Philippians 2:9
Philippians 2:99Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
JWs read as God rewarding Jesus' obedience by exalting him to the highest position under Jehovah — confirming that Jesus is subordinate and his exaltation is granted, not inherent. The "name above every name" is understood as a title of office, not a claim to deity.
Paul writes that "God exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him the name that is above every other name." The hymn's structure is decisive: establishes that Jesus was "in God's form" and had "equality with God" before the incarnation — the NWT restructures this verse to deny pre-existing equality, but the Greek morphē theou ("form of God") describes essential nature, not external appearance. The exaltation is a return to glory, not a first-time promotion. Verses 10–11 quote , where Jehovah says "to me every knee will bow." By the Watchtower's own rule for restoring "Jehovah" in the NT, kyrios here should be "Jehovah" — but doing so would read "Jesus Christ is Jehovah," so the NWT retains "Lord." Paul deliberately reformulates the Jewish Shema () in to include Jesus within the divine identity.
Set beside ("his name alone is unreachably high") and ("I give my glory to no one else"), the gift of "the name above every name" can only mean a share in the glory that belongs to Jehovah alone. extends it to "every name that is named, not only in this system of things but also in that to come."
The Greek reads to onoma to hyper pan onoma, "the name above every name" (BSB "the name above all names"). The NWT adds "other" ("above every other name"). The addition is not in the text, and it lets a reader assume an unstated exception for the Father's name, the same effect as the added "other" in .