.
- Num 14:21But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.
- Rev 5:14And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.
- 2 Jn 1:7For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
- Zeph 2:9Therefore as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them.
- Num 14:28Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
- Ezek 5:11Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.
- Jer 22:24As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.
How Romans 14:11 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.