“Lord, Teach Us to Pray.” (The Lord’s Prayer)

Introduction

The Lord’s Prayer is provided in the Word of God as instructed by Jesus in two passages, Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4:

Matthew 6:9-13 reads, “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.“

While the “Lord’s Prayer”, as was presented by Jesus to His disciples, can be prayed verbatim by every believer at any time, and for any number of times (if it is prayed from the heart, by the Spirit, and not simply a “vain repetition”), it can also be viewed as a formulary, or a template, by which it teaches us about God, the believer’s humble relationship to Him (and our fellow man), and the petition for Salvation from sin to relieve us of His coming Judgment. Jesus specifically rebuked the heathen who use “vain repetitions” in their prayers in His preface to the “Lord’s prayer”, as we read in Matthew 6:7&8, “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen [do]: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. ¶Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.“

Similarly, we should also heed the two other related admonitions from Jesus in regards to prayer that we find just preceding the above one in:

Matthew 6:5 “¶And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites [are]: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.” and,
Matthew 6:6, “But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” and

We are also admonished indirectly with regards to petitioning in prayer for carnal purposes in the Book of James where we read in James 4:3, “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume [it] upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.“

Moreover, before proceeding with this exposition, we should also bear in mind what Jesus also said in John 14:13, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” and John 14:14, “If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do [it].” Whenever a believer prays, then he or she is in effect petitioning God the Father with Jesus Christ as his or her Intercessor and Mediator (Who is both the Kinsman Redeemer and High Priest) and is trusting entirely in Jesus’ work and merit, not their own. We know that Hebrews 4:14-16, “¶Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast [our] profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as [we are, yet] without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

“Our Father“

When Jesus prayed, He addressed God as His Father. Amazingly, God commands us to also address God as “Our Father.” Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 23:9, “And call no [man] your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.“

We do not fully understand such condescension on God’s part, but we do know that the Bible speaks of the Father as the giver of every good and perfect gift. We read in James 1:17: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”

The greatest gift of all, which is also the focus of the Lord’s Prayer, is the merciful gracious gift of Salvation. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.“

The Old Testament also has references to God as our Father. For example, Psalm 68:5, “A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.“

In the Bible, the fatherless (orphans) is a reference to the spiritually destitute, the people unsaved by nature. Every person who has ever lived or ever will live has by nature been estranged from God because of the sin of Adam (and therefore are conceived and born in sin). Spiritually, all human beings are destitute orphans, but God comes to us as a Father to the fatherless. God will be a Father to those who acknowledge their orphaned condition, their spiritual bankruptcy because of sin. As a result all believers are viewed as the children, begotten of God through regeneration by God’s Holy Spirit. Please see: “The Children of God.”

The Lord Jesus is also spoken of as the “everlasting Father” in Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.“

We read in Psalm 103:13, “Like as a father pitieth [his] children, [so] the LORD pitieth them that fear him.” God cares for His children, His Anointed.

**“Which art in heaven“**

God has revealed many things, but who God Is remains a mystery. Mankind by nature has always strived to have a “god” whom they can see, whether the sun, an idol, or a river. Even if they become identified with the Christian religion, many still cling to having all kinds of paraphernalia in their place of worship, because they want to see something tangible that they want to believe relates to God. Ultimately that is nothing more than a “god” that is either a creation of their own hands or their own minds.

When we become saved, our relationship to the True God is a relationship of faith. In faith we believe that which we cannot see as we read in Hebrews 11:1, “¶Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.“

We believe with fervency, abandonment, and trust. Some might say, “Well, we can see the Father in the Lord Jesus Christ.” Jesus said in John 14:9, “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” It is true that He is the express image of the Father, and together are One, but that does not tell the whole story. Jesus was on this earth to pay for our sins; He emptied Himself of His glory. He was not seen as the glorious God Who He really is, and He prayed to the Father while He was on this earth. He is the Father and yet the Father is a separate Person, which is a mystery that our minds cannot comprehend. For more on the great mystery of this oneness relationship between Jesus and God the Father (and the Holy Spirit), please see: The Holy Trinity.

If we sincerely pray, “Our Father who art in heaven,” effectively we are saying, “Oh, God, we cannot see you with our physical eye, and we have no idea of how majestic, infinite, and great you are, but we know that you are the one to whom we look for redemption.”

“Our Father who art in heaven,” means that salvation is rooted in Heaven. Some people passionately want a salvation modeled upon this life and of this sin-cursed earth. They long for a day when they will see Jesus on this sin-cursed earth, which is an entirely carnal perspective (misunderstanding the “thousand year” reign for example), but a believer’s salvation is infinitely more glorious than anything currently existing in this entire Creation. The believers become citizens of a wholly new Creation, with new Heavens and new Earth, being eternally with God according to 2 Peter 3:13, “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” Remembering also the newness of the transformed believer, 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

**“Hallowed be thy name“**

The word “hallowed” is the word “holy,” which means “set apart.” Holy is thy name. Holy (set apart) is thy name. Each of us has a name to identify us among the people of the world. There are

The name of God, as revealed in the Hebrew Scriptures, is יְהֹוָה (yᵊhōvâ)^H3068 or YHWH (the closest English equivalents to the Hebrew letters, which the King James Bible translates as most translate it as “LORD” in all capital letters) meaning is essence, “The Eternal Existing One” (hence “I AM” as discussed below). Ancient Hebrew did not have vowels, so the exact pronunciation of YHWH is uncertain, but is generally interpreted to be Jehovah in English.

There is no biblical command that limits our vocabulary to Jehovah, when addressing God. Anyone who says that God must be addressed only by the name YHWH is speaking without biblical validation.

“God” is first presented as אֱלֹהִים (‘ĕlōhîm)^H430, which means “Creator, Mighty and Strong” in Genesis 1:1 for a total of 2,346x in the Old Testament.

In Genesis 15:2, we are first introduced to another reference to God directly as אֲדֹנָי (‘ăḏōnāy)^H136, which means “Lord” and is interpreted in the Old Testament as Lord 431x.

Ruth 1:20, God is referred to as שַׁדַּי (šaday)^H7706, which in the original Hebrew means “Almighty” and is found 48x in the Old Testament.

Throughout both the Old and New Testaments, God inspired the human scribes of the Bible to refer to Him using generic terms such as “God”, “Lord”, and “Almighty”. YHWH is as close to a personal name as God has revealed to us. That Name was revealed to Moses and was unknown before his time as we read when said in Exodus 6:3, “And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by [the name of] God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.” The name Jehovah seems to refer to God’s self-existence, being linked to Exodus 3:14&15, “¶And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this [is] my name for ever, and this [is] my memorial unto all generations.” This name would distinguish Israel’s God from all false gods.

However, God does reveal Himself using many other descriptors and titles as we read in Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” We also know that the Son of God, Who is also God, is named Jesus, which is a Greek variant of Joshua, יְהוֹשׁוּעַ (yᵊhôšûaʿ)^H3091, which means “Jehovah is Salvation“. Other descriptors include: Christ (Messiah) meaning “Anointed”, the “LORD of Hosts”, “Faithful”, “True”, “The Good Shepherd”, “KING OF KINGS, and LORD OF LORDS”, “Lord of Hosts”, etc. These names describe attributes or characteristics of God.

The references in the Bible which speak of the “name” of God are speaking of God in all of His Fullness, in all of His Essence, everything pertaining to Who God Is. And He in all of His Fullness is set apart (hallowed) as The Only True Holy God, Whom we are to fear, reverence, obey, glorify, serve, worship, and praise. He Alone Is supremely righteous.

He is the Creator of the world and upholds it by His power. He Alone is the Savior; He Is supremely Holy and Majestic and deserves all honor as our Father and our Creator.

Remember what God tells us in Malachi 1:6, “A son honoureth [his] father, and a servant his master: if then I [be] a father, where [is] mine honour? and if I [be] a master, where [is] my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you,O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?” (In the subsequent verses God explains and promises the following to the non-Jews of the world in Malachi 1:11, “For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name [shall be] great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense [shall be] offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name [shall be] great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.” And LORD of hosts means “Jehovah of an organized army“. See for instance: “God’s Army on Judgment Day“.

**“Thy kingdom come“**

We read about the kingdom of God in John 3:3, “¶Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” And in John 3:5, “¶Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.“

Jesus is talking about the kingdom that God has established through the Lord Jesus Christ, which the believers enter into when each become saved. That kingdom of God is NOT of this world. Jesus will never come and reign on this sin-cursed earth, rather this creation will be destroyed. (Please see: “The Holy Temple of God, Will It Ever Be Rebuilt?“)

Remember what Jesus said in John 18:36, “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world,then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” The reason is that the devil had obtained rule over the earth by right of conquest when Adam sinned in listening to the devil’s lies and disobeying God’s command. God’s Kingdom is a Heavenly Kingdom that consists of all who will become saved and live with Christ forever in an entirely new Creation: the “new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (Please see 2 Peter 3:13, Isaiah 65:17, and Isaiah 66:22). When we pray, “thy kingdom come,” the believer is saying, “Oh, God, I want to be part of your kingdom; I want to be saved. Come quickly Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 3:11, 22:7, 22:12, 22:20)

The believer is also saying, “Oh, Lord, I want Thy Kingdom to finally overcome this evil world and bring to Thee all who have and are to be saved and fulfill all of Thy promises.” The believer is praying that the program of Salvation, wrought through the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ, which God designed from before the foundations of the world, will come to full fruition.

As shown above, this world is temporal and will be completely and utterly destroyed on Judgment Day whereupon God creates the new heavens and a new earth. For insights on God’s current heavenly kingdom and majesty, God gives us some additional insights when we look at King Ahasuerus and his kingdom in Persia in the Book of Esther. Please see: King Ahasuerus: A Spiritual Portrait of Almighty God/The Father in Heaven

“Thy will be done“

The will of God is expressed, for example, in Matthew 16:18, where Jesus said, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (The point being that Jesus is the Rock of Salvation, the Chief Cornerstone, whereby He laid Himself down as the foundation upon which He would build His Church)

The Will of God is that He will redeem a people for Himself. He will bring Salvation to this world, and that relates personally to each of believer, i.e., “Thy will be done” in his or her life. God’s Will will be done in saving a people for Himself.

For the unbeliever, God’s Will is not part of his or her life; the unsaved will continue to live according to his or her own will and not care about God’s Will. “Thy will be done,” prayed from the heart means, “O God, make me obedient to thee; help me to abandon myself to thee. I want You to be my Savior.”

The Will of God ultimately also includes the damnation of the unsaved on Judgment Day. God’s justice according to His Immutable Law must be satisfied. When Judgment Day comes, God will bring vengeance upon the unsaved; that is God’s business, and yet that is also implied in the phrase, “thy will be done.” Please see “Judgment Day is Coming Soon!“

**“in earth, as it is in heaven“**

God’s Will was established in Heaven.

The Lord Jesus Christ, throughout eternity, is in perfect obedience to the Father’s Will. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus said, in Mark 14:36, “...Abba, Father, all things [are] possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.” Christ in His perfect obedience going to the cross, illustrates the perfect Will of God. The believer ought to pray as Jesus prayed, desiring that his or her will becomes conformed to God’s Will, while also knowing each’s weaknesses in the flesh require continual forgiveness from God.

**“Give us this day (day by day) our daily bread“**

In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6:11, “Give us this day our daily bread.” Luke’s parallel account reads in Luke 11:3, “Give us day by day our daily bread.” Many assume this petition concerns only our physical needs—food, clothing, and shelter. Scripture certainly affirms our total dependence on God for these things. Jesus assures us in Luke 12:22-30 not to worry about daily provisions, pointing to the “the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?” And Jesus plainly states in the last verse, in Luke 12:30, “For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.” Yet from an eternal perspective, physical sustenance is secondary. The deeper question is whether we are being spiritually nourished for everlasting life?

So what is the “bread” that the Bible is really talking about?

The True Bread of Life: The Lord Jesus Christ

When we go back to Isaiah 55:1-4, God instructs us with these words, “¶ Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for [that which is] not bread? and your labour for [that which] satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye [that which is] good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, [even] the sure mercies of David. Behold, I have given him [for] a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.”

Isaiah 55:1-4 makes clear that it cannot bet earthly bread, because that bread can only sustain our physical bodies for a time and then we are hungry, and hence unsatisfied again. Rather these verses are talking about bread that sustains the soul! Moreover, the eating of that bread involves “hearing”, thus it is pointing us to God’s Word, Who Is Jesus, and the command to come to Him! John 1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” And the Lord Jesus Christ was given by God to be the “witness to the people“, the “leader“, and “commander to the people” under the “everlasting covenant“!

And if we go just a few verses further to Isaiah 55:10&11, we get additional confirmation that this is the correct: “For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.” Please also see the post on “the Parable of the Sower“.

And we should also remember that this Jesus plainly identifies Himself as the Bread that we need for everlasting life. In John 6:35, Jesus declares “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” Later He adds in John 6:51, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.“

“This Day” and “Day by Day”

When we look closer at Luke 11:3, where Jesus said to pray, “Give us day by day our daily bread.”, This spiritual meaning becomes even more clear when we examine the original Greek of Luke 11:3. The phrase can be rendered more literally as “give us daily our bread sufficient for each day.”

The word “daily” is from the original Greek word, ἐπιούσιος (epiousios)^G1967, which means “sufficient or needful (for the day)”
The first word translated as “day” is from the original Greek word, κατά (kata)^G2596, which has been translated in the Bible variously as “according to (107x), after (61x), against (58x), in (36x), by (27x), daily (with G2250) (15x), as (11x), miscellaneous (165x).
The next words, “by day” are from the original Greek word, ἡμέρα (hēmera)^G2250, which have been translated in the Bible variously as day (355x), daily (with G2596) (15x), time (3x), not translated (2x), miscellaneous (14x). Note that we are also told in 2 Peter 1:19, “¶We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day (ἡμέρα (hēmera))^G2250 dawn, and the day star (Jesus) arise in your hearts:“

Matthew’s wording, “Give us this day,” uses the Greek σήμερον (sēmeron)^G4594 means “this (very) day/today“, while Luke emphasizes ongoing daily dependence. Both point to the same reality. “This day” carries rich biblical resonance. In Psalm 2:7 (quoted in Hebrews 1:5), God says, “Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” This does not suggest that Jesus had a beginning—He is eternal—but refers to His resurrection, when the Father declared Him victorious over sin and death and having paid the full price for the sins of His Elect.

Similarly, Psalm 118:24 proclaims, “This [is] the day [which] the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” a verse often understood as pointing to the Lord Jesus Christ.Thus, when we pray “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are in effect asking the Father to give us Jesus—our living Bread—today and every day. We are requesting the spiritual nourishment and strength that comes through His Word, the Bible, so we may walk moment by moment in fellowship with Him.

Thus, this portion of the Lord’s Prayer is a petition for spiritual sustenance—Jesus Christ Himself—Who will carry us through every day, much like the manna , the bread that came down from Heaven, which God provided to Israel in the wilderness, and which had to be collected on an ongoing (“day by day“) basis, and to be eaten

The Manna was a Sign

Gathering “Manna” in the morning during the 40 year wilderness sojourn

For forty years in the desert, God fed the Israelites with manna (מָן (mān))^H4478, meaning “What is it?“, which formed a daily Heavenly provision that pointed forward to Christ. They were instructed to gather only what they needed each morning; any surplus kept overnight bred worms and spoiled (Exodus 16:15-36). On the sixth day they collected twice as much so they would have enough for the Sabbath, when no manna fell.

NOTE regarding Manna: In Exodus 16:31, we read, “And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it [was] like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it [was] like wafers [made[ with honey.” Numbers 11:7 also tells us, “And the manna was as coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium.” The fact that the manna was equated to “honey” is another reference to both the Word of God and Heaven as is exposited here: Honey in the Bible.

Deuteronomy 8:3 explains God’s purpose for providing the manna: “And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every [word] that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.” Jesus later quoted this exact verse when Satan tempted Him to turn stones into bread after forty days of fasting (Matthew 4:1-4) when Jesus responded with, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out ofthe mouth of God.“ The lesson is unmistakable: physical bread sustains the body temporarily, but the Word of God—Jesus Himself—gives eternal life!

Daily Nourishment Through the Word

No one can claim to be a genuine follower of Christ while remaining unfamiliar with the Bible. Scripture repeatedly calls upon the believer to hide God’s Word in his or her heart as we see in Psalm 119:11. We are also told to seek out the Word diligently in Isaiah 34:16, “Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.” In Deuteronomy 11:18 God instructs, “¶Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.“

We also recognize God’s Word (Jesus) as having eternal authority as is made clear in Matthew 5:18, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.“and Matthew 24:35, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.“

Just as manna had to be gathered fresh each morning, we need daily time in the Scriptures. Jesus is “the Word made flesh” John 1:14, “¶And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten ofthe Father,) full of grace and truth., is the only Bread that satisfies forever.”

Jesus makes this unmistakable in John 6:47-58, where Jesus contrasts the wilderness manna (which sustained life only temporarily) with Himself: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever:”

Subsequent references to eating Jesus’ flesh and drinking His blood provide another a vivid metaphor for trusting in His Atoning Death and Resurrection—believing in Jesus as Savior, so completely, that we are united with Him for eternity. This also brings to mind the Last Supper as described in 1 Corinthians 11:23, “¶For I (Apostle Paul) have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the [same] night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake [it], and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also [he took] the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink [it], in remembrance of me. ¶For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.” (See also Matthew 26:26, Mark14:22, and Luke 22:19)

The petition “Give us this day our daily bread” is far more than a request for physical food. It is a daily plea for the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life, the true Manna from Heaven, Who alone can sustain the believer both now and for eternity. Whatever tomorrow holds, partaking of Him through His Word will refresh the believer’s soul in this life, just as manna sustained Israel in the wilderness, but more importantly, the daily=day by day, provides a reference to forever or eternally; with the Living Bread, the Lord Jesus Christ, the One Eternal God, the source and sustainer of that eternal life.

Note to the Reader: Just as we read in Deuteronomy 8:3 where God wants us to “know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every [word] that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.“, a time will come when God withholds the “hearing” of His Word that causes a spiritual famine, hence no eternal life. In Amos 8:11&12, God says, “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find [it].” Note how entirely consistent this is with what God was saying above in Isaiah 55:1-4 and Isaiah 55:10&11! Please see this post: “A Famine in the Land“

**“And forgive us our debts“**

At least three words are commonly used in the New Testament to signify “sin,” including the word “debt.” We are debtors to God because we have sinned. The Bible says, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin [is] death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”). There is a penalty that everyone must pay to God (apart from Jesus Atoning Sacrifice) for his or her sins, and that payment is eternal damnation.

When a believer prays, “forgive us our debts,” he or she is effectively praying, “O God, have mercy on me. I’m a sinner, and in debt to Thee and Thy Law, which demands eternal death in Hell.” Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin [is] death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.“

Can anyone on his or her own pay the full price for the penalty that he or she rightly deserves to pay? Only the Lord Jesus Christ, as the sinner’s substitute, could and did. Jesus endured the equivalent of an eternity in Hell on behalf of those who constitute His Church. Jesus came to ransom the believers from the power of the grave, from eternal damnation, from the Wrath of God.

**“As we forgive our debtors“**

The Lord’s Prayer is focused on God our Savior until this phrase, which could be a bellwether or indicator as to where an individual stands before Christ.

The unsaved can be bitter, resentful, and angry, if they believe they have been wronged by another person’s word or deed. The reason is because mankind by nature is egotistical and proud and therefore murderers in his or her heart.

When God calls us, He effectively says, if you pray and acknowledge God as your Savior, and there is resentment in your heart for some individual whom you cannot love, then examine your heart. You do not know the essence of what constitutes Salvation. Mercy and Grace by God are undeserved. Romans 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (See also the entirety of Ephesians Chapter 2).

When anyone has resentment, he or she must ask, Am I born again? How can anyone expect God to forgive him or her if he or she continues with any unforgiving relationship? The phrase “As we forgive our debtors,” therefore, is a reminder to examine ourselves to determine whether we are truly saved.

There is a whole lot more that can be said on “forgiveness”…please see what is elaborated upon in the post that addresses Jesus’ Parable of “The Unforgiving Debtor.“

**“And lead us not into temptation“**

The word “lead” here is “bring,” and ought to be translated, “bring us (me) not into temptation.” The original Greek word that is here translated as “temptation” is πειρασμός (peirasmos)^G3986, which has been translated variously as temptation (19x), temptations (1x), try (1x). Satan is the tempter; the word tempter and the word temptation are derived from the same Greek word, πειράζω (peirazō)^G3985 which has been translated variously as tempt (29x), try (4x), tempter (2x), prove (1x), assay (1x), examine (1x), go about (1x).

Does “bring us (me) not into temptation” mean, “Oh, Lord, bring us (me) along so that we (I) will not be tempted by Satan”?

The problem with that conclusion is James 1:2, “¶My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (same word)”, and James 1:12, “¶Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” God is saying it is a blessing, something to be joyful about, when Satan tempts you.

We read in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is] faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear [it].” God is saying it is normative for the believer to walk in the path of temptation. Therefore, “bring me not into temptation” cannot be understood to mean “bring me not into a situation in which I am tempted of Satan.”

The solution to understanding this phrase is found when we substitute the word “trial” for “temptation.” Of course, in every temptation we are being tried, but there is a trial which every human being must face because of his or her sins.

Another usage of the word “temptation,” is found in Revelation 3:10, “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation [same word],which shall come upon all the world, to try [same word] them that dwell upon the earth.” This verse, too, should be translated “the hour of trial.”

God is speaking about Judgment Day. Just as the man who is suspected of committing a crime is brought to trial, so, too, the unsaved are going to be tried, to be tested, at the Judgment Seat of God. Because there is none righteous, they will be found guilty and cast into Hell. That is the “trial” we desperately wish to avoid as we pray, “bring me not into trial.”

Born-again believers do not come into that hour of trial; they do not have to stand before the Judgment, because Jesus already paid the price for each of them in the first Judgment Day at the cross.

The believers have already been tried before the Judgment Throne of God when Christ stood before Pilate. Christ had become sin for each an all of the believers. 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him [to be] sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Jesus has already paid the full penalty for all the sins of all believers.

When Satan comes to tempt a believer through the various circumstances of life, he is “trying” you to discover whether you are going to remain faithful to God or whether he can cause that person to sin.

God never comes with that kind of temptation. God tempts no man to evil. James 1:13, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:“

Sometimes God will remove His hand of restraint from us, and we will go deeper into sin, but He would never cause us to sin. The unsaved will be brought, not lead, into trial. Jesus Christ is coming as the Judge, and every eye shall see Him, and every one of the unsaved is going to give an account of his or her sins on Judgment Day.

**“Deliver us from evil“**

The word “evil” here can be understood as Satan, as sin, and as the wrath to come.

Before we are saved we are in bondage to Satan, and we are in bondage to sin. These are the terrible evils to which every human is enslaved. But in ultimate evil is to come under the wrath of God! We should remember what God tells us in Isaiah 45:7, “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these [things].” For more on the meaning of all this please see this post: The Real Inconvenient Truth.

The judgment of God is a terrible evil that man is under because God’s perfect justice demands full payment for sin. Therefore, the prayer “deliver us from evil” is also a prayer for Salvation. To become saved is to be set free from bondage to sin and Satan and to be delivered from the wrath of God.

“For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”

The Lord’s Prayer concludes with this marvelous doxology. The focal point is on God: “Our Father, who art in heaven. Hallowed by thy name,” then the focal point shifts to God’s Salvation program in the world and in my heart, which is all about the Person and Atoning Work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

God is entirely Sovereign, and everything, in both Heaven and Creation, is a reflection of God and His Majesty and Power. God, The Father, lovingly offered His only begotten Son, Jesus, to be the Lamb of God to take away the sins and the just punishment for those sins for His chosen people (John 3:16). And Jesus sacrificed Himself voluntarily to make Salvation ensured for those chosen, His Church, His Bride. God alone deserves all honor, praise and glory! Revelation 13:8, “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.“

Conclusion

The Lord’s Prayer is a magnificent, but succinct, prayer for all mankind who desperately need eternal Salvation from sin. It serves as a model by which Jesus instructs us on the manner by which we are to pray. Apart from God’s forgiveness and Divine intercession of Jesus’ Sacrifice, everyone would remain dead in trespasses and sins, and thus destined for Hell. Jesus in this beautiful prayer instructs us to pray to God the Father (and elsewhere in Jesus’ Name). We also see how this petition, in the form of this prayer, Salvation is manifested by figures like “our daily bread“. And in the end we see that all of the glory throughout eternity deservedly goes to God. Praise God for His wonderful Salvation!

Postscript

The Book of James gives us some additional insight with regard to praying in faith to God: James 1:5-8 tells us the following: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind andtossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man [is] unstable in all his ways.”

This is also consistent with what we read in Psalm 37:4&5, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring [it] to pass.“

And let us not forget what we are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.”!

For additional insights regarding prayer, please see: A Prayer or Repentance and Faith

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This entry was posted on July 15, 2026 at 3:22 pm and is filed under Bible Studies. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.

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