The powers that be

What's the meaning of the phrase 'Powers that be – The'?

The established government or authority.

What's the origin of the phrase 'Powers that be – The'?

This phrase derives from the Bible, Romans 13 – first appearing in print in English in Tyndale’s Bible, 1526:

13:1 1 Let every soule submit him selfe vnto the auctorite of ye hyer powers. For there is no power but of God.
13:2 The powers that be are ordeyned of God. Whosoever therfore resysteth power resisteth the ordinaunce of God. And they that resist shall receave to the selfe damnacio.

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Gary Martin

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