The ROAD to RIGHTEOUSNESS: Our VILE bodies

Philippians 3:21

King James Version

21 Who shall change our vile body,

that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body,

according to the working whereby he is able

even to subdue all things unto himself.

This is the third part of the "citizenship of heaven" series.

Our flesh is not acceptable to GOD.

We are all steeped in sin.

Only through JESUS can we be made whole.

But first, what does "vile" mean?

Dictionaries define it as abhorrent, contemptible, extremely unpleasant, wicked, of little worth of value.

Here are the various Bible translations:

Philippians 3:21

American Standard Version

21 who shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working whereby he is able even to subject all things unto himself.

Philippians 3:21

Amplified Bible

21 who, by exerting that power which enables Him even to subject everything to Himself, will [not only] transform [but completely refashion] our earthly bodies so that they will be like His glorious resurrected body.

Philippians 3:21

Christian Standard Bible

21 He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject everything to himself.

Philippians 3:21

Complete Jewish Bible

21 He will change the bodies we have in this humble state and make them like his glorious body, using the power which enables him to bring everything under his control.

Philippians 3:21

Contemporary English Version

21 has power over everything, and he will make these poor bodies of ours like his own glorious body.

Philippians 3:21

Darby Translation

21 who shall transform our body of humiliation into conformity to his body of glory, according to the working of [the] power which he has even to subdue all things to himself.

Philippians 3:21

Disciples’ Literal New Testament

21 Who will transform the body of our lowliness[a] so as to be similar-in-form[b] to the body of His glory, according-to the working that enables Him also to subject all things to Himself.

Philippians 3:21

Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

21 Who will reform the body of our lowness, made like to the body of his glory, according to the operation whereby also he is able to subdue all things unto himself.

Philippians 3:21

English Standard Version

21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 3:21

Good News Translation

21 He will change our weak mortal bodies and make them like his own glorious body, using that power by which he is able to bring all things under his rule.

Philippians 3:21

International Children’s Bible

21 He will change our humble bodies and make them like his own glorious body. Christ can do this by his power. With that power he is able to rule all things.

Philippians 3:21

International Standard Version

21 He will change our unassuming bodies and make them like his glorious body through the power that enables him to bring everything under his authority.

Philippians 3:21

J.B. Phillips New Testament

17-21 Let me be your example here, my brothers: let my example be the standard by which you can tell who are the genuine Christians among those about you. For there are many, of whom I have told you before and tell you again now, even with tears, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ. These men are heading for utter destruction—their god is their own appetite, their pride is in what they should be ashamed of, and this world is the limit of their horizon. But we are citizens of Heaven; our outlook goes beyond this world to the hopeful expectation of the saviour who will come from Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will re-make these wretched bodies of ours to resemble his own glorious body, by that power of his which makes him the master of everything that is.

Philippians 3:21

Lexham English Bible

21 who will transform our humble body to be conformed to his glorious body, in accordance with the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 3:21

Living Bible

21 When he comes back, he will take these dying bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same mighty power that he will use to conquer all else everywhere.

Philippians 3:21

The Message

20-21 But there’s far more to life for us. We’re citizens of high heaven! We’re waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He’ll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him.

Philippians 3:21

New American Standard Bible

21 who will transform the body of our lowly condition into conformity with [a]His glorious body, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

Philippians 3:21

New American Standard Bible 1995

21 who will transform [a]the body of our humble state into conformity with [b]the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

Philippians 3:21

New English Translation

21 who will transform these humble bodies of ours[a] into the likeness of his glorious body by means of that power by which he is able to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 3:21

New International Version

21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Philippians 3:21

New Life Version

21 He will change these bodies of ours of the earth and make them new. He will make them like His body of shining-greatness. He has the power to do this because He can make all things obey Him.

Philippians 3:21

New Living Translation

21 He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.

Philippians 3:21

New Testament for Everyone

21 Our present body is a shabby old thing, but he’s going to transform it so that it’s just like his glorious body. And he’s going to do this by the power which makes him able to bring everything into line under his authority.

Kehillah in Philippi 3:21

Orthodox Jewish Bible

21 Who will transfigure the basar of our humiliation into the demut of the mode of being of the guf kavod of Moshiach, according to the pe’ulah (action, work—1:6; 2:13) of his ko’ach (power) [Ro 8:29;1C 15:43 53], even to the subjecting of all things to himself [1C 15:28]. T.N. The joyous tone of this letter is miraculous, given the fact that Rav Sha’ul is, as he is writing it, in danger of capital punishment by decapitation at anytime and without warning. But Sha’ul selflessly thinks about two quarreling women and the danger their quarrel poses to the kehillah in Philippi. He seems to have been leading up to this statement in 4:2: “I appeal to Euodias and I appeal to Syntyche, think the same thing in Adoneinu.” ]

Philippians 3:21

Revised Geneva Translation

21 He shall transform our humiliated body into a body conformed to His glory, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Philippians 3:21

Tree of Life Version

21 He will transform this humble body of ours

into the likeness of His glorious body,

through the power that enables Him

even to put all things in subjection to Himself.

Philippians 3:21

The Voice

21 transform these humble, earthly bodies into the form of His glorious body by the same power that brings all things under His control.

Philippians 3:21

Worldwide English (New Testament)

21 He will change our body which was made for this world. He will make it like his own wonderful body. He will do this by his power to make all things obey him.

Philippians 3:21

Wycliffe Bible

21 which shall reform the body of our meekness, that is made like to the body of his clearness, by the working by which he may also make all things subject to him. [which shall reform the body of our meekness, configured, or made like, to the body of his clearness, after the working by which he may also make all things subject to him.]

In SUMMARY, "our vile bodies" refer to:

the body of our humiliation

our earthly bodies

the body of our humble condition

the bodies we have in this humble state

these poor bodies of ours

our body of humiliation

the body of our lowliness

the body of our lownes

our lowly body

our weak mortal bodies

our humble bodies