Question:
Please explain 1 Cor. 15:25: “For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.”
Answer:
Who must reign? Who subjects the enemies? Under whose feet? In Ps. 110:1, David says: “The LORD [Jehovah] said unto my Lord [Adonai], Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” That was fulfilled when Jesus ascended on high after His resurrection and took His place at the Father’s right hand as priest-king (Eph. 1:20, 21). So Jesus declares in His message through John, “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.” (Rev. 3:21). While on the Father’s throne, Jesus reigns as priest-king (Heb. 8:1, 2; Zech. 6:12, 13). When His work as a priest ends, He will take His own throne and reign thereon forever (Dan. 7:13, 14; Matt. 25:31). To help the reader, we explain 1 Cor. 15:24-28, as follows: “Then cometh the end [of Christ’s reign as priest in the Gospel dispensation of grace, Matt. 24:14; 28:18, 20], when he [Christ] shall [as king-priest] have delivered up the kingdom [of grace] to God, even the Father; when he [the Father] shall have put down all rule and all authority and power [according to His promise in Ps. 110:1]. For he [Christ] must reign [on His Father’s throne, Zech. 6:12, 13], till he [the Father] hath put all enemies under his [Christ’s] feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he [the Father] hath put all things under his [Christ’s] feet. But when he [the Father] saith all things are put under him [Christ], it is manifest that he [the Father] is excepted, which did put all things under him [Christ]. And when all things shall be subdued unto him [Christ], then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him [the Father] that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.”
When studied in the light of Christ’s priesthood, the subject becomes clear, providing the reader with a reassuring sense of understanding.
