CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
Feb. 27, 2014 [Ready for MM]
Author:
Dr. Charles Goodwin
President of The Original Word Ministries, Inc.
PURPOSE OF THIS DOCUMENT -
This document supports the orthodox view of Phil. 2:6-8. In this
article we will examine what this passage means from the perspective of New Testament Greek
(the language God chose to use in recording the New Testament).
(KJV) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery
to be equal with God:(7)But made himself of no reputation,
and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in
the likeness of men:(8)And being found in fashion as a man,
he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even
the death of the cross.
HOW THE DOCUMENT IS PRESENTED - For purposes of clarification, this document is presented in
"Benchmarks" (BM) for easy reference.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 1. Regarding "The Person of Christ, His Deity and His Humanity"
1
A. Some people claim Jesus emptied himself (or completely set aside his
Godhood powers) at birth and never exercised them again during his life on
earth (see: Mel Montgomery's document, p. 1).
1A
1. What is a result of believing that Jesus "Emptied Himself of Divine
Attributes at Birth?" If this is true, one would be forced to believe that
Jesus operated in his earthly life exclusively as a man under the
anointing of the Holy Spirit (God/MAN). On the flip side, these
advocates claim Jesus never ministered or acted in a matter that
allowed his divine nature (GOD/man) to be the dominating factor.
1A
2. Some individuals holding this view, take the position that today's
Christians, having the same Holy Spirit that accompanied Jesus, can or
should be able to do many of the marvelous works as exemplified by Christ.
1
CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
1B
2. The Orthodox View - The irreducible essentials of the Orthodox view are: (1)
That Jesus Christ is one Person, . . . or hypostasis (Ed. - this means, Jesus was One
Person in his being), and (2) that He had a fully divine nature and a fully human
nature, the natures not mixed or confused, not divided or separated (James Oliver
Buswell, Jr., A Systematic Theology of the Christian Religion, One Volume in Two, [Grand Rapids:
Zondervan Publishing House, 1963], 2:52f).
1B
1. In the following discussion a distinction between a translation and a
transliteration is made. What is the difference between a translation
and a transliteration?
In this document to translate means to supply the English word or
phrase which means the same thing (or a similar meaning) as the Greek
word being translated. For example, the Greek word (Strong's #26) avga,ph
is translated as "love" in English.
To transliterate means to take the Greek alphabetical character and
replace it with the equivalent English alphabetical character. For
example the Greek alphabetical character "a" (alpha) is represented in
an English transliteration as our alphabetical character "a." A Greek "b"
(beta) is transliterated as the English "b," etc. Therefore the Greek word
avga,ph is transliterated into English as agape.
The following definition is presented in this order. (1) Strong's number,
(2) the word written in Greek, and (3) the transliteration of the Greek
word. (4) A suggested pronunciation.
(1) Strong's #5287 (2) Greek u.po,stasij (3) transliteration hypostasis
(4) pronounced - hu-POS-ta-sis)
(u.po,stasij) This Greek word means: to exist, to be, to subsist
(Perschbacher, The New Analytical Greek Lexicon), p. 422).
1B
2. This is a compound word composed of the preposition hypo,
"meaning under," and the verb histemi, which means "to stand, set,
place, or to stand fast, be permanent."
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
1B
3. One Interlinear (The New International Version INTERLINEAR GREEK-ENGLISH
NEW TESTAMENT [Grands Rapids: Zondervan, 1976) translates the first portion
of Philippians 2:6 as: "who in [the] form of God subsisting . . . "
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 2. Background - The Orthodox View
2
A. The word "hypostasis," as used by Buswell (BM 1B), is grammatically tagged in the
Interlinear that follows. It is translated in the Interlinear as "existing."
2
B. A difficult concept for some to accept is: Jesus is one Person and as that Person he is
permanently "fully divine," and at the same time, he is (in his incarnation) "fully human." This
statement is not a contradiction. A contradiction would be like claiming Jesus is fully divine and
not fully divine at the same time in the same relationship. A contradiction like this would claim
that Jesus is "A" (fully divine) and "non-A" ("not" fully divine) at the same time in the same
relationship. That would be a contradiction.
2
C. Different to that claim, we are claiming that Jesus is "A" + "B." He is fully divine in "A" (the
God nature) and at the same time, he is fully human in "B" (his human nature). This is not a
contradiction, although it is a mystery ("mystery" in this use can be defined as a theologically religious truth
known to man only through divine revelation and accepted on one's "trust" in God) .
BM 3. Examining the verses of Phil. 2:6-8
3
A. We will employ three steps in examining these verses. (1) Our first step is to
present the translations of Phil. 2:6-8 from three popularly used English
translations. (2) This will be followed by an Interlinear translation (with some
words having grammatical tags) by this author. (3) Each verse will be discussed
as an individual unit.
Philippians 2:6-8
1. Step #1 KJV, NASB and NIV Translations
(KJV) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be
equal with God:(7)But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him
the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:(8)And
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
(NASB) who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with Gad a thing to be grasped, (7)but
emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and being made in the likeness of men. (8)And being found in
appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
(NIV) Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with
God something to be grasped, (7)but made himself nothing, taking the
very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (8)And being
found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient
to death--even death on a cross!
Step #2 Charles Goodwin's Interlinear with gram tags on selected Greek words.
#3444 NDSF
o]j
Philippians 2:6
evn morfh/|
#5225 Pre Act Ptc NSM
qeou/
u`pa,rcwn
who in [the] form of God
#2233Aor Dep Ind 3S
h`gh,sato
1
deemed [it]
#1510 Pre Act Inf
to.
ei=nai
the
4
to be
existing
ouvc
2
not
a`rpagmo.n
3
something to hold to
#2470 Adj-NSPN
i;sa
qew/|(
on an equality with God
(A personal translation by Charles Goodwin - [words with a grammatical tag are in bold italics].
Phil. 2: 6) Who, in [the] form of God continuously existing, deemed [it] not
something to hold onto, the [that is] to be on an equality (basis) with God.
Step #3 verses being discussed as an individual unit
3C
1. The first word grammatically identified in the Greek text is morfh/| (morphe).
The noun (Strong's #3444) is translated "form" in my Interlinear rendition, as well
as in the KJV and NASB translations. The NIV translates the word differently. It
translates morphe as "nature." This word means to exist. Regardless as to the
translation this word is a crucial term in verses 6 and 7.
3C
2. This word (form) is a crucial term in the above passage. According to the
scholars, Drs. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, this word stresses the inner
essence of reality of that with which it is associated (Walvoord and Zuck, The Bible
Knowledge Commentary "New Testament" [Wheaton, IL: SP Publications, 1983] p. 654).
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
3C2
A. Another outstanding scholar, J. B. Lightfoot, after a detailed study
of morphe in Greek philosophy, in Philo, and in the New Testament,
concluded that it connotes that which is intrinsic and essential to the
thing (J. B. Lightfoot, St Paul's Epistle to the Philippians [London: Macmillan, 1913],
127-33).
3C2
B. The outstanding Presbyterian theologian in days of yore, B. B.
Warfield, added, "'morphe' applies not to the external accidents but the
essential attributes. In other words, it is used in a sense substantially
the same which it bears in Greek philosophy . . . "
3C2
C. Buswell writes, "Thus when the Apostle Paul speaks of the
eternal Christ as remaining in the form of God, the words
specifically mean that Christ retained all the essential attributes of
deity when he took to himself all the essential attributes of
humanity" (Buswell, Systematic Theology, 2:23).
3C2
D. Thus, here it means that our Lord in his pre-incarnate state
possessed essential Deity, and that condition never ceased to exist. If
Christ were God, and if God is an immutable entity (being immutable
means God cannot and does not change in his essence), he was still God
while on earth and in a physical body (that is, he was GOD/man) in his
essence or being. At the same time, he was all man (God/MAN) in his
essence. To put it into simple, easy to understand words, Christ did not
stop being God when He took on humanity.
3C
3. Notice the way this word (morphe) is used in the story of Christ's appearing
to two of his unnamed disciples after his resurrection. This event is recorded in
the Gospel of Mark.
Mark 16:12 (ESV) After these things he appeared in
another (#2087 hetera) form (#3444 morphe) to two of
them, as they were walking into the country.
In this passage, Mark used the word translated into English as
"another." There are two Greek words that are translated
another. One means "another of the same kind," and the second
word means "another of a different kind." The word the Holy
Spirit chose to use in this context is hetera (another of a different
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
kind); meaning Jesus appeared to these two disciples in a
"different" kind of form.
It may have been a different kind of form, but he was still Deity!
(For emphasis - one attribute of God is that He is immutable, that
is, he doesn't change in His being.)
How should we interpret this? This could mean that Jesus took on
a form different from that in which he appeared to Mary
Magdalene (Mark 16:9) or, more likely, that he appeared to them
in a form different from that in which they had previously
recognized him as Jesus (Ibid.).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 4. The second word in the Interlinear with a grammatical identification is Strong's #5225
u`pa,rcwn (transliterated as hyparchon). In the Greek text the grammatical form is written as a
present tense active voice "participle."
4
A. The dictionary (lexical) meaning of the word is [means] to exist; to be, or
subsist (Perschbacher, Analytical Greek Lexicon).
4A
1. The Greek participle is a hybrid. It has characteristics of both a verb
and an adjective.
4A
2. We are interested in the verbal aspect of this word. The word,
being in the present tense, indicates an on-going or continuous action.
In this context it shows that Christ was continuingly existing in the form
of God. At this point we could translate - [Jesus] "who in the form of
God was continuously existing . . . " or, [Jesus] "who was continuously
existing in the form of God . . ."
4
B. This word (#5225 u`pa,rcwn - hyperchon) is highlighted in Phil. 2:6. It concerns the
deity of Christ. The phrase "being in the form of God," carries with it two facts.
Fact number one: it speaks to Christ's Godhood previous to his incarnation. Fact
number two: it speaks of the continuation of his Godhood at and after the event
of his birth (James Strong, The New Strong's Expanded Dictionary of Bible Words "Greek
Dictionary" [Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001], 1425).
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 5. The third word in the Interlinear with a grammatical identification is Strong's #2233,
h`gh,sato (transliterated as hegesato). The word means: to think, consider, count, esteem,
regard, etc. In this text the word is written as an aorist tense-deponent voice-indicative mood3rd person singular. In the Interlinear this word is translated as "deemed [it]."
3
A. An aorist tense (in the indicative mood) shows action as having occurred. It is
action presented simply as an event, neither picturing it as in progress, nor
affirming the existence of its results. Sometimes this kind of action is referred to
as punctiliar, point, or momentary action. For our text, the deponent voice is
interpreted as an active voice. The subject (Jesus) does the acting. Thus Jesus
(deemed [it]) not something to hold [on] to.
5
B. In the indicative mood, the aorist tense indicates the time of the action as
happening in the past. We identify the aorist (indicative mood) as a past tense.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 6. The fourth word in our interlinear is #1510 ei=nai(einai). Grammatically it is a present
tense active voice Infinitive.
6
A. In our interlinear we translate the infinitive as "to be."
6
B. The infinitive is a hybrid, that is, it has characteristics of both a verb and a
noun. Although in some of the infinitive's uses the noun force will be dominant,
in other examples the verbal aspect will be utmost. However, it is most
important to remember, that "both characteristics will always be present."
6B
1. The infinitive is not just a noun, it is not just a verb.
6B
2. It is both a noun and a verb at the same time!
C. In our interlinear rendition of Phil. 2:6, we have translated the infinitive as "to
be," thus emphasizing its verbal aspect.
6
There are other good interlinear translations that translate the infinitive in the
passage as equality (italicized to show it is being supplied by the translators).
7
CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
Obviously, these translators are placing the emphasis on the noun aspect of the
infinitive. One example is: John Schwandt and C. John Collins, The English-Greek
Reverse Interlinear New Testament (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2006 by Logos
Research Systems, Inc., p. 1026).
Philippians 2: 6 review is completed.
KJV & the Charles Goodwin Interlinear Translation
(KJV) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery
to be equal with God:
Phil. 2: 6 Who, in [the] form of God continuously existing, deemed it not
something to hold onto, the [that is], to be on an equality (basis) with God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BM 7.
Phil. 2:7 Interlinear Text
#2758 Aor Act Ind 3S
avlla. e.auto.n evke,nwsen morfh.n
but himself
emptied
2
#2983 2Aor Act Ptc NSM
dou,lou
3
[the] form of a slave
labw,n
evn o`moiw,mati avnqrw,pwn
1
in
taking,
likeness
of men
#1096 2Aor Dep Ptc NSM
geno,menoj\
kai.
sch,mati eu`reqei.j
w`j a;nqrwpoj
becoming:
and
in fashion being found as
a man
7
A. The first word for review is translated "emptied." It is the Greek word
evke,nwsen (#2758 ekenosen). The word means, in Phil. 2:7, to deprive a thing of its
proper functions (Analytical Greek Lexicon, 236). In application, when used with
e.auto.n ("himself") as it is in his verse, it means to divest one's self of one's
prerogatives (Ibid.).
7A
1. In what sense does Paul mean that Christ "emptied himself?" It
certainly doesn't mean that Christ gave up any of essential divine
attributes. (The form of God could not be given up without his ceasing
to be who and what he was.) This verb "emptied" is explained by the
participles which modify its subject. The participles, translated as
"taking" ("taking what?" the form of a slave) and "becoming"
("becoming what?" in likeness of men).
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
7A
2. The verb evke,nwsen (#2758 ekenosen) "emptied" is further explained
by the parallel clause in verse 8 ("he humbled himself").
7A
3. As so apply written by Buswell, "Jesus took to himself not only the
morphe (Ed. - "form"), the essential attributes of man, but he also took
the schema (Ed. - 'scheme' or 'plan') of humanity in order that he might
die upon the cross" [Hebrews 2:14] (Buswell, Theology, 2:24).
7A
4. If Paul had thought that Jesus in his self-emptying had deprived
himself of any of the essential divine attributes, he never could have
spoken of Jesus in the exalted terms which he constantly used. See for
example Paul's statement (Col 2:9) "For in him the whole fullness of
deity dwells bodily" (ESV). The emptying of himself may point to the
divesting of his self-interests as experienced in his pre-incarnate
manner of living, involving the radiation of divine glory from his being, it
does not mean "he ceased being God."
7A
5. It is my belief that the self-emptying permitted the addition of
humanity and did not involve in any way the subtraction of Deity or
canceling the use of the attributes of Deity. There was a change of form
but not of content of the Divine Being. As stated by Ryrie, "He did not
give up Deity or the use of those attributes; He added humanity (Charles
C. Ryrie, Basic Theology [Chicago: Moody Press, 1999] 301).
7
B. We have already looked at the two participles in 7A1 as regards to lexical
meaning. The aorist participles translated "taking" and "becoming" both point to
events that have happened. For emphasis, I repeat the participles translated as
"taking" ("taking what?" the form of a slave), and "becoming" ("becoming
what?" in likeness of men). Both participles point to actual events.
______________________________________________________________________________
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
BM 8.
Phil. 2:8 Interlinear Text
#5013 Aor Act Ind 3S
kai. sch,mati
eu.reqei.j
w.j a,nqrwpoj e.tapei,nwsen e.auto,n geno,menoj
and in fashion being found as
u.ph,kooj me,cri
obedient even to
qana,tou
death,
a man
he humbled
qhana,tou de.
2
death
1
yea
himself
becoming
staurou/
3
of a cross
8
A. He humbled himself and became a man, a true human being. The word "in
fashion" in the phrase "in fashion being found as a man," suggest similarity but
difference. Though his humanity was genuine, he was different, he was different
from all other humans in that he was sinless (Heb. 4:15).
8
B. In depriving himself of his pre-incarnate manner of living, Christ made clear
his complete awareness of all that redemption costs. Such self-deprivation is
described here in verse 8 as humbling of himself to becoming obedient even to
the point of death.
__________________________________________________________________
CONCLUSION
It seems to me, some believers blunt the point of this passage by missing its principal emphasis
as suggested in these three verses, by focusing on trying to determine what limitations Christ
experienced in his earthly state. To be sure, the GOD/man evidenced the prerogatives of being
deity. Some claim that the kenosis ("emptying") means the veiling of Christ's pre-incarnate
glory, which is true only in a relative sense (John 1:14, John 17:5).
John 1:14 (NIV) The Word became flesh and lived for a while
among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and
only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and
truth.
John 17:5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with
the glory I had with you before the world began.
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
Or some suggest it means the voluntary nonuse of some of his attributes of deity. This was true
on occasion but certainly not always throughout his life (John 1: 48, John 2:23-24, John 16:2930).
John 1:48 "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked. Jesus
answered, "I saw you under the fig tree before Philip
called you."
John 2:23-24 Now while they were in Jerusalem at the
Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was
doing and believed in his name. (24)But Jesus would not
entrust himself to them, for he knew all men.
John 16:29-30 Then Jesus disciples said, "Now you are
speaking clearly and without figures of speech. (30)Now we
can see that you know all things and that you do not even
need to have any one ask you questions. This makes us
believe that you came from God."
Neither did he only do his miracles always in the power of the Spirit, but sometimes in his own
power (Luke 22:49-51, John 18:4-6).
This happened when Jesus was arrested, during which time one of his followers
cut off the high priest's servant's right ear.
Luke 22:49-51 When Jesus' followers saw what was going to
happen, they said, "Lord, should we strike with our
swords?" (50)And one of them struck the servant of the high
priest, cutting off his right ear. (51)but Jesus answered,
"No more of this!" And he touched the man's ear and healed
him.
Another thing that happened at his arrest is related by John. It is another event
that happened at the arrest of Jesus.
John 18:4-6 Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to
him, went out and asked them, "Who is it you want?"
(5)"Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "I am he," Jesus
said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with
them.)(6)When Jesus said, "I am he," they drew back and
fell on the ground.
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CHARLES GOODWIN'S NOTES - Philippians 2:6-8
If we get our understanding of kenosis ("emptied") from Philippians 2, we should get our
definition of the concept there. And this passage does not discuss at all the question of how or
how much Christ's glory was veiled. Nor does it say anything about the use or restriction of
divine attributes. It does say that the emptying concerned becoming a man to be able to die.
Thus, in my opinion, the kenosis means leaving his pre-incarnate position and taking on a
servant-humanity (Ryrie, Basic Theology, 300-301). He truly was the GOD/man and the God/MAN!
The critical question is: Of what did Christ empty Himself?
Liberal theologians suggest Christ emptied himself of his Deity, but it is evident from his life and
ministry that He did not, for his Deity was displayed on numerous occasions (Enns, Moody
Handbook, 228).
I close with two points I hope will be remembered by those who read this document.
(1)"Christ merely surrendered the independent exercise of some of his relative
or transitive attributes (attributes such as omnipresence, etc.). He did not
surrender the absolute or immanent attributes in any sense; He always was
perfectly holy, just, merciful, truthful, and faithful" (see: Henry C. Thiessen, Lectures in
Systematic Theology, revised by Vernon D. Doerksen [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1979], 216-17).
(2) In his "emptying" of himself, it was not a subtraction of who He was, but an
addition. In Phil. 2:7-8, there are four phrases explaining the emptying: (a) taking
the form of a servant, and (b) being made in the likeness of men. And (c) being
found in appearance as a man, (d) He humbled himself by becoming obedient to
the point of death." As written by Enns, "The 'emptying' of Christ was taking on
an additional nature, a human nature with its limitations. His Deity was never
surrendered (Enns, Moody, 229).
Phil. 2:6-8 (KJV) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not
robbery to be equal with God:(7)But made himself of no reputation, and
took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of
men:(8)And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
(NIV) Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with
God something to be grasped, (7)but made himself nothing, taking the
very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (8)And being
found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient
to death--even death on a cross!
12