Philippians 2:10

That in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth.

In the name of Jesus ... It is wrong to read this "at the name of Jesus," giving rise to the superstitious practice of genuflecting at every mention of the name "Jesus." "In the name of" means "by the authority of," and one thing in view here is that prayers shall be universally offered in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Barclay has a precious passage on the term "Lord," thus:

This great title by which Jesus came to be known in the early church was [@kurios]: (1) It began by meaning master or owner. (2) It became the official title of the Roman emperors; (3) it became the title of the heathen gods; and (4) it was the title used to translate the sacred four-letter unpronounceable name of God in the Old Testament. So then when Jesus was called [@Kurios] (Lord), it meant he was the Master and Owner of Life, the King of kings, the true Lord in a way which heathen gods could never be; he was nothing less than Divine.[34]

As to the meaning of things in heaven ... earth ... under the earth, etc., such actions as knees bending and tongues confessing are universally associated with human beings. "Therefore, unless it can be proved that these words are highly poetical, the view which refers these designations to persons (and not things) deserves the preference."[35] It is also possible that MacKnight's understanding this as a reference to "angels, men and devils" could be correct.[36] However construed, the words speak of the absolute and total supremacy of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[34] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 39.

[35] William Hendriksen, op. cit., p. 115.

[36] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 429.