Philippians 3:21
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who, by the power that enables Him to subject all things to Himself, will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
Greek, "Who shall transfigure the body of our humiliation (namely, in which our humiliation has place, Co2 4:10; Eph 2:19; Ti2 2:12), that it may be conformed unto the body of His glory (namely, in which His glory is manifested), according to the effectual working whereby," &c. Not only shall He come as our "Saviour," but also as our Glorifier. even--not only to make the body like His own, but "to subdue all things," even death itself, as well as Satan and sin. He gave a sample of the coming transfiguration on the mount (Mat 17:1, &c.). Not a change of identity, but of fashion or form (Psa 17:15; Co1 15:51). Our spiritual resurrection now is the pledge of our bodily resurrection to glory hereafter (Phi 3:20; Rom 8:11). As Christ's glorified body was essentially identical with His body of humiliation; so our resurrection bodies as believers, since they shall be like His, shall be identical essentially with our present bodies, and yet "spiritual bodies" (Co1 15:42-44). Our "hope" is, that Christ, by His rising from the dead, hath obtained the power, and is become the pattern, of our resurrection (Mic 2:13). Next: Philippians Chapter 4
Open source ↗He cautions them against judaizing seducers (Phi 3:1-3) and proposes his own example: and here he enumerates the privileges of his Jewish state which he rejected (Phi 3:4-8), describes the matter of his own choice (Phi 3:9-16), and closes with an exhortation to beware of wicked men, and to follow his example (Phi 3:17-21).
Open source ↗3:21 change them into glorious bodies: See 1 Cor 15:42-54; cp. Rom 8:23. • he will bring everything under his control: See 1 Cor 15:24-27.
Open source ↗Cross-references
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Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.
When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust! For your dew is like the dew of the morning, and the earth will bring forth her dead.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
There He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and was and is to come—the Almighty.
He will swallow up death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from every face and remove the disgrace of His people from the whole earth. For the LORD has spoken.
I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from Death. Where, O Death, are your plagues? Where, O Sheol, is your sting? Compassion is hidden from My eyes.
Jesus answered, “You are mistaken because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.