1 Corinthians 15:25

1 Corinthians 15:25, in plain English

Jesus has to keep ruling and working until every opposition and enemy is completely overcome. His reign continues until the job is fully done.

Why it's here

You might think once Jesus rose and ascended, everything was settled. But Paul is saying that right now, Christ is actively reigning, subduing all resistance, making everything ready for that final moment.

Who's speaking

Paul

Where it sits in the story

This is drawn from Psalm 110, one of the most important passages in the New Testament. The Psalms described a king waiting until his enemies were defeated—and Paul applies that to Jesus's current work.

The scholarly reading

Christ must actively reign—subjugating all hostile forces—until even death itself is conquered and brought under His authority.

Language and setting

Paul quotes Psalm 110:1, the most frequently cited Old Testament passage in the New Testament (cited over 20 times across the four gospels and epistles). This psalm was understood messianically throughout early Christianity as describing the exalted Christ's session at God's right hand. The verb basileuo (to reign) emphasizes active rule, not passive position. Paul is insisting that Christ's exaltation is not ceremonial but dynamic — He actively subdues enemies.

Voice

Paul, grounding his argument in the Psalmist's vision of the messiah

Significance

The logic moves from Christ's resurrection (past) through His present reign (ongoing subjugation of enemies) toward the consummation. This sits within the 'already/not yet' eschatology that defines the New Testament — Christ has won the decisive victory, but its full manifestation awaits.

23But each in his own turn: Christ the firstfruits; then at His coming, those who belong to Him.

24Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power.

25For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

26The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

27For “God has put everything under His feet.” Now when it says that everything has been put under Him, this clearly does not include the One who put everything under Him.

Read all of 1 Corinthians 15 — If Christ has not been raised, Paul says, everything falls apart. But He has — and that changes everything.