The Seven Words from the Cross. Read more...

• Father, Forgive them; for They know not what they do - The first two words of Lord Jesus Christ on Cross are about the Forgiveness of Sins, Repentance and Eternal Inheritance in Christ. The question is who is in view here? Who is being forgiven? Are the people who crucified Christ or railed against Christ, are being forgiven for that particular sin? But in the eyes of God, all that matters is, either all of our sins are forgiven or none of the sins are forgiven. Why? Because, James 2:10 says, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” and it is enough to send us to hell. Let us look deeper for the spiritual understanding of this Word on the Cross, in the light of whole Bible. Isa 53 makes it clear, the astounding truth that Christ was laden with the sins of all His Elect by the Father, “for the transgression of my people was he stricken”, and thus had to shoulder the unspeakable agony of eternal damnation on their behalf. We are the reason he went to the Cross. He is bearing our sins in his body on the tree. So he is interceding for His people “he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors”. His one sacrifice brought about eternal pardon for His Elect casting “all their sins into the depths of the sea”.

Luke 23:34 “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”

Isa 53:5, 6, 8, 11, 12 “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all... 8He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken... He [God the Father] shall see of the travail of his [God the Son] soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 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.”

Mat 1:21 “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”

Heb 10:11-18 “And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.”

Psa 103:12 “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”

• To day Shalt Thou be with Me in Paradise - In the Luke account (Luke 23:32) God uses the word “malefactors” meaning “workers of evil”, which is a different Greek word for “thieves”. Also in Mark 15:28 quoting Isa 53:12 says, “he was numbered with the transgressors”. We are all transgressors or sinners because the definition of sin is, according to 1 John 3:4, “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law”. Here the two thieves represent the whole human race, Elect and Non-Elect – typified by sheep and goats, Abel and Cain, Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau. Although both the thieves reviled Jesus initially, one who represents the elect, whose eyes God opened, showed genuine repentance and recognized the Savior, becomes saved, and the other represents the non-elect, who is blinded by Satan (2 Cor 4:3-4), did not become saved. Non-Elect like Esau (Heb 12:16-17), Judas (Mat 27:4-5) demonstrated remorse at what they have done (based on the “sorrow of the world”), but not repentance (based on “godly sorrow”). Genuine repentance is the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the Elect. In this account we witness the plundering of the “strong man’s palace” as Isa 53:12 declares, Christ “shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors”. The “strong man” is Satan; his “palace”, or house, represents his kingdom, where we all start (Col 1:13), that Christ vanquished at the Cross and delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into His kingdom. The “darkness” and “power of Satan” that underlies an unsaved person’s life and their everlasting destruction are carefully delineated in 1 Cor 6:9-11 and Mat 25:41. In order to defeat Satan “and divideth his spoils”, Christ had to become sin for every true Christian; and then had to suffer the equivalent of eternal damnation on their behalf, give His life as a ransom for them (Mat 20:28). In accordance with God’s salvation program, all of God’s Elect throughout history are being “freed” from Satan’s prison, as we learn from a citation that outlines the Savior’s divine mission in Isa 61:1.

Luke 23:32, 39-43 “And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death… And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”

Mark 15:27-28, 32 “And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. 28And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors ... 32Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.”

Isa 53:12 “Therefore 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.”

Luke 11:21-22 “When a strong man [Satan] armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: But when a stronger [Lord Jesus Christ] than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.”

1 Pet 2:21-24 “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us [true believers], leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 22Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: 23Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him [God the Father] that judgeth righteously: 24Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose [Christ’s] stripes ye were healed.”

Col 1:12-14 “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”

• Woman, behold thy son! Behold thy mother! - We understand, in the historical occurrence, where Christ is at the Cross, that Jesus was very concerned for His mother’s wellbeing. So this disciple, who many believe was the Apostle John, is going to take care of His mother. But didn’t Mary have other children James, Joses, Juda and Simon and daughters (Mark 6:3)? Why did Lord Jesus address his mother as “woman”? Let’s look more closely at deeper spiritual meaning of this Word on Cross. In Matt 12, the Lord Jesus explains his dearest and most cherished “relatives” are those who does the will of His Father, in other words, believers. Let’s go back to Gen 3:15 where God first promised the Savior and how Christ would defeat Satan at the Cross: “And I will put enmity between thee [Satan] and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed [Christ]; it [Christ] shall bruise thy [Satan] head, and thou [Satan] shalt bruise his [Christ] heel”. “Woman” spiritually point to the church (Rev 12:2). This “woman” in Rev 12:2 is the one who brings forth the man child who is Jesus Himself. She is a figure that God is using to typify the believers in the nation of Israel or the line of believers who brought forth the Messiah into the human race. Spiritually, in this word on the Cross, Christ is giving the care of the Church to the believer and the joining of the believer to Church. Also in a way, he is joining the old testament believers with New Testament believers, making them one fold.

John 19:25-27 “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother!. And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.”

Mat 12:47-50 “Then one said unto him [Jesus], Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. 48But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? 49And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! 50For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” [See also Mark 3:32-35]

Gen 3:14-16 “And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15And I will put enmity between thee [Satan] and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed [Christ]; it [Christ] shall bruise thy [Satan] head, and thou [Satan] shalt bruise his [Christ] heel. 16Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.”

Rev 12:1-5 “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: 2And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. 3And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon [Satan], having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. 4And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon [Satan] stood before the woman [representing Church or line of believers] which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. 5And she brought forth a man child [Lord Jesus], who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.”

Gal 4:4-5 “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”

1 Cor 11:8-12 “For the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. 9Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. 10For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. 11Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man [intimate relation between Christ and his bride], in the Lord. 12For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.”

• My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? - We read in 1 Pet 1:18-20 that the Lord Jesus Christ offered his soul, or life, as payment for the sins of every child of God and is ordained to be the sacrificial lamb even before He created this universe. He had to physically enter time and space to actually suffer the equivalent of spending eternity in Hell for each one of His elect. Lord Jesus Christ started to suffer God’s wrath in Garden of Gethsemane. In Hebrew “Gethsemane” means “winepress”, and Christ began to endure eternal damnation for His people as He was being spiritually crushed. Jesus stood before Pilate for judgment at a place called “Gabbatha” (John 19:13). Pilate, the Roman governor (who typified God the Father) was authorized to pass judgment on God the Son, Who stood apparently innocent before him. Though Jesus had no sin of His Own, He was laden with the sins of the elect. Thus, He was found guilty by His beloved Father, and was required to suffer the penalty of everlasting Hell. In order to be the Savior of His people, the Lord Jesus had to become a curse, as symbolized by the shame of spiritual nakedness on Cross. Isa 53:3-5 depicts the greatest spiritual shame and humiliation that only God the Son could possibly endure. The Cross was situated on a hill called “Golgotha”, meaning “the place of a skull”. Although Christ’s spiritual agony started in the Garden of Gethsemane as the Father poured out the “cup” of His wrath upon the Son, our Lord’s suffering reached full pitch when on the cross He cried out with a loud voice “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”, as we read in Mark 15:34. It’s very difficult for human beings to fully comprehend the wrath of God, which is eternal. How could God forsake God? Because Jesus Christ never ceased to be Eternal God, Who is “omniscient” (or “all knowing”), He obviously knew the reason “why” He was experiencing God’s rejection. But He quoted the question “Why hast thou forsaken me?” from Psa 22:1 to emphasize that the full extent of His spiritual suffering in the Atonement which is impossible for us finite human beings to comprehend. In what way was the Lord Jesus “forsaken”? We find the answer in Isa 54:7-8 and Psa 16:10, which is also quoted in Acts 2:27. We learn from these verses, that God the Father forsook only until the atonement is finished but did not leave God the Son, Jesus Christ, in Hell, which is to be under the eternal wrath of God, forever. God the Father had promised His Son that His soul would not be abandoned or forsaken in Hell and that His body would not decay, which was unlike the bodies of every other human being that has died. Because Hell is presently a condition (John 3:36) and not yet a place, nobody except Christ has ever had to experience its gruesome reality to this point in time. The future nature of a place called Hell is explained in Rev 14:10.

1 Pet 1:18-20 “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world: but was manifest in these last times for you.”

Luke 22:42, 44 “… Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done ... And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

Isa 63:3, 5 “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me ... 5And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation.”

John 19:11, 13, 17 “11Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he [God] that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin. 13When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha 17And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:”.

Isa 53:4-5 “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Mat 27:46 “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? [quoting Psa 22:1]”

Matt 12:40 “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth [belly of hell].”

Acts 2:27, 31 (which quotes Psa 16:10) “For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption ... 31He [David] seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.”

Rev 14:10 “The same [unsaved] shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.”

• I thirst - These two words on Cross “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” and “I Thirst” shows us the suffering of Christ under God’s wrath, the atoning work of Christ. We have to keep in mind that Jesus, at this point in history and at this point in time, is bearing the sins of His people. He has taken the sins of all His elect and now God is judging Him. The Father is pouring out His wrath upon the Son, and Jesus is going through the equivalent of an eternity in Hell as we see in Isa 53:10-12. In the parable of rich man and Lazarus, the rich man is cast into Hell and what does the rich man desire? What is the one thing that he requests from Abraham (typifying God)? We can see that the rich man desires just the tip of the beggar’s finger dipped in water, a little bit of hope, a little tiny bit of mercy, to cool the tongue! We know that God has “judgment without mercy” when God casts a sinner into Hell. God’s Mercy is available only before we die. Lord Jesus Christ has taken the sins of His people upon Himself, so He stands as a sinner in the sight of God before the Father, guilty. God forsook him. The language of thirsting has to do with desiring salvation or deliverance from God, as we see in Psa 42:1-2, thirsting after God’s Righteousness and God’s Mercy. We know that God develops this thirst in His people and that He will lead His people to the “still waters”. He will lead His people to that place where they can quench their thirst and where they will drink of the truth of the Word of God; they will hear the Gospel and become saved (Matt 5:6). God frequently used the word “water” to typify the Holy Spirit and the Gospel (Eze 36:25-27, John 3:5, John 4:13-14, John 7:37-39, Eph 5:25-27, Rev 22:17). John 7:37-38 acknowledges this same truth: “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water”. Rev 21:6 further maintains, “And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely”. Lord Jesus Christ who is the “living water” had to “thirst” for you and I so we never have to “thirst” again, and have everlasting life, as seen in Rev 7:16-17.

John 19:28 “After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.”

Psa 69:21 “They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.”

Isa 53:10-12 “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 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.”

Luke 16:23-24 “And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.”

Psa 42:1-2 “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?”

Matt 5:6 “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

John 4:13-14 “Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Revelation 7:14-17 “And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 16They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 17For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”

• It is finished - Isa 63:1-5 acknowledges that only the Lord Jesus, a lamb without blemish and without spot, was qualified to atone for the sins of His people. Lord Jesus mission is to do the Work of His Father as he declares in John 4:34. The salvation of all true believers was completed before Christ voluntarily died, when He uttered the majestic words, “it is finished”, and yielded up His spirit to His Father (John 19:30). What had been “finished” was the Atonement for the sins of God’s elect – a crucial element of their salvation. No mere human could pay the enormous price of the sins of those whom Christ came to save. Only a perfect Being – Jesus Christ, Who was fully God and fully man – could pay the infinite price required by God’s justice for sin. Only he can drink of the cup of God’s wrath reserved for you and I. Only God could become laden with sin – not His own, of course – for His people, and only He could successfully atone for the sins of all the believers. We read in 1 Pet 1:18-20 that the Lord Jesus Christ offered his soul, or life, as payment for the sins of every child of God – even before He created this universe. Our only hope for salvation is in the finished work of Christ. Christ Did All the Work of Salvation. What was the “work of faith”, or rather, “the work of Christ” that He so faithfully performed? The “travail”, or “work” in Isa 53:11, that Christ had to endure was eternal damnation, which the Bible calls the “second death – death of body and soul in hell”.

Rev 21:8 “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

1 Pet 1:18-20 “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world: but was manifest in these last times for you.”

John 4:34 “Jesus saith unto them, My meat [food] is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.”

John 6:37-40 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

Luke 24:44-46 “And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. 45Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, 46And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:”

Isa 53:11 “He [referring to the Father] shall see of the travail [or work] of his [Christ’s] soul, and shall be satisfied: by his [Christ’s] knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he [Christ] shall bear their iniquities.”

John 19:30 “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”

• Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit - We read in Luke 23:46 that Jesus cried with a loud voice, and said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit”. God the Father had promised Christ that His soul would not be left in Hell, but that He would be raised from the dead. Proof that the penalty was paid in full, is that Christ left His body and in His spirit essence went to be with His heavenly father. There was no longer any payment for sins being made. It was also proof that His soul had not been left in hell, that is, under the wrath of God. When His body was put in the grave, it did not see corruption because the penalty had been fully paid. The big proof and final evidence that the penalty for our sins was fully paid, is the fact that He rose again on Sunday morning. Christ had completely endured the wrath of God for us. David, an ancestor of Christ, lived about one thousand years earlier, and he had prophesied that Christ would be successful in paying for our sins and that He would be raised up and sit on the throne. In Eph 1:17-22, God says Christ experienced the resurrection, ascended up into heaven, sat down at the right hand of God, and He has been given authority over everything in this age and in the age to come. This passage indicates that all of God’s promises concerning what Christ was required to do to be our Savior, have been faithfully fulfilled. We can absolutely depend upon the fact that God’s salvation program will be carried out with meticulous accuracy. To summarize about the seven words on the cross, first and second words are reflecting the forgiveness of sins, repentance and eternal inheritance, third word is reflecting the care for His people – the Church, fourth and fifth words are reflecting the atonement work – Christ enduring the eternal wrath of God, sixth and seventh words are reflecting the successful atonement.

Acts 2:28-32 “Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.”

Eph 1:17-22 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, 20Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, 21Far 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: 22And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,”

Php 2:6-11 “Who [Christ Jesus], being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”