The Lord’s Prayer in the Bible (Matthew 6:9-13)

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Whether it’s during our quiet time, bible study group, or during the Sunday service, we all encounter the Lord’s Prayer in the Bible. Some Christians even know and memorize it by heart! Also, it is the most widely known and used prayer in many Christian denominations. Often called the Lord’s prayer, Jesus gave it to his disciples as a model prayer for them to pray. It is a pattern that we can imitate and duplicate as we pray to God.

However, how well do we understand the Lord’s prayer in the Bible? Some may probably take this prayer for granted, saying this without fully understanding the context. On the other hand, some people are having a hard time understanding this prayer. Yet, this prayer might indeed be slightly hard for people to comprehend. So, here’s an in-depth analysis we should know for us to fully grasp the power and the significance of this prayer.

Understanding The Lord’s Prayer In The Bible 

Also called as Our Father or Oratio Dominica or Pater Noster in Latin, the Lord’s prayer is a perfect model prayer Jesus historically taught to his disciples. It appears two times in the New Testament. First, the shorter version is in Luke 11:2-4. While the longer length is in Matthew 6:9-13, part of the Sermon of the Mount.

Luke 11:2-4  And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”

Matthew 6:9-13  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

This prayer resembles other prayers that came from the Jewish matrix in Jesus’ era. The format includes praise, petition, and a yearning for the coming kingdom of God. These are the three common elements of Jewish prayers. The Lord’s prayer in the Bible consists of an introductory address and seven petitions. 

Importance Of The Lord’s Prayer In The Bible

Before we proceed with the analysis of the Lord’s prayer in the Bible, you’re probably wondering, why Jesus gave this example of prayer to his disciples.

Praying is important for us to grow in our faith and it strengthens our relationship with God. It is a great time for us to communicate with Him and surrender all our requests and worries. We can also thank Him for all the blessings we have and will receive. Prayer gives us time to see his grace and goodness even more. It allows us to see and feel God as our Father.

Jesus Teaches Us About  Prayer 

Some of us probably build a mindset that our prayers must be full of words to be effective. But what’s the sense of having a long prayer when it doesn’t actually make sense and not even heartfelt? It defeats the purpose of prayer. Jesus said that we should keep our prayers simple. God will listen to us no matter if our prayers are long or short. Sometimes, we don’t even know what to say in our prayers, and that’s okay with Him. Even if we don’t know the right words, He still knows what we mean because that’s God’s nature. He knows us even more than we know ourselves.

Also, before Jesus gave the Lord’s prayer in the Bible, he gave a warning about self-righteousness, especially to the religious leaders (Matthew 6:5-6). Some people want to be seen as holy, and public prayer was one way to get attention. However, Jesus saw through their self-righteous acts. So, he taught that the essence of prayer is not public style, but a private communion with God. Yes, there’s a place for public prayer. But, to pray only where others will notice you indicate that your real audience is not God.

Applying Prayer in Our Daily Life 

Does this mean that we shouldn’t pray in public? No. The Gospels have recorded Jesus praying both privately (Matthew 14:23) and publicly (Matthew 14:18-19). However, the point wasn’t a choice between a public and private prayer, but between heartfelt and hypocritical prayer. As we pray in public, let’s focus on addressing god, not on how we’re coming across to others. Aside from that, repeating the same words over and over again like a magic incantation will not ensure that God will hear your prayer. Though it is also not wrong to come before God to ask him with the same requests repeatedly. Jesus encourages persistent prayers (Colossians 4:2 – 6). He condemns the shallow repetition of words that are offered without a sincere heart. Remember, we can never pray too much when our prayers are sincere and honest.

So, before we start to pray, make sure we mean what we utter in our prayers. And this is the reason why the Lord’s prayer in the Bible is important in our everyday lives. 

Breaking Down The Lord’s Prayer In The Bible

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, he gave him the Lord’s prayer as the format. It became a prayer that most of us recite throughout our spiritual journey. This prayer is a short prayer that we can utter within fifteen to twenty seconds. Yet, it is a powerful and meaningful prayer. It is composed of seven petitions, which includes three thy-petitions followed by four us-petitions. So, the three thy-petitions include thy name, thy kingdom, and thy will. Meanwhile, the four us-petitions include give us, forgive us, lead us not into temptation, and deliver us. Hence, here’s an in-depth interpretation of the parts of the Lord’s prayer in the Bible for us to understand its significance.

Our Father in Heaven

Starting with the phrase ‘Our Father in heaven’ shows that our God is not only holy and majestic, but he’s also personal and loving. He is all-knowing and all-powerful, yet it is not only us listing our needs to him. It is a conversation between a father and his child. God likes it when we address Him, Father. He wants us to talk to him like how we talk to our own father. Remember, we are God’s children. 

Aside from that, see how Jesus taught the disciples not to pray ‘My Father’, but rather he stressed us to say ‘Our Father’. According to Scripture scholar, John Meier, we don’t live as isolated individuals. And this reminds us that we are God’s sons and daughters together in Christ. We all experience God’s fatherhood as members of the church. Hence, we must recognize all those around us as children of God and treat them accordingly. 

Hallowed be Thy Name 

Next is “hallowed be thy name” or “hallowed be your name”, is the first petition of the Lord’s prayer in the Bible. Hallowed is another word for holy and sanctified. It is a statement of praise and commitment for us to honor God’s holy name. Thus, everyone must recognize His name throughout the world as being the ultimate holy power. We should know Him as the righteous, powerful, and our one true God. Even though he likes us to call him our Father, He is still God. And we can honor God’s name by being careful to use it respectfully. If we use his name lightly, then we aren’t remembering God’s holiness. 

Thy Kingdom Come

God’s kingdom was announced in the covenant with Abraham (Matthew 8:11; Luke 13:28) and is present in Jesus Christ’s reign and in every believers’ hearts. The book of Revelation (21:1) states that the completion of God’s kingdom will happen when all evil is destroyed, and God establishes the new heaven and earth. 

The Scripture says that in heaven, there’s only goodness, honesty, and love for one another. There will be no more crying, hunger, or hurt, and God will live with us. So, the part ‘Thy Kingdom come’ or ‘Your kingdom come’ in the Lord’s prayer in the Bible has two meanings. First, we ask for God’s kingdom to surround us in our everyday life. Second, we pray for the fulfillment of God’s promise that he will return at the end of time and grant us eternal life. 

Thy Will be Done, on Earth as it is in Heaven…

This third petition in the Lord’s prayer in the Bible asks God about us conforming to his divine will. When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, one of the most powerful prayers, he also used the words “thy will be done”. So, when we pray, we must commit ourselves to follow Jesus by taking up our cross. We aren’t resigning ourselves to fate, but praying that we will accomplish God’s purpose in this world as well as the next. And how does God accomplish his will on earth? He does it largely through all people willing to obey him. This part of the prayer allows us to offer ourselves as doers of God’s will. With this, we must ask him to guide, lead, and give us the means to accomplish his purposes. 

The petition also reminds us that we should pray that people would live in peace and love one another, as it is in Heaven. We must live the way God wants us to live every day and do the things that will please Him, even if they’re difficult things.

Give us This Day, Our Daily Bread… 

In the fourth petition, as we utter the words ‘Give us this day, our daily bread’, we express our trust in our heavenly Father. We acknowledge that God is our ultimate provider and sustainer. It refers to our earthly nourishment that is necessary to physically sustain throughout the day. Aside from physical nourishment, we also need to fill our spirit with the Bread of Life or God’s word for our spiritual nourishment. Hence, we must trust God daily to provide what He knows we need. Let’s remember that God’s provision is daily, not all at once. We cannot store up and then simply cut off our communication with him. 

Forgive us Our Trespasses, as We Forgive Those who Trespass Against Us…

When we commit sins or fall short before God, it is easy for us to ask for his forgiveness. But what about if other people hurt or commit sins to us? God’s infinite wisdom teaches us that for him to forgive us from our wrongdoings, we must learn to forgive first those who’ve hurt us. Forgiveness means that we are truly sorry for our wrongdoings.

The fifth petition of the Lord’s prayer in the Bible focuses on asking for God’s mercy and forgiveness. It is for the times we fell short of loving God and loving others. And his mercy and forgiveness can penetrate our hearts to the extent that we can forgive others who might hurt or offend us. Some people might hurt or offend us. Thus, we need to ask God to help us forgive them. If we forgive others, God will also forgive us. 

Lead Us Not into Temptation…

Temptation and sin often go hand in hand. Whenever we come face to face with temptation, it is difficult to resist. Sometimes, God allows temptation to test us. Hence, this part teaches us to sincerely pray for us to be delivered from these trying times and for deliverance from Satan and his deceit. All Christians struggle with temptation. Sometimes, it is so subtle to the point we don’t even realize that it is happening to us. Yet, God promised that he won’t allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear. So, we must ask God to help us recognize temptations and to give us the strength to overcome it.

But Deliver Us From Evil…

The devil will always try to tempt us and steer us away from the right path into the tone. Our spiritual enemy will try to remove us from God’s glory, his holiness, his kingdom, his Eucharist, and his pardon. Hence, this last part of the Lord’s prayer in the Bible is a reminder that no force of evil is more powerful than God. We can pray and ask for his protection against all evil because he will always shield us. In the Latin and English versions of “Our Father”, the prayer simply translates to be delivered from ‘evil’. While in the Greek translation, it prays for us to be delivered from the ‘Evil One.”

The Lord’s prayer in the Bible started by Jesus praising God then made his requests. So when we praise God first, it puts us in the right mindset to tell him about our needs. Instead of turning our prayer into a list of requests, it will become a meaningful conversation between a father and his child. This prayer focuses on three aspects of prayer, its content, our persistence, and God’s faithfulness. 

How Do Churches Use The Lord’s Prayer? 

The Lord’s Prayer or Our Father is a central Christian prayer from the New Testament as Jesus taught to his disciples. Hence, both Roman Catholics and Protestants can use this prayer. Even though their context and meaning of the Lord’s prayer are entirely the same, there are a few differences for both churches. 

One of the great examples of these differences is the ending. In the Roman Catholic Church, the prayer ends with “deliver us from evil”. While in the Protestant Church, it ends with “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.”. This doxology, a short formula of praise, in the Protestant version was probably added early in the Christian era as it occurs in some early manuscripts of the Gospels. This part is similar to the passage from 1 Chronicles and paean to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in Daniel. The doxology was interpreted as connected with the final petition, “Deliver us from evil”. 

Aside from that, it is translated to the English version of the prayer from “and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us” to “and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”. In a Catholic Mass, the people gather and pray ‘Our Father’. Then, the priest prays for the doxology, and those gathered respond with Amen, which also means ‘so be it’. 

A Heartfelt Prayer From Our Hearts

Praying is our greatest communication with God. It is not only about us telling all our needs and requests to him. But, it is a time where we can praise him for his faithfulness and trusting that he will provide for us. We can also improve our personal relationships and strengthen our faith in him. Though God doesn’t look at how long or what words we say in our prayer, the Lord’s prayer in the Bible serves as a model on how we can pray to God. Even though we memorize it word by word, it is still important that we understand the context behind this powerful prayer. God always listens to our prayers as long as it is heartfelt. When we pray, we must think of all the things we should be thankful for and how God has given us everything we need.

Jesus answered the apostles’ question on how to pray. The Lord’s prayer in the Bible teaches us the goal of prayer, means of prayer, and all the obstacles to overcome. As we read and pray this prayer, we should remember the meaning and importance of this. Let this be an encouragement to us to pray as many times as we can. With this, we can learn to put our trust in the hands of God. This conversation between us and God makes us remember how he loves us unconditionally and how he deeply cares for us. Even if all the churches have different approaches with the prayer, the significance is still the same. Hence, as we pray the Lord’s prayer, let’s say this with a sincere heart.