3:21a
the power that enables Him: This means the ability to be strong and to do great things. The power that Christ has makes it possible for him to take control of everything.
subject all things to Himself: This refers to taking control of all things.
In some languages it will not be possible to talk about controlling or ruling things. If this is true in your language, you could translate this “take control of all people/beings.”
Some other possible translations are:
make everything be under his authority
-or-
cause everything to happen as he commands
all things: That is, all that God has created. This could be translated as “heaven and earth” or “all the world.”
3:21b
transform: This means to change something from what it was into something different.
our lowly bodies: The phrase our lowly bodies refers to the bodies we now have, bodies get sick and die.
to be like His glorious body: When Christ changes these earthly bodies, they will become like his heavenly body—the sort of body Christ had after God raised him from the dead. God not only caused Christ’s body to live again but he made it a different sort of body (see 1 Corinthians 15:35–58), one that was no longer able to die.
His glorious body: This refers to the body Christ had after God raised him from the dead. Through this new body, God showed his power and his glory.
General Comment on 3:21
In some languages it may be helpful to reorder this verse so that 3:21b comes before 3:21a. One way to do this is:
He will change our weak, human bodies to be like his glorious body. He will do this by his power that makes him able to bring all things under his control.
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