text: While the author of the poem did believe that Jesus existed in heaven before his physical incarnation, there is some debate about whether he was believed to be equal to God the Father prior to his death and resurrection. This largely depends on how the Greek word harpagmon (, accusative form of ) is translated in verse 6 ("Something to be grasped after / exploited"). If harpagmon is rendered as "something to be exploited," as it is in many Christian Bible translations, then the implication is that Christ was already equal to God prior to his incarnation. But Bart Ehrman and others have argued that the correct translation is in fact "something to be grasped after," implying that Jesus was not equal to God before his resurrection. Outside of this passage, harpagmon and related words were almost always used to refer to something that a person doesn't yet possess but tries to acquire.
  It is widely agreed by interpreters, however, that the Christ poem depicts Jesus as equal to God after his resurrection. This is because the last two stanzas quote Isaiah 45:22–23: ("Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess"), which in the original context clearly refers to God the Father. Some scholars argue that Philippians 2:6–11 identifies Jesus with God from his pre-existence on the basis that allusions to Isaiah 45:22–23 are present all throughout the poem.
  Outline
  I. Preface (1:1–11)