Bible Commentary | Matthew 6:9-13

Note: This page is under construction as I am currently in the process of studying the Lord's Pray for an upcoming sermon series.

See a list of helpful resources on the Lord's Prayer at the very end of this article.

The Lord's Prayer (KJV) has 66 words in English, and 72 words in Greek.

William Barclay has an interesting paraphrase of the Lord's Prayer (The Lord's Prayer, p. 3):

When you pray,

Remember that God is your Father and your King, and that, therefore, you go to One in whom Love and Power are equally combined.

When you pray,

Do not hesitate to tell God about your daily needs.

When you pray,

Do not shrink from telling God about your mistakes.

When you pray,

Never forget to place the unknown future and all its perils in the hands of God.

A.W. Pink writes, "The perfections of this prayer as a whole and the wondrous fullness of each clause and word in it are not perceived by a rapid and careless glance, but become apparent only by a reverent pondering." (The Lord's Prayer, 57.)

The Lord's Prayer is also called the model prayer or the disciple's prayer. It is not a prayer Jesus would have prayed since He needs no forgiveness. R.T. Kendall points out that it is called the Lord's Prayer because Jesus authored it, and because Jesus commanded us to pray it. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 207.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "Three venerable formulae together add up to Christianity: the Apostles' Creed, the Ten Commandments, and the Lord's Prayer, summarizing respectively the Christian way of believing, behaving, and communing with God." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, p. 11.)

Several Reformed catechisms center on these three texts -- Apostles' Creed, Ten Commandments, and the Lord's Prayer.

Of the Lord's Prayer, J.I. Packer wrote, "What it means to be a Christian is nowhere clearer than here." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, p. 11.)

The Westminster Larger Catechism answers the following questions about prayer in general before explaining each petition of the Lord's Prayer.

Q178: What is prayer? A178: Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, in the name of Christ, by the help of his Spirit; with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies.
Q179: Are we to pray unto God only? A179: God only being able to search the hearts, hear the requests, pardon the sins, and fulfil the desires of all; and only to be believed in, and worshiped with religious worship; prayer, which is a special part thereof, is to be made by all to him alone, and to none other.
Q180: What is it to pray in the name of Christ? A180: To pray in the name of Christ is, in obedience to his command, and in confidence on his promises, to ask mercy for his sake; not by bare mentioning of his name, but by drawing our encouragement to pray, and our boldness, strength, and hope of acceptance in prayer, from Christ and his mediation.
Q181: Why are we to pray in the name of Christ? A181: The sinfulness of man, and his distance from God by reason thereof, being so great, as that we can have no access into his presence without a mediator; and there being none in heaven or earth appointed to, or fit for, that glorious work but Christ alone, we are to pray in no other name but his only.
Q182: How doth the Spirit help us to pray? A182: We not knowing: What to pray for as we ought, the Spirit helps our infirmities, by enabling us to understand both for whom, and: What, and: How prayer is to be made; and by working and quickening in our hearts (although not in all persons, nor at all times, in the same measure) those apprehensions, affections, and graces which are requisite for the right performance of that duty.
Q183: For whom are we to pray? A183: We are to pray for the whole church of Christ upon earth; for magistrates, and ministers; for ourselves, our brethren, yea, our enemies; and for all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter; but not for the dead, nor for those that are known to have sinned the sin unto death.
Q184: For what things are we to pray? A184: We are to pray for all things tending to the glory of God, the welfare of the church, our own or others good; but not for anything that is unlawful.
Q185: How are we to pray? A185: We are to pray with an awful apprehension of the majesty of God, and deep sense of our own unworthiness, necessities, and sins; with penitent, thankful, and enlarged hearts; with understanding, faith, sincerity, fervency, love, and perseverance, waiting upon him, with humble submission to his will.
Q186: What rule hath God given for our direction in the duty of prayer? A186: The whole word of God is of use to direct us in the duty of prayer; but the special rule of direction is that form of prayer which our Savior Christ taught his disciples, commonly called The Lord’s prayer.
Question 187: How is the Lord’s Prayer to be used? Answer: The Lord’s Prayer is not only for direction, as a pattern, according to which we are to make other prayers; but may also be used as a prayer, so that it be done with understanding, faith, reverence, and other graces necessary to the right performance of the duty of prayer.
Question 188: Of how many parts does the Lord’s Prayer consist? Answer: The Lord’s Prayer consists of three parts; a preface, petitions, and a conclusion.

The Heidelberg Catechism (16th Century) includes the following introductory remarks about prayer before getting into the Lord's Prayer:

Q&A 116: Why do Christians need to pray? Because prayer is the most important part of the thankfulness God requires of us. And also because God gives his grace and Holy Spirit only to those who pray continually and groan inwardly, asking God for these gifts and thanking God for them.
Q&A 117: What is the kind of prayer that pleases God and that he listens to? First, we must pray from the heart to no other than the one true God, revealed to us in his Word, asking for everything God has commanded us to ask for. Second, we must fully recognize our need and misery, so that we humble ourselves in God’s majestic presence. Third, we must rest on this unshakable foundation: even though we do not deserve it, God will surely listen to our prayer because of Christ our Lord. That is what God promised us in his Word.
Q&A 118: What did God command us to pray for? Everything we need, spiritually and physically, as embraced in the prayer Christ our Lord himself taught us.

The First Catechism asks the following questions about prayer before explaining the Lord's Prayer (First Catechism, 2003, Great Commission Publications):

109: "What is prayer? Prayer is praising God, giving thanks for all his blessings, and asking him for the things he has promised in the Bible.
110: In whose name should we pray? Only in the name of Christ.

In the passage before the Lord's Prayer, Matthew 6:5-8, Jesus began His comments on prayer. The following lessons can be gleaned from that passage:

You should pray. He didn't say, "If you pray," but, “Whenever you pray.”
Avoid hypocritical prayer. "You must not be like the hypocrites." Don't pray to gain the admiration of others rather than to connect with God. Don't pray to impress others.
Pray in private. "go into your private room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is in secret."
Pray to your Father. “Your Father” is used three times in this passage.
Your Father will see you (hear you). "And your Father who sees in secret..."
Your Father will reward you. "will reward you." In fact, this is the reason to pray -- to be rewarded by the Father.
Avoid pagan prayer -- mindless repetition. "don't babble like the Gentiles..." Don't pray to impress God.
God knows what you need, yet He still wants you to ask. "your Father knows the things you need before you ask him."
To pray is to ask God for what you need. "your Father knows the things you needs before you ask Him."

The Westminster Larger Catechism divides the Lord's Prayer into three parts (see Q188):

Preface
Petitions
Conclusion. Zodhiates calls this the doxology; Wiersbe calls it the benediction.

Most people agree that the Lord's Prayer has six petitions.

Your name be honored as holy.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

A.W. Pink, Warren Wiersbe, and Spiros Zodhiates divide the prayer into seven petitions, separating "do not bring us into temptation" and "but deliver us from the evil one."

The Lord's Prayer is found in two places: Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4. In Luke 11, Jesus taught the Lord's Prayer in response to His disciples' request, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Lk 11:1).

J.I. Packer notes that seven activities constitute biblical prayer, and they are all found in the Lord's Prayer (Praying the Lord's Prayer, p. 17):

Approaching God in adoration and trust.
Acknowledging his work and his worth, in praise and worship.
Admitting sin, and seeking pardon.
Asking that needs be met, for ourselves and others.
Arguing with God for blessing as wrestling Jacob did in Gen 32 (God loves to be argued with).
Accepting from God one's own situation as he has shaped it.
Adhering to God in faithfulness through thick and thin.

J.I. Packer explains the benefits of the Lord's Prayer. "To pray in terms of it is the sure way to keep our prayers within God's will; to pray through it, expanding the clauses as you go along, is the sure way tot prime the pump when prayer dries up and you find yourself stuck." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, p. 17.)

J.I. Packer says, "We never get beyond this prayer; not only is it the Lord's first lesson in praying, it is all the other lessons too." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, p. 18.)

J.I. Packer noted that the Lord's Prayer begins with three God-centered petitions, followed by three man-centered petitions. Packer says this is reminds us that "we are to ask for the meeting of our particular needs as a means to our Father's glory." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 22-23.)

J.I. Packer observes that the Lord's Prayer is presented to us as the way we should answer a series of questions from God to shape our conversation with Him (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 24):

"Who do you take me for, and what am I to you?" (Our Father in heaven.)
"That being so, what is it that you really want most?" (The hallowing of your name; the coming of your kingdom; to see your will known and done.)
"So what are you asking for right now, as a means to that end?" (Provision, pardon, protection.)
"How can you be so bold and confident in asking these things?" (Because we know you can do it, and when you do it, it will bring you glory.)

Warren Wiersbe writes that the Lord's prayer contains six requests, and "since the days of the church fathers, it's been pointed out that the first three requests in this prayer focus on matters that especially concern God -- the glory of his name, the coming of his kingdom, and the accomplishing of his will -- while the last three requests deal with the needs of the one who is praying -- the necessities of life, personal forgiveness of sin, and victory over trial and temptation." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 17.)

Warren Wiersbe writes that this makes the Lord's Prayer a balanced prayer. Rather than just focusing on my own needs, I am to focus on God's priorities and the needs of others. (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 18.)

R.C. Sproul points out that it is interesting that of all the things the disciples could have asked Jesus to teach them to do, they asked him to pray. We know that prayer was an important part of His life. After ministering to large crowds Jesus would often withdraw to be along and pray for long periods of time. In the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed with such intensity that his sweat was like drops of blood. He spent the entire night in prayer before He selected His disciples and invited them to follow Him. (The Prayer of the Lord, pp. 2-3.)

J.I. Packer writes, "... our Lord's pattern prayer covers the whole range of concerns with which life confronts the Christian disciple. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 105.)

"Praise for our redemption (Father)"
"Adoration of God's transcendent greatness (in heaven)"
"Zeal for his glory (hallowed be thy name)"
"Longing for his triumph (thy kingdom come)"
"Self-dedication to him (thy will be done)"

J.I. Packer writes, "Then the supplications of the second half express our reliance on God for material needs (give us... our daily bread), our repentance over failures in faithfulness and our renouncing of mercilessness as a way of life (forgive us... as we also have forgiven), and our sense of weakness in face of the forces of our spiritual foes (lead us not into temptation, but deliver us)." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 105.)

R. T. Kendall points out that the only way to guarantee that God will answer our prayers is by praying according to God's will (1 Jn 5:14). The Lord's Prayer teaches us to do exactly that. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 205.)

R.T. Kendall says that the Lord's Prayer can be misused (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 206):

"By believing that the very praying of the Lord's Prayer is a worthy act in itself that makes you righteous before God merely because you pray that prayer. If we repeatedly pray the Lord's Prayer over and over and over again -- thinking that merely praying it counts for righteousness before God and scores points in heaven...."
"By praying it from the head and not the heart. In other words, repeating the Lord's Prayer from memory and not praying it from your heart of hearts...."

R. T. Kendall says, "I would personally urge every church leader to find a place in a service once a week to insert the Lord's Prayer. It will do no harm and only good." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 207.)

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains a good reason for praying the Lord's Prayer. "I have always been comforted by this thought, that whatever I may forget in my own private prayers, as long as I pray the Lord's Prayer I have at any rate covered all the principles, the condition, of course, that I am not merely mechanically repeating the words, but am really praying from my heart and with my mind and with my whole being."

Kevin DeYoung writes, "In fact, it's not a bad idea to pray the Lord's Prayer every day. At the very least, it would be good for our spiritual lives to often make the substance of these requests our personal requests." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 239.)

Al Mohler writes, "Remember, Jesus is giving us a model prayer, which means these are the types of petitions that should characterize our prayer life every day." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 147.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "The Lord's Prayer needs to be reintroduced to churches and Christians everywhere and prayed with utter earnestness. I commend churches that pray the Lord's Prayer regularly. And I feel that the churches that never think of praying it do their members no favor by neglecting this extraordinary prayer." (The Sermon on the Mount, 253.)

The Lord’s prayer is divided into two parts. The first is focused on God’s glory: the name of God, the will of God, and the kingdom of God. The second is focused on our requests -- provision, protection, and pardon.

9 “Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy.

Therefore

you should pray like this:

J.I. Packer said that Jesus did not mean for us to repeat the words of the Lord's Prayer like a parrot. Instead, it is "a pattern for all Christian praying. Jesus is teaching that prayer will be acceptable when, and only when, the attitudes, thoughts, and desires expressed fit the pattern. That is to say: every prayer of ours should be a praying of the Lord's Prayer in some shape or form." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, pp. 16-17.)

R.C. Sproul said, "He did not say, 'Pray this.' Rather, He said, 'In this manner, therefore, pray.'" Jesus did not give His disciples a prayer they should slavishly repeat... Jesus' intent was to give His disciples a model prayer, an example to follow, one that would teach them transferable principles for conversation with God." (The Prayer of the Lord, p. 15)

A.W. Pink says the Lord's Prayer is to be regarded both as a form to be used and as a pattern to be imitated. He wrote, "In the opinion of this writer, it ought to be reverently and feelingly recited once at every public service and used daily at family worship." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 12.)

Warren Wiersbe notes that perhaps the oldest Christian book in existence (other than the Bible) is the Didache (The Teaching), also known as The Lord's Teaching Through the Twelve Apostles to the Nations. It was written in the first or second century AD by the Apostolic Fathers, the early theologians from that time period who personally knew the apostles or were significantly influenced by the them. The Didache says that the early church also used the Lord's prayer in public worship services and did not allow unbelievers join in the prayer. The Didache also exhorts all believers to pray the Lord's Prayer three times a day. (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 16.)

Warren Wiersbe writes, "It's doubtful that Jesus gave us this prayer simply to recite, but rather to be used as a model or pattern, a 'divine agenda,' to guide us in our own praying so we don't ramble, waste words, and miss the requests that are really important." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 19.)

James Boice said, "Jesus said, 'After this manner... pray' or 'Pray like this.' He did not say, 'Pray these exact words,' but 'Pray like this.' Hence, the so-called Lord's Prayer is a pattern." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 166.)

R. T. Kendall writes, "All good praying should, in some way, be consistent with the pattern, order, content and intent of the Lord's Prayer. It is a prayer to be prayed, but the words of the Lord's Prayer serve also as an outline of appropriate praying... Thus, everything we say should be an extension, or filling out, to some degree, of every line in the Lord's Prayer... The Lord's Prayer, therefore, is the foundation; our own praying is the superstructure. The foundation is not intended to be the way we are to pray verbatim all the time... How you and I pray, then, should as much as possible be an extension or filling out of the Lord's prayer; it should be a superstructure on top of the foundation that builds on what Jesus gave us." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 210.)

R.T. Kendall notes that we don't have to recite the Lord's Prayer every time we pray. After all, there are several prayers in the book of Acts, and in Paul's writings, which do not recite the Lord's Prayer. As well, the gospels record several of Christ's prayers, and He doesn't recite the Lord's Prayer. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 210.)

R.T. Kendall also called the Lord's Prayer a skeleton that we have to clothe. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 214.)

R.T. Kendall also points out that Jesus commanded that we pray according to the Lord's Prayer in Lk 11:2. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 210.)

Our Father

To pray properly, we must see God as our heavenly Father.

The word "our" is a personal plural pronoun.

Note: The word used here is the Greek term pater, not the Aramaic term "Abba." However, the ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:9) says that the two terms are equivalent. "It was the word used by Jewish children for their earthly fathers. However, since the term in both Aramaic and Greek was also used by adults to address their fathers, the claim that “Abba” meant “Daddy” is misleading and runs the risk of irreverence."

The Puritan Thomas Watson says that "Our Father" is meant to teach to address God and none other -- not saints, or angels, or Mary. (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson observes that God could have asked us to address Him in a way that expresses His greatness, just as earthly kings and rulers might do, such as "Your highness," or "Your excellency," or, "Mr. President." But asks us to address Him as Father, "an expression of love and condescension. That he might encourage us to pray to him, he represents himself under the sweet notion of a Father... The name Jehovah carries majesty in it; the name Father carries mercy in it!" (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson asks, "In what sense is God a Father?" While we are all God's children by creation, "there is little comfort in this; for God is Father in the same way to the devils by creation; but he who made them will not save them." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson gave several reasons why God is the best Father (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson):

Because He is the most ancient. Dan 7:9
He is perfect. Mt 5:48
He is the most wise. 1 Tim 1:17
He is the most loving. 1 Jn 4:16
He is the richest. Eph 3:8
He can reform His children. Acts 9:11
He never dies. 1 Tim 6:16

The Puritan Thomas Watson asks, "How may we know that God is our Father?" (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

By having a childlike disposition, which is seen in four things:

To melt in tears for sin, as a child weeps for offending his father. Peter wept after he denied Christ.

Because sin is enmity against God.
Because sin is an act of ingratitude.

To be full of sympathy. We take it personal when people offend our heavenly father.
To love our heavenly Father. "He is unnatural, who does not love his father." How do we love God?

By a holy fear of God, "of losing the visible tokens of his presence."
By loving his children. 1 Jn 5:1
By advocating for him. "Stand up in the defense of his truth... He has no childlike heart, no love to God, who can hear his name dishonored and be silent."
By our love's degree. "We love our Father in heaven above other things... in the highest measure."

To honor our heavenly Father. Mal 1:6. How do we honor God?

By having a reverential awe of him upon us. This reverential fear of God is when we dare do nothing that he has forbidden in his word. We fear to displease God.
By doing all we can to exalt him and make his excellencies shine forth. When we esteem him higher, and cause others to do so. "When we speak well of God, set forth his renown, display the trophies of his goodness; when we ascribe the glory of all we do to him; when we are the trumpeters of his praise -- this is honoring our Father in heaven."

By resembling him. "The child is his father's picture."
By having his Spirit in us.
By being peaceable. Mt 5:9. "Grace infuses a sweet, amicable disposition; it files off the ruggedness of men's spirits' it turns the lion-like fierceness into a lamb-like gentleness."
By loving to to be near him, and to talk with him.

The Puritan Thomas Watson asks, "Wherein lies the happiness of having God for our Father?" In other words, what are the benefits of having God as our Father? (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

He will teach us. "What father will refuse to counsel his son?... He will teach us how to order our affairs with discretion and how to live wisely."
He has great love toward us. "If it is so unnatural for an earthly father not to love his child, can we think God can be defective in his love?"

God makes a precious valuation of them. In other words, His children are highly valuable to Him.
God delights in their company. He loves to see their face and hear their voice.
His eye is always upon them; they are never out of his thoughts.

He will be full of sympathy toward his children. Ps 103:13
He will take notice of the least good he sees in his children.
He will take all we do in good part. "Though there may be many defects in the services of his children, he will not cast away their offering." "An earthly father kindly receives a letter from his young child, though there are blots and bad spelling in it."
He will correct us in measure.
He will intermix mercy with all our afflictions. "If he gives us wormwood to drink, he will mix it with honey."
The evil one shall not prevail against us. "God will make all Satan's temptations promote the good of his children."

As they set them praying.
As they are a means to humble them.
As they establish them more in grace.

No real evil shall befall us. Ps 91:10. All that happens to us will be for our good and make us better.
We may go with cheerfulness to the throne of grace. "Were a man to petition his enemy there is little hope; but when a child petitions his father he may hope with confidence to succeed." Mt 7:9
If God is our Father He will stand between us and danger. "A father will keep off danger from his child. God calls himself a shield."
We shall not lack anything that he sees to be good for us. Ps 34:10
All the promises of the Bible belong to us.
He makes all his children conquerors. They conquer themselves, their lusts, the world, their enemies." Rm 8:37. "Though the children of God may be sometimes foiled and lose a single battle, yet not the final victory."
He will now and then send us some token of his love. By an answer to prayer, or by extra strength for service, or by joy and peace.
He will indulge and spare us. Mal 3:17; Ps 103:10. "He does not punish them as he might."
He will put honor and renown upon us at the last day.
He will settle a good inheritance upon us. 1 Pt 1:3-4
It is a comfort in a case of the loss of relations. "Have you lose a father? If you are a believer, you are no orphan, you have a heavenly Father, a Father who never dies."
He will not disinherit us.

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "Such as have for their Father are the happiest people on earth; they are in such a condition that nothing can hurt them; they have their Father's blessing; all things conspire for their good; they have a kingdom settled on them and know that they can never be disinherited. How comforted should they be in all conditions, let the times be what they will! Their Father who is in heaven rules over all. If troubles arise, they carry them sooner to their Father. The more violently the wind beats against the sails of a ship, the sooner it is brought to haven; and the more fiercely God's children are assaulted, the sooner they come to their Father's house." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson explains how to behave like children of God (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson):

Believe that he will provide for all our needs. Ps 34:10. "Let them depend upon his fatherly providence; let them not give way to distrustful thoughts, distracting cares, or sinful means." 1 Pt 5:7
Imitate him. Eph 5:1

In forgiving injuries. Is 44:22
In works of mercy. "Relieve the needs of others; be rich in good works." Lk 6:36
Submit patiently to his will. "If he lay his strokes on us, they are the corrections of a Father, not the punishments of a judge... Therefore dispute not, but submit." 1 Sam 3:18
By childlike reverence. "Fear to offend Him."
By obedience. 1 Pt 1:14
By cheerful looks.
By holiness. 1 Pt 1:16. A young prince, having asked a philosopher how he should behave himself, the philosopher said, "Remember you are a king's son; do nothing but what befits the son of a king."
By loving all that are His children. 1 Pt 2:17
By heavenly-mindedness. Col 3:2
By defending his truths. "If suffering comes, do not deny God."

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:9) says, "Nevertheless, the idea of praying to God as “Our Father” conveys the authority, warmth, and intimacy of a loving father’s care, while in heaven reminds believers of God’s sovereign rule over all things."

R.T. Kendall observes that the words "Our Father" imply (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 216):

The existence of a family. Eph 3:15; Rev 7:9
The equity in God's family. 1 Pt 1:17
The exclusivity of God's family. Not everyone is in God's family.

R.T. Kendall says that anyone who has trouble calling God "Father" should remember Jn 14:9 and get their image of God from Jesus, not from your earthly parent. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 216.)

R.T. Kendall points out that we don't always have to address God as Father; that there other ways to address God. In the first recorded prayer after Jesus ascended, the disciples addressed God as "Lord" (Acts 1:24-25). The next recorded prayer in Acts shows the disciples addressed God as "Sovereign Lord" (Acts 4:24). Just before he died, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus," (Acts 7:59). (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 214.)

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote, "No man can truly say 'Our Father which art in heaven,' save one who knows the Lord Jesus Christ and who is in Christ... It is only those who are true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ who can say, 'Our Father.'"

James Boice writes, "According to the Bible, God is most certainly not the father of all men. He is uniquely the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, and he becomes the Father only of those who believe on Christ and who are united to him in faith through the Holy Spirit." Boice goes on to point out John 8:42-44, when Jesus told the people that their father was not God, but the devil. Boice continues, "There are two families and two fatherhoods in this world. There is the family of Adam, into which all men are born, and there is the family of God, into which some men are reborn by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. These latter children were once children of darkness; they are now children of light (Eph 5:8). They were dead in trespasses and sins; they are now alive in Christ (Eph 2:1). They were once children of wrath and disobedience; they are now children of love, faith, and obedience (Eph 2:2-3). These are God's children. These and only these can approach God as their Father." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 168.)

Warren Wiersbe writes, "The plural pronouns in the Lord's Prayer remind us that we belong to a great family of faith and we must never ask anything for ourselves that would adversely affect our Christian brothers and sisters in the church at large." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 17.)

Warren Wiersbe points out that in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus mentions the Father seventeen times, and ten of those references include the modifier heaven or heavenly. (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 28.)

Warren Wiersbe (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 28) notes that the earlier part of Matthew 6 says that...

The Father sees all that is happening. vv. 1-4
hears all that is said. vv. 5-6
Knows all that is needed. vv. 7-8
Rewards all of his children who have obeyed him. vv. 1-6

A.W. Pink writes, "we are plainly instructed to preface our petitions by expressing the sense we have of the essential and relative glories of the One whom we address." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 13.)

A.W. Pink writes that "Our Father" "informs us... that the great God is most graciously ready to grant us an audience... it assures us His love and power." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 13.)

A.W. Pink writes that in coming to God we must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him (Heb 11:6), and this is what addressing God as "Our Father" helps us to do. (The Lord's Prayer, p. 14.)

A.W. Pink writes that the term "Our Father" also implies our obligation of honor and obedience to God, and it also teaches us that prayer is not merely personal, but that we must also pray for others. (The Lord's Prayer, p. 15.)

Al Mohler notes that there is no first-person singular pronoun in the entire prayer. "The point is not to deny our own sins or our own needs, but to never leave the focus solely on ourselves... even when we pray by ourselves, we must pray with an eye toward and with love for Christ's church." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 44.)

In the preceding passage, Mt 6:5-8, Jesus instructed His disciples to pray to their Father. He used the phrase "your Father" three times.

William Barclay notes that the term "father" has two distinct meanings. First, it can mean paternity -- the person responsible for the birth of a child. This requires no relationship. Second, it can mean fatherhood -- a relationship of love and intimacy and confidence and trust between the father and the child. To the Christian God is our paternal father in that He created us, but He is also our father in the fatherhood sense of the word. Through Christ we have an intimate love relationship with Him. (The Lord's Prayer, p. 22.)

William Barclay writes, "Even before the Christian faith came into the world, and even before Jesus taught his men to pray 'Our Father', there was in Jewish thought a great heritage of riches in the Jewish connection of the fatherhood of God." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 27.)

The OT referred to God as Israel's Father: Dt 32:6; Ps 68:5; Ps 103:13; Is 63:16; Is 64:8; Jer 3:4; Jer 3:19; Jer 31:9.

R.T. Kendall points out that the Old Testament describes God as Father, but never addresses Him as Father. For example, it says, "But you are our Father (Is 63:16)," but it does not say, "Our Father, help us...." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 214.)

The Jews called God Father in their ancient prayers:

The Amidah, the greatest of all Jewish prayers, also called The Prayer, or the Shemoneh 'Esreh (which means The Eighteen), dates back to the 5th century B.C. The Amidah is said at every prayer service. It addresses God as "Father" four times: "Father of mercy," "our Father" (3x).
The Ahabah rabbah prayer, recited every morning, refer to God as, "Our Father, merciful Father."
The Avinu Malkenu prayer dates back to the first century AD and calls God, "Our Father, our King." This prayer is still used on The Day of Atonement.

God is referred to as Father in the Apocrypha, ancient Jewish literature written before the birth of Christ:

Tobit 13:4, where He is called "our Father and God"
Wisdom 14:3, where He is called "O Father!"
Ben Sira 23:1, where He is called "Lord, Father and Master of my life"
Ben Sira 23:4, "Lord, Father and God of my life"
Ben Sira 51:10, "Lord, you are my Father, my champion, my Savior!"

William Barclay said that the Jews saw God as their Father, and this brought them certain assurances (The Lord's Prayer, p. 23.):

The nearness of God.
The mercy of God in judgment, and of His willingness to accept a penitent heart.
The loving obedience of man.
The brotherhood of man.

William Barclay points out that Christ's teaching about the fatherhood of God is best understood in the context of the predominant religions of His day. The main two pre-Christian philosophies in the Graeco-Roman world at the time were Stoicism and Epicureanism. According to the Stoics, the most important attribute of God was apatheia, which the inability to experience any feeling at all. If a person can feel joy or grief, love or hate, then other people can affect him. To be able to make a person feel a certain way is to have some power over him. To ensure that no one has power over God, He must be entirely incapable of feeling anything. "He is apathes, passionless, emotionless, essentially indifferent." According to the Epicureans, the supreme quality of life was ataraxia, or complete calm, perfect serenity. If God was involved in the affairs of the world, then his serenity would be gone. Therefore, God is completely and totally detached from the world. In this context Jesus introduced God as "Our Father," a deity who is both full of emotion for us and at the same time highly involved in our lives. (The Lord's Prayer, p. 28.)

William Barclay says then we address God as "Father" it settles the following (The Lord's Prayer, p. 32):

God cares.
The love of God quite undeserved.
The love of God has its own rewards (when we do His will).
God's love is practical. We can pray for our practical, worry, every-day needs.
God's love covers the whole creation of God.

It means "to seek access and welcome to God's presence on the ground that we are children in his family and he looks on us with a father's love. Then with this we are to link the thought that our Father is 'in heaven' -- in other words, that he is God... Fatherly love on the one hand and transcendent greatness on the other...." (J.I. Packer, Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 21.)

J.I. Packer said, “People feel a problem about prayer because of the muddle they are in about God. If you are uncertain whether God exists, or whether he is personal, or good, or in control of things, or concerned about ordinary folk like you and me, you are bound to conclude that praying is pretty pointless, not to say trivial, and then you won’t do it.” (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 13.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "It must have startled the disciples, for in Judaism calling God 'Father' was something one did not do." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 21.)

Jesus exemplified praying to the Father in his prayer in Gethsemane, and in his prayer in John 17.

J.I. Packer asks, "Jesus was God's son by nature... By what right, then, may we call God Father?... Jesus' point is not that all men are God's children by nature, but that his committed disciples have been adopted into God's family by grace." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 27.)

Note the following verses on the doctrine of adoption:

Luke 11:13
John 1:12
Rm 8:14-17
Gal 3:26
Galatians 4:4-5
Eph 1:4-5
1 John 3:1

Al Mohler points out, "Jesus teaches us to begin our prayers according to gospel realities. When we pray, we are praying from within the context of an established relationship that Christ himself has enacted, effected, and achieved." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 52.)

J.I. Packer points out that at other times Jesus commanded us to pray in his name, "that is, looking to him as our way of access to the Father (Jn 14:6, 13: 15:16; 16:23-26). Why is none of this in the model prayer? In fact, the point is present here; it is implicit in 'Father.' Only those who look to Jesus as Mediator and sin-bearer, and go to God through him, have any right to call God as his sons." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 28.)

J.I. Packer points out the implications of God's fatherhood (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 28-31):

We are loved no less than Jesus. Rm 8:39. He is always more ready to hear than we to pray, and wants to give more than we desire or deserve. Mt 7:11
We are God's heirs. We will inherit eternal life, and the eternal kingdom, and eternal, glorious new bodies like Christ's. Rm 8:17; 1 Jn 3:2; 1 Cor 3:21-23; Rm 8:28-30
We have God's Spirit in us, and we have been regenerated. 1 Jn 1:12; Jn 3:6; Gal 4:6; Rm 8:26
We must honor our Father by serving His interests.
We must love our brothers, by constant care and prayer for them.

J.I. Packer points out that starting with "Our Father" should lead us immediately to worship. "All right-minded praying starts with a long look Godward and a deliberate lifting up of one's heart to give thanks and adore, and it is just this to which 'Father' calls us." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 31.)

Kevin DeYoung points out that we are to address God as Father and not Mother. "True, God is neither male nor female. he is spirit and doesn't have a body. but He has revealed Himself as Father, not Mother; as King; not Queen; as Husband, not wife. this doesn't mean the bible never describes God with maternal characteristics. but it means that if we are to be true to the example of biblical revelation, we ought to pray to God as He has named Himself." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 215.)

Al Mohler writes that "feminist theologians and others promoting inclusive language proposals have posited that gender-specific designations for God are archaic and patriarchal. In light of this, many theologians have asserted that we should use feminine attributions for God as well as masculine, such as "heavenly Mother." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 58.)

Kevin DeYoung acknowledges that for some people the word "father" brings up bad connotations. Still, he writes, "We ought to interpret our experiences through God's revelation and not the other way around. So instead of running from the Fatherhood of God because we had a bad father, we ought to leg God define true Fatherhood for us and grieve that our fathers fell so far from the divine example. For those who hate their father, learning to love our heavenly Father can bring necessary healing and forgiveness." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 216.)

R.C. Sproul writes that when someone expresses their difficulty with addressing God as "Father," he encourages them to stress the word before it, "our," "because 'our Father' is not his father. 'Our Father' is not the father who violated him. It's our Father in heaven, our Father who has no abuse in Him, who will never violate anyone." (The Prayer of the Lord, p. 26.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "We call on God as Father in our prayers to remind us that we are His children and He knows what is best for us... We are not bowing before a tyrannical despot or distant deity. We are praying to our Father. He is bigger, better, and stronger than any earthly father. he loves us more fiercely, understands us more deeply, and delights in us more fully." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 216.)

R.C. Sproul told the story of the German church historian Adolf von Harnack, whom he described as the most important church historian of the past two hundred years. He wrote a book that became a best seller and had a tremendous impact on theology in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It is called What is Christianity? But the title in German was asking, “What was the essence, being, or substance of Christianity. Harnack was asking what made Christianity Christian. He came to the conclusion that Christianity could be reduced to two fundamental propositions: The universal fatherhood of God, and second, the universal brotherhood of man. Sproul points out that these are completely unbiblical. The Bible teaches the particular fatherhood of God and the particular brotherhood of man. God is only the father of those whom He adopts through faith in Christ. By nature we are children of wrath (Eph 2:3). And those who have been adopted by God are now brothers and sisters in Christ. The Bible teaches the universal neighborhood of man, but not the universal brotherhood of man. (The Prayer of the Lord, pp. 21-22.)

What kind of Father is God?

Caring
Close
Consistent
Capable

Andrew Murray wrote, "The knowledge of God's Father-love is the first and simplest, but also the last and highest lesson in the school of prayer." (With Christ in the School of Prayer, p. 31.)

Bill Hybels wrote about the significance of the words "Our Father." "Never forgive that if you are God's child through Jesus Christ, you are praying to a Father who couldn't love you more than he already does." (Too Busy Not to Pray, p. 55.)

Ronald Dunn wrote that the word "Father" is both the requirement of all prayer, and our right to pray. It is required that we be children of God to pray. And if God is our Father, then we have the right to go to Him with our every need, for He loves us. (Don't Just Stand There, Pray Something, p. 186.)

Ronald Dunn tells the story of a Roman emperor who was entering Rome in triumph after a victorious battle. As the magnificent procession moved down the street, a small child suddenly darted through the fence of soldiers lining the street and headed for the opulent carriage that bore the emperor. One of the soldiers grabbed him, saying, "That is the emperor!" The child broke loose and, racing for the carriage, cried back, "Your emperor, my father!" (Don't Just Stand There, Pray Something, p. 187.)

J.I. Packer writes, "'Our Father' speaks of the quality and depth of God's love to Christ's people -- all the sustained care and concern that a perfect father could show." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 36.)

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q&A 120) asks, "Why did Christ command us to call God 'our Father'?" Answer: "To awaken in us at the very beginning of our prayer what should be basic to our prayer -- a childlike reverence and trust that through Christ God has become our Father, and that just as our parents do not refuse us the things of this life, even less will God our Father refuse to give us what we ask in faith."

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Q&A 189) calls this the preface to the Lord's Prayer. "The preface of the Lord’s Prayer (contained in these words, Our Father which art in heaven), teaches us, when we pray, to draw near to God with confidence of his fatherly goodness, and our interest therein; with reverence, and all other childlike dispositions, heavenly affections, and due apprehensions of his sovereign power, majesty, and gracious condescension: as also, to pray with and for others."

in heaven

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "Gid is said to be in heaven not because is his so included there as if he were nowhere else (1 Ki 8:27). But the meaning is that he is chiefly resident in what the apostle calls 'the third heaven,' where he reveals his glory most to saints and angels (2 Cor 12:2)." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

Bill Hybels wrote that the words "which art in heaven," "is a reminder that God is sovereign, majestic and omnipotent. Nothing is too difficult for him. He is the mountain mover; he is bigger than any problem you could bring to him. Fix your eyes on his ability, not on your worth." (Too Busy Not to Pray, p. 55.)

R.T. Kendall says the word "heaven" here is meant "to keep us from taking ourselves to seriously -- and our heavenly Father not seriously enough." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 219.)

R.T. Kendall points out that the words "in heaven" also distinguish God from our earthly father. Our heavenly Father has unlimited ability, unlimited authority, and unlimited availability. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 220.)

R.T. Kendall points out three characteristics of our heavenly Father (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 221):

Invisibility: He is out of sight. Jn 4:24; 1Tim 1:17. "That is why faith is required. What makes faith faith is that we cannot see God with our natural eye."
Independence: We can't control God. He doesn't need us. "... you know you can't snap your fingers and expect service... The truth is, it should be the other way around: If God would snap His fingers, we are the ones to jump." Ps 123:2; Ps 115:3
Inscrutability: "This means He is impossible to understand except in measure. This means you can never fully, ultimately figure Him out." Is 55:8-9; Rm 11:33-36

R.T. Kendall writes, "By inserting these two words, 'in heaven,' then, Jesus reminds us of the tenderness of God yet also His greatness. He reminds us not only of the love of God but His loftiness; not only of the sweetness of God but His sovereignty. We certainly do have an abba Father relationship with Him. But we must never outgrow our reverence for Him." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 223.)

Warren Wiersbe says that "our Father" speaks of God's nearness to us, and the phrase "in heaven" speaks of his distance and difference from us. "The technical terms are the immanence of God (he is near us) and the transcendence of God (he is beyond us)... Transcendence means that God is uniquely and wholly 'other' than everything else, far above his creation in his being and in his activity. Immanence means that he has chosen to be near to those who trust him and seek to do his will, and he works in and through them." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 30.)

God's immanence and transcendence are balanced in the following passages:

Lk 2:14
Is 7:14; Mt 1:23
Mt 28:18

A.W. Pink writes that if "Our Father" "tells us of God's goodness and grace, this speaks of His greatness and majesty. If that teaches us of the nearness and dearness of His relationship to us, this announces His infinite elevation above us. If the words 'Our Father' inspire confidence and love, then the words 'which art in heaven' should fill us with humility and awe. These are the two things that should occupy our minds and engage our hearts: the first without the second tends toward unholy familiarity; the second without the first produces coldness and dread." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 15.)

1 Kings 8:27

Ps 115:3

J.I. Packer writes, "'Our Father' speaks of the quality and depth of God's love to Christ's people -- all the sustained care and concern that a perfect father could show. 'Who art in heaven' sets before us the fact that our divine Father is great...." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 35.)

J.I. Packer notes that since God is a spirit, heaven doesn't refer to a place where God resides away from us. The idea "is that he exists on a different plane from us, rather than a different place."

Knowing that God is both our Father, and in heaven, is meant to lead us to worship Him. J.I. Packer wrote that we can think of this in two ways in order to understand it (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 37-38):

Either: think first of God's greatness and then remind yourself that He is your own Father.
Or: think of God's fatherhood, and remind yourself that He is in heave, "which means that he is free from all the limitations, inadequacies, and flaws that are found in earthly parents...."

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q&A 121) asks, "Why the words 'in heaven'?" Answer: "These words teach us not to think of God's heavenly majesty as something earthly, and to expect everything needed for body and soul from God's almighty power."

Kevin DeYoung adds, "What's more, as the Catechism reminds us, our Father is in heaven. He is not the smartest guy in town but the all-knowing ruler of the universe. He is not the most influential man on the school board but the Lord over all creation. When we pray to God, we are not petitioning some local powerbroker or political bigwig or academic know-it-all. We are making our requests before the one who rules over all from His heavenly throne." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 217.)

Al Mohler writes that "in heaven" means that "This is the God who rules and reigns on high... none other than the almighty God of the universe." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 54.)

Dt 4:39

Dt 33:26

Ps 97:9

Eccl 5:2

your name be honored as holy

This is not a declaration; it is a petition.

There's an old joke that God's name is Howard. "Howard by Thy Name."

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "In this petition, we pray that God's name may shine forth gloriously, and that it may be honored and sanctified by us in the whole course and tenor of our lives." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "This petition is set in the forefront to show that the hallowing of God's name is to be preferred before all things. It is to be preferred before life. We pray, 'Hallowed be your name,' before we pray, 'Give us this day our daily bread'... It is the first and great petition; it contains the most weighty thing in true religion, which is God's glory." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "To hallow is to set apart a thing from the common use to some sacred end. As the vessels of the sanctuary were said to be hallowed, so to hallow God's name is to set it apart from all abuses and to use it holily and reverently. In particular, hallowing God's name is to give him high honor and veneration and render his name sacred. We can add nothing to his essential glory, but we are said to honor and sanctify his name when we lift him up in the world and make him appear greater in the eyes of others."

The Puritan Thomas Watson asks, "When may we be said to hallow and sanctify God's name?" (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

When we profess his name. [I'm not sure what Watson means here. It may mean openly declaring and admitting to be a Christian.]
When we have a high appreciation and esteem of him, and set him highest in our thoughts. "The Hebrew word 'to honor' signifies to esteem precious."
When we trust in his name. Ps 33:21
When we never make mention of it but with the highest reverence.
When we love his name. Ps 5:11
When we give him a holy and spiritual worship.
When we hallow his day.

We must rest on this day from all secular works.
We must spend the whole day with God.

When we ascribe the honor of all we do to him. Ps 96:8; Ps 115:1
When we obey him.
When lift up his name in our praises. "What were our tongues given for but to be organs of God's praise?" Ps 71:8; Ps 123
When we sympathize with him; when we grieve when his name suffers.
When we give the same honor to God the Son, that we give to God the Father. Jn 5:23
By standing up for his truths.
By making as many proselytes as we can to him.
When we prefer the honor of his name before the dearest things.

Before our own credit. Ps 69:7
Before our worldly profit and interest. Mt 19:27
Before our own life. "When the world sees how entirely his people love him that they will die in his service, it exalts and honors his name."

By a holy life. "A holy life speaks louder than all the anthems and praises in the world."

The Puritan Thomas Watson offers the following motivations to "stir us up to this great duty of hallowing, adoring, and sanctifying God's name" (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson):

It is the very end of our being.
God's name is so excellent that it deserves to be hallowed.
Because we pray it. "If we do not magnify his name, we contradict our own prayers."
If we don't, He will still get honor from us. Ex 14:17
It will be no small comfort to us when we come to die, that we have hallowed and sanctified God's name."
There is nothing lost by what we do for God. "If we bring honor to his name, he will honor us."
If men do not hallow, but profane and dishonor God's name -- he will pour contempt upon them.

Ronald Dunn says this request is asking "that the name of God will be revered." (Don't Just Stand There, Pray Something, p. 185.)

Andrew Murray wrote, "While we ordinarily bring our own needs to God in prayer before thinking of what belongs to God and His interests, the Master reverses the order. First Thy name, Thy Kingdom, Thy will; then give us, forgive us, lead us, deliver us." (With Christ in the School of Prayer, p. 31.)

Andrew Murray said, "Our prayer must be for God reveal the holiness, the Divine power, and the hidden glory of His Name in ourselves, in all His children, and in the world." (With Christ in the School of Prayer, p. 33.)

We must not live in a way that brings reproach upon God's name (reputation). See Ezek 36:22-23

Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary says, "It is the mission of God's people to spread the reputation of His name throughout the world."

The CSB Study Bible (Mt 6:9) says that this request "suggests that Jesus expected his disciples to live righteous lives that honor rather than profane God’s name."

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:9) says, "The concern of this first petition (see note on Matt. 6:9–13) is that God’s name would be hallowed—that God would be treated with the highest honor and set apart as holy."

First Catechism (Q115) asks, "What does it mean to pray, 'Hallowed by thy name'? We are asking God help us and others to respect and honor him."

Belonging to God: A First Catechism (Q53) asks, "What do we ask when we pray 'Hallowed by your name'? We pray God's name will be honored in all the world and everywhere treated as holy, because God's name really stands for God."

James Boice writes that this "is a prayer for God's honor... If I were to rephrase this first part of the Lord's Prayer, I believe I would say, 'My father in heaven, my first desire is that in everything you might have preeminence.'" (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 173.)

Warren Wiersbe wrote, "Now we must examine our motives and ask, 'Why do we pray?' The only acceptable answer to that question is that we pray so that the Lord alone will be glorified. That desire is expressed in the first petition of the Lord's Prayer, 'Hallowed by your name.'" (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 47.)

Warren Wiersbe wrote, "The phrase 'hallowed be your name' implies not only that we know God's name but also that we reverence God's name in every area of life." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 52.)

A.W. Pink wrote, "Our primary duty in prayer is to disregard ourselves and to give God the preeminence in our thoughts, desires, and supplications. This petition comes first, for the glorifying of God's name is the ultimate end of all things. All other requests must be subordinate to this one and be in pursuance of it." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 17.)

A.W. Pink asks four questions to better understand this petition (The Lord's Prayer, p. 17.):

What is meant by the word hallowed?

"Hallowed" is a term from Middle English.
The term is frequently translated "sanctified."
It means to set apart for sacred use.
"Thus, the words 'hallowed by Thy name' signify the pious desire that God's matchless name might be reverenced, adored, and glorified, and that God might cause it to be held in the utmost respect and honor, that its fame might spread abroad and be magnified."

What is signified by God's name?

"The name of God stands for God Himself, calling to the mind of the believer all that He is... the Divine name sets before us all that God has revealed to us concerning Himself."

What is the import of "hallowed by Thy name?"

"First, in the widest sense, we are to plead thereby that God, 'by His overruling providence, direct and dispose of all things to His own glory' (Westminster Larger Catechism)."
That God would cause His name "to be known and adored through the preaching of His Law and Gospel."
"Furthermore, we pray that His name might be sanctified and magnified in and by us."
"We beg that God, who is most holy and glorious, might enable us to acknowledge and honor Him as such."
"For us to hallow or sanctify His name means that we give God the supreme place, that we set Him above all else in our thoughts, affections, and lives."
"It also voices our longing that others may know, adore, and glorify Him."

Why does this petition come first?

A.W. Pink points out three uses or applications of the first petition (The Lord's Prayer, p. 21):

Our past failures are to be bewailed and confessed.
We are to earnestly seek those graces whereby we may hallow His name: a fuller knowledge of Himself, an increase of holy fear in our hearts; increased faith, hope, love, and worship; and the right use of His gifts.
Our duties are to be faithfully practiced, that there may be nothing in our conduct that would cause His name to be blasphemed by unbelievers.

The following verses show that God's name refers to God Himself:

Ps 5:11
Ps 20:1
Pr 18:10
Ps 9:10

God's glory should be our desire:

Ps 96:8
Jn 12:27-28
1 Cor 10:31

William Perkins (English theologian, 1558-1584) summarized the meaning of this petition. "O Lord, open our eyes that we may know Thee aright and may discern Thy power, wisdom, justice, and mercy; and enlarge our hearts that we may sanctify Thee in our affections, by making Thee our fear, love, joy, and confidence; and open our lips that we may bless Thee for Thine infinite goodness; yea, O Lord, open our eyes that we may see Thee in all They works, and incline our wills with reverence for Thy name appearing in Thy works, and grant that when we use any one of them, that we may honor Thee in our sober and sanctified use thereof."

John Gill (English Baptist Pastor, 1697-1771) summarized the meaning of this petition. "In the use of this petition we pray that the glory of God may be more displayed and advanced in the world in the course of His providence, that His Word may run and be glorified in the conversion and sanctification of sinners, that there may be an increase of holiness in all His people, and that all profanation of the name of God among men may be prevented and removed."

R.C. Sproul wrote, "I can't emphasize too much how important it is that we grasp that this line of the Lord's Prayer is not just a a part of the address but a petition... Jesus is not saying, 'Father, Your name is holy,' but, 'Father, may Your name be hallowed.' That is, He is teaching us to ask that God's name would be regarded as sacred, that it would be treated with reverence, and that it would be seen as holy." (The Prayer of the Lord, p. 31.)

R.C. Sproul adds that this is a prayer for people to respect God; to regard Him with reverence and adoration. (The Prayer of the Lord, p. 33.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "So when Jesus says we should pray that God's name be regarded as holy, He is saying that we should regard Him as holy, and that such a posture of reverence, awe, and respect for God should define everything in our lives."

In other words, according to Sproul, this petition is a request that God would be feared; that people would grow in the fear of the Lord.

Kevin DeYoung says it means "that God would be glorified and set apart as holy." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 219.)

Kevin DeYoung calls this a radical reorientation, because it teaches us that the point of prayer is God's glory. "Yes, we may legitimately ask for other things, but our overriding concern is for the fame of God's name." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 219.)

This petition is that everyone, including me, would come to see how great God is, and praise and honor and glorify Him appropriately.

Kevin DeYoung writes, "When we pray in this we way, we not only rightly acknowledge our place in the world -- God is at the center and we are not -- we also align ourselves with God's ultimate purposes... In all things, the end design in God's actions and plans is that His name would be glorified." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 220.)

Kevin DeYoung answers the question, "If God's priority is His own praise and glory, doesn't this make God into the worst kind of egomaniac?" There are three reasons why this isn't so:

God doesn't want us to praise and glorify Him to make Him feel better, or to stroke His ego. (See Acts 17:24-25.)
God deserves all of our praise and glory.
Hallowing God's name is for our good. The more we praise and glorify God, the happier we will be.

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Question 190) says, "In the first petition (which is, Hallowed be thy name), acknowledging the utter inability and indisposition that is in ourselves and all men to honor God aright, we pray, that God would by his grace enable and incline us and others to know, to acknowledge, and highly to esteem him, his titles, attributes, ordinances, Word, works, and: Whatsoever he is pleased to make himself known by; and to glorify him in thought, word, and deed: that he would prevent and remove atheism, ignorance, idolatry, profaneness, and: Whatsoever is dishonorable to him; and, by his overruling providence, direct and dispose of all things to his own glory."

The Anglican Prayer Book Catechism says this means, "that we may worship him, serve him, and obey him, as we ought to do."

J.I. Packer wrote, "the hallowing of God's name means the acknowledging of God as holy through reverence for all his revelation and responsive worship and obedience." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 22.)

J.I. Packer writes that the first lesson of the Lord's Prayer is that God matters infinitely more than we do. So 'thy' is the keyword of the opening three petitions. (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 41.)

J.I. Packer calls this "the biggest and most basic request of the whole prayer." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 41.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "'Hallowed' means known, acknowledge, and honored as holy. 'Holy' is the Bible word for all that makes God different from us, in particular his awesome power and purity. This petition, then, asks that the praise and honor of the God of the Bible, and of him only, should be the issue of everything." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 42.)

J.I. Packer writes that hallowing God's name includes (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 42.):

An attitude of gratitude for the goodness of creation (food, beauty, fun, sex, nature, etc.).
Praising God for the goodness and greatness of his redemptive work.
Worshiping God for ordering all things for his people's ultimate good.
Not living in fear as if God has lost control of His world, or uncertainty (disobedience).

"It is by being, not merely knowledgeable but, grateful and by expressing gratitude in thankful obedience that we honor and glorify our Maker. 'Hallowed by thy name' expresses the desire that we ourselves and all rational beings with us should give God glory in this way." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 45.)

So, J.I. Packer would say that this petition is that we and everyone else would give God the praise and gratitude that He deserves.

The Heidelberg Catechism asks (Q&A 122), "What does the first petition mean?" Answer: "'Hallowed by your name' means: Help us to truly know you, to honor, glorify, and praise you for all your works and for all that shines forth from them: your almighty power, wisdom, kindness, justice, mercy, and truth. And it means, Help us to direct all our living -- what we think, say, and do -- so that your name will never be blasphemed because of us but always honored and praised."

William Barclay writes that 'to hallow' means 'to hold in reverence.' He adds, "If we, then, pray, 'Hallowed by Thy name', the prayer means, 'May you be given that unique reverence which your character and nature and personality, as you have revealed them to us, demand.' The prayer is that God may be given that reverence which his divine being demands and necessitates, and which, through his self-revelation, we well know to be due him." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 41.)

William Barclay writes, "To hallow God's name is to give God the reverence, the honor, the glory, the praise, the exaltation which his character demands." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 41.)

John Calvin wrote, "That God's name should be hallowed is nothing other than to say that God should have his own honor, of which he is worthy, so that men should never think or speak of him without the greatest veneration."

William Barclay wrote, "... we pray that God may receive the reverence which his unique character and nature deserve and demand." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 42.)

Al Mohler writes, "God repeatedly indicates that when he acts he does so for the sake of his name, that is for his own glory." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 62.)

Psalm 23:3

Ps 25:11

Ps 31:3

Ps 79:9

Is 43:6-7

Is 48:9-11

Ezek 20:14

Ezek 36:22

Al Mohler writes, "By asking that the name of God be 'hallowed,' Jesus is asking God to so move and act in the world that people value his glory, esteem his holiness, and treasure his character above all else... that God's glory and holiness be known and loved as it deserves." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 64.)

Al Mohler asks, "How then does God 'hallow his name' in the world? (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 65.)

First, it is a request that the church be sanctified. "The church is the steward of God's name... We must petition God to 'hallow his name' in our discipleship, in our prayer, in our preaching, in our witnessing, in our work, and in eternity. Our ultimate concern is not that our lives be comfortable, but that God be glorified, and that our lives, even our prayers, put God's glory on display."
Second, it is also an evangelistic petition, for "the more people there are who come to know Christ, the more people exist who revere God's character and hallow his name."

In Exodus 34:5-7, the Lord proclaimed his name, "the LORD," to Moses, followed by a description of His character. Thus, God's name represents God's revealed character.

Spiros Zodhiates says, "Actually, 'hallow' doesn't mean 'to make holy,' but 'to exhibit as holy.' The Greek word is hagiastheto, from hagios, which means 'separated' or 'saint.' But it involves the idea of separation because of purity. There is a distinct moral connotation to the term. It's something that's set apart as different from that which is around it. Our first concern in prayer is that everything which takes place contributes to the realization that God is pure, undefiled, and holy... God will not answer our individual petitions for anything of which the end result is not the recognition by the whole universe of the holiness of God." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 120.)

Ezek 36:23

Is 29:23

Spiros Zodhiates wrote, "Prayer for the hallowing of God's name is a recognition of a personal responsibility to live holy lives worthy of that name." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 125.)

Psalm 8:1

Ps 72:19

Neh 9:5

Ps 99:3

Warren Wiersbe explains that part of what hallowing God's name means is magnifying His name. "While we live in this world, one of our responsibilities is to magnify the name of the Lord. If we truly reverence Jesus in our hearts, we will ask God to use us to magnify him before an unbelieving world. To most people, Jesus seems very far away, so we should be like telescopes that bring him clsoer so people can see him in us. Jesus seems very small and insignificant next to the media celebrites and sports heroes that people adore, but we should be like microscopes that make him larger and very important." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 54.)

William Barclay (The Lord's Prayer, p. 45.) points to the commentary of August Tholuck to understand what it means to hallow God's name in everyday life. Tholuck found that commentators interpret its application in three different ways:

God's name should never be profaned but always named with reverence. This is too narrow because it only refers to a man's words.
God must be praised and glorified in words. This is too narrow because it is confined to a man praising God in church.
God must be reverenced in the heart, and our outward walk and conversation should continually show this inward reverence, since from such a life others too are moved to reverence God. Barclay concludes, "There is no doubt which is the correct interpretation. The reverence which is demanded cannot be confined to words; it cannot be confined to the liturgy and praises of the Church, however splendid they may be; it must be lived and demonstrated in every moment of our lives, both in the Church and in the real world."

William Barclay adds that the early church fathers said that this reverence for God is applied in three ways (The Lord's Prayer, p. 45):

We reverence God when our beliefs concerning God are such as are worthy of God. True doctrine and true teaching reverence for God.
We reverence God when our life is such that i brings honor to God and attracts others to him. Rm 2:24; Mt 5:16

Barclay adds, "The name of God can only be hallowed when emery action of our life is a witness to our faith in him, and when we continuously bring credit to the name we bear... And, if the Christian is just as likely to collapse under sorrow, if his life is just as frustrated and unsatisfied as the life of the non-Christian, if he is just as worried and anxious, just as nervous and restless, just as guilty of petty dishonesty, of self-seeking, of measuring everything by material values as the man who makes no profession of Christianity, then quite clearly no one will want Christianity because the obvious conclusion is that it makes no different anyway."
The German philosopher Nietschze said, "Show me that you are redeemed and then I will believe in your redeemer."

We reverence God when we enthrone God within our hearts. When we enthrone him as King within our hearts.

An early church father, Gregory of Nyssa, in his third sermon on the Lord's Prayer, said that when he prays this petition he really means the following: "May I become through thy help blameless, just and pious, may I abstain from every evil, speak the truth, and do justice. May I walk in the straight path, shining with temperance, adorned with incorruption, beautiful through wisdom and prudence. May I meditate upon the things that are above and despise what is earthly, showing an angelic way of life.... For a man can glorify God in no other way save by his virtue which bears witness that the Divine Power is the cause of his goodness." (William Barclay, The Lord's Prayer, p. 49.)

Al Mohler wrote, "God's name is essentially shorthand for God himself... But it is also the case that God's name often refers to his public reputation. Just as we speak of 'having a good name' as a way to refer to a good reputation, the Old Testament uses the same idiom to refer to God's reputation." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 61.)

Spiros Zodhiates wrote, "A name is the summary of a person." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 117.)

R.T. Kendall said, "The Lord's Prayer is given to teach us primarily to seek God's face, not His hand. Seeking His hand is to ask Him to 'do this' or 'do that' for us. Seeking His face is to honor His personhood, His character, His heart and His own agenda... It is a God-centered prayer." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 224.)

Jesus was devoted to the Father's agenda: Jn 5:19; Jn 5:43; Jn 4:34

R.T. Kendall writes, "I therefore regard my prayer for God's name to be hallowed as a commitment to be the kind of person who brings glory to God's name." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 227.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "I must be careful never to abuse or misuse the name of God (Ex 20:7)." We misuse God's name when we use it as a curse word, when we claim to have God's backing in what we stand for, or when we claim that God told us to do something that He didn't tell us to do. (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 227.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "To pray 'Hallowed by your name' is to pray for the advancement of the reputation of the Father's name. You are thus praying that the Father's name will be held in the honor that name deserves, in order that people may never think of Him without highest reverence. It is our prayer that the whole world will bow before God." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 227.)

The NIV Study Bible says, "This petition is that he so achieve his saving purposes in the world that his holiness is displayed before the eyes of the world’s people and acknowledged by them—which will happen only as his kingdom fully arrives. name."

John Piper wrote, "When Jesus tells us to pray 'Hallowed be your name', he means that we should pray this for anyone who does not yet hallow God's name." (What Jesus Demands, p. 111.)

The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology says, "This expression here (perhaps based on an ancient Aramaic prayer) means not only to reverence and honor God but also to glorify him by obeying his commands. This petition and the next one ("your kingdom come") are a cry from the depths of distress. From a world enslaved by evil, death, and Satan, the disciples are to lift their eyes to the Father and cry out for the revelation of his glory and kingdom, knowing in faith that he will grant it. The goal for which the Christian prays is not the sanctification of the world through God, but the sanctification of God through the world."

RC Sproul “We often confuse the words ‘hallowed be thy name” with part of the address as if the words were ‘hallowed is your name.’ In that case the words would merely be an ascription of praise to God. But that is not how Jesus said it. He uttered it as a petition, as the first petition. We should be praying that God’s name be hallowed, that God be regarded as holy. There is a kind of sequence in the prayer. God’s kingdom will never come where His name is not hallowed. His will is not done on earth as it is in heaven if His name is desecrated here...It is foolish to look for the kingdom anywhere God is not revered.” (The Holiness of God, p. 25.)

name | Word Study | 3686: name (onoma)

J.I. Packer wrote, "Name in the Bible means 'person.'" (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 22.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "God's 'name' in the Bible regularly means the person he has revealed himself to be." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 42.)

J.I. Packer wrote that God's name refers to God Himself. (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 44.)

William Barclay wrote, "In biblical times the name stood for more than the name by which a person is called in the modern sense of the term. The name stood for the whole character of the person as it was known, manifested, or revealed. As Origen puts it... name is a term which summarizes and manifests the personal character of him who is named. The name stands for 'the personal and incommunicable character' of the person. The name of God, therefore, stands for the nature and the character and the personality of God as they have been revealed to men." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 38.)

William Barclay writes, "The name can stand for nothing less that God himself." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 39.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "His name is all that is true of God, for God's name is what He is." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 228.)

honored | Word Study | 37: honored / hallowed (hagiazo)

This verb appears in the Synoptic gospels only here and at Mt 23:17, and Mt 23:19.

The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology says of the usage of hagiazo in the Lord's Prayer (Mt 6:9), "This expression here (perhaps based on an ancient Aramaic prayer) means not only to reverence and honor God but also to glorify him by obeying his commands. This petition and the next one ("your kingdom come") are a cry from the depths of distress. From a world enslaved by evil, death, and Satan, the disciples are to lift their eyes to the Father and cry out for the revelation of his glory and kingdom, knowing in faith that he will grant it. The goal for which the Christian prays is not the sanctification of the world through God, but the sanctification of God through the world."

Traditionally the word is translated "hallowed" in the Lord's Prayer (Mt 6:9).

Comes from the word hagios (G40), which is usually translated "holy."

Warren Wiersbe wrote, "To hallow something means to set it apart as special, to dedicate it, to consecrate it to God for his special use. In the New Testament, it's a translation of the Greek word hagiazo." (On Earth as it is in Heaven, p. 52.)

William Barclay writes that hagiazein has two basic meanings (The Lord's Prayer, p. 39.):

First, it means to make an ordinary secular thing holy, by certain rituals or by bringing into contact with things which are holy.
Second, to treat as holy, that is, to hold sacred. To hallow a thing is to regard and to treat that thing as holy and sacred.

William Barclay points out that the word is used in the Septuagint in Dt 32:51 of Moses. God instructed Moses to speak to the rock and God would cause water to come out, but Moses was disobedient and struck the rock with his staff. They were punished because they did not "sanctify" (hagiazo) God among the Israelites. The Moffatt translation translates it, "because you did not vindicate my honor." The Smith-Goodspeed translation translates it, "because you did not pay me my due honor." Barclay concludes, "Basically the idea is that the action of Moses was an action of irreverence in that it implied disobedience to God and distrust of God; by, as it were, taking the law into his own hands, Moses had been guilty of irreverence towards God. So then, we arrive at the conclusion that 'to hallow' means 'to reverence... 'To hallow' is 'to hold in reverence.'" (The Lord's Prayer, p. 40.)

William Barclay points out that the church fathers used certain words as the equivalent of hagiazein (The Lord's Prayer, p. 41):

Chrysostom equates it with doxazein, which means to glorify or to honor.
Origen equates it with hupsoun, which means to exalt or to lift on high.
Some equate it with the word eulogein, which means to bless or to praise.

Al Mohler writes that the word hallow means "to make holy" or "consider as holy." (The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, p. 61.)

The word is found in 1 Pt 3:15, where it is translated by different versions...

CSB: regard Christ the Lord as holy
ESV: honor Christ the Lord as holy
HCSB: honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts
NIV: revere Christ as Lord
NLT: worship Christ as the Lord of your life
KJV: sanctify the Lord God in your hearts
GW: dedicate your lives to Christ your Lord
CEV: Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life
NCV: But respect Christ as the holy Lord

10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Your kingdom come

The idea of God's kingdom is used fifty times in Jesus' teaching in Matthew alone. The phrase "kingdom of heaven" is found only in Matthew, occurring 33 times. Matthew only uses the term "kingdom of God" 4 times (NIV Study Bible, Mt 3:2).

The word "kingdom" is found in every chapter of Matthew except 1, 2, 14, 15, and 17.

In Matthew 6:33 Jesus commands us to seek first the kingdom of God. What does it mean to seek the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God can be explained with three words:

Anticipation. The kingdom of God was promised in the Old Testament when God promised to send a king from the line of David who would redeem Israel from its enemies and who would establish an eternal kingdom (Ps 89:4; Is 9:6-7; Dan 2:44).
Inauguration. The kingdom of God was inaugurated (started, introduced) by Jesus when He started His ministry (Mk 1:15). Jesus was clear that His kingdom was spiritual, not political. He came to deliver Israel from sin, not from Rome. His kingdom is invisible, not territorial. It exists in the hearts of people who accept Christ as Lord and Savior, and it advances as more people turn to Christ.
Consummation. Even though the kingdom presently exists as Christ reigns in the hearts of His followers, it is not yet completed, as there exists many things in the world that are outside His will. But one day King Jesus will return to earth in the flesh to destroy all evil and its effects and create a new heavens and earth where He will reign for all eternity. The kingdom, therefore, is already, but not yet. It is already here, but not yet completed. Already inaugurated, but not yet consummated.

With that in mind, to seek the kingdom of God means to seek (1) the realm of the king (enter into a right relationship with Jesus; (2) the rule of the king (bring your life into complete submission to Jesus); and (3) the resolve of the king (seek to bring others into the realm and under the rule of Jesus).

The NIV Study Bible (Mt 3:2) says, "The 'kingdom of heaven/God' in the preaching of Jesus as recounted in the Gospels is the reign of God that he brings about through Jesus Christ—i.e., the establishment of God’s rule in the hearts and lives of his people, the overcoming of all the forces of evil, the removal from the world of all the consequences of sin—including death and all that diminishes life—and the creation of a new order of righteousness and peace."

The bible says that there are two spiritual kingdoms, and every person on earth is a citizen of one or the other.

The kingdom of Satan:

Unbelievers are citizens of this kingdom.
Called the “domain of darkness.” Col 1:13
Satan is in charge. They are under his authority; his control. Acts 26:18; 1 Jn 5:18-19; Eph 2:1-3
The Bible says unbelievers belong to the devil (1Jn 3:8); Satan is working in them (Eph 2:1-3); they are children of the devil, and carry out the devil’s desires (Jn 8:44).

The kingdom of God:

God is in charge.
The kingdom of God is not just in heaven. It is on earth. It is wherever you find people who live under His authority and protection.
When Jesus came to earth, He inaugurated the Kingdom of God (Lk 17:21).
When a person becomes a Christian, your citizenship is transferred. God rescues you from Satan’s kingdom and puts you into the kingdom of God.
Colossians 1:13 “He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.”

Haley's Bible Handbook (P. 549) says, “What was the kingdom that Jesus came to found? Not a political kingdom, but God’s reign in the hearts of people that will control and transform their lives. The human heart is the realm in which Jesus came to reign. He came for all mankind to love Him, so that He can change us into His own image. Out of an affection for Him, devotion to Him, and adoration of Him will grow all the beauty and comfort in life, the transformation of character, the regeneration of the soul.”

To pray for the kingdom of God to come is to ask God to help more and more people seek the realm, rule, and resolve of King Jesus.

J.I. Packer wrote, "God's 'kingdom' means the public display of his ruling power in salvation, and the prayer for his kingdom to come is a plea that his lordship might be seen and submitted to, and his saving grace experienced, all the world over, till Christ returns and all things are made new." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 22.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "The Kingdom of heaven is best defined as the conscious presence and enabling grace of God." (The Sermon on the Mount, p. 211.)

The Complete Word Study Dictionary says, "Spiritually the kingdom of God is within the human heart (Lk 17:21). Both expressions [kingdom of God, kingdom of heaven] also refer to the prophecies of Dan 2:44; 7:13f. and denote the everlasting kingdom which God the Father will give to Christ the Son, namely, the spiritual and eternal kingdom which is to subsist first in more imperfect circumstances on earth, but afterwards will appear complete in the world of glory (Matt. 25:31ff.; Mark 13:26f.; Luke 21:27f.). In some verses the kingdom of heaven more particularly signifies God's rule within us while we are on this earth."

The Complete Word Study Dictionary says the kingdom of God refers to "the divine spiritual kingdom, the glorious reign of the Messiah. The idea of the kingdom has its basis in the prophecies of the OT where the coming of the Messiah and His triumphs are foretold (e.g., Ps. 2; 110; Is. 2:1–4; 11:1ff.; Jer. 23:5ff.; 31:31ff.; 32:37ff.; 33:14ff.; Ezek. 34:23ff.; 37:24ff.; Mic. 4:1ff., and especially Dan. 2:44; 7:14, 27; 9:25ff.). His reign is described as a golden age when true righteousness will be established, and with it the theocracy will be established bringing peace and happiness. Prior to the visible manifestation of this kingdom and its extension to the material and natural realms of the world, it exists spiritually in the hearts of men, and thus it was understood by Zacharias (Luke 1:67ff.); Simeon (Luke 2:25ff.); Anna (Luke 2:36ff.); Joseph (Luke 23:50, 51)."

The Complete Word Study Dictionary says, "The Jews, however, generally gave to these prophecies a temporal meaning and expected a Messiah who should come in the clouds of heaven. As king of the Jewish people, He was expected to restore the ancient Jewish religion and worship, reform the corrupt morals of the people, make expiation for their sins, give freedom from the yoke of foreign dominion, and at length reign over the whole earth in peace and glory."

The Complete Word Study Dictionary says, "The concept of the kingdom in the OT is partly fulfilled in the NT. First we have the Christian dispensation. The kingdom of heaven or God on earth, consisting of the community of those who receive Jesus as their Savior, and who, through the Holy Spirit, form His Church with Him as its head. This spiritual kingdom has both an internal and external form. As internal, it already exists and rules in the hearts of all Christians and is therefore present. As external, it is either embodied both in the visible and invisible Church, and thus is present and progressive; or it is to be perfected in the coming of the Son of Man to judge and reign in bliss and glory. This is the further realization of the kingdom of God in the future."

J.I. Packer writes the God is king in two senses. First, He is king "in the sense of being sovereign over his world." Packer also describes this as "God's universal sovereign sway" in which he "sovereignly overrules the lives and doings of all men, including those who deliberately defy and disobey him." As examples he mentions the cases of both Joseph (Gen 50:20) and Jesus (Acts 2:23), in which men carried out evil against God's servants, yet God used their evil works for good and for the advancement of His agenda. Packer describes this as God's kingship, which he distinguishes from God's kingdom, which is the second way that God is king. God's kingdom "is a reality of redemption, properly called grace," and "... his redemptive relationship to individuals through Jesus Christ." Packer writes that "thy kingdom come" uses the word "kingdom" in the latter sense, and "thine is the kingdom" uses the word in the former sense. (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 49-50.)

J.I. Packer writes, "So God's kingdom is not a place, but rather a relationship. It exists wherever people enthrone Jesus as Lord of their lives." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 50.)

J.I. Packer writes, "When Jesus began preaching that 'the kingdom of God is at hand' (literally, 'has drawn near'), he meant that the long promised enjoyment of God's salvation for which Israel had been waiting was now there for them to enter (Mk 1:15). How were they to enter it?... Why, by becoming Jesus' disciples; by giving him their hearts' loyalty, and letting him reshape their lives; by receiving forgiveness from him; by identifying with his concerns; by loving him without reserve, and giving his claims precedence over all others -- in short, by manifesting what Paul called 'faith working through love' (Gal 5:6), faith that acknowledges and embraces Jesus Christ as, in Peter's phrase, 'Lord and Savior' (2 Pt 1:11; 2:20; 3:2, 18)." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 50-51.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "The kingdom arrived with Jesus... His rule over Christians is regal in the full-blooded biblical sense, personal, direct, absolute. His claims are the claims of God, overriding those of man. Yet his rule is not tyranny, for King Jesus is his people's servant, their shepherd and champion, ordering all things for their protection and enrichment (see Mt 11:30)... His rule has the nature, not of dictatorship, but of pastoral care (see Jn 10:14)." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 51.)

J.I. Packer writes, "In one sense, the kingdom is here now, and Christians are in it. But in another sense -- that of perfecting the display of God's grace in the world -- the kingdom remains future and awaits Christ's return. The prayer 'thy kingdom come' looks on to that day. But this does not exhaust its meaning. Any request for a new display of God's sovereignty in grace -- renewing the church, converting sinners, restraining evil, providing good in this world -- is a further spelling out of 'thy kingdom come.'" (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 52-53.)

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q122) says, "What does the second request mean? 'Your kingdom come' means, Rule us by Your word and Spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to You. Keep Your church strong, and add to it. Destroy the devil's work; destroy every force which revolts against You and every conspiracy against Your word. Do this until Your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it You are all in all."

Kevin DeYoung says, "In other words, the kingdom has come where the King has His way. Faith and repentance, and the goldy life that follows in their wake, are unchangeable requirements for membership in the kingdom. We want to live like Christ, show people Christ, and make a difference for Christ, but also call people to renounce their rebellion against God, flee worldliness, and be ready to meet the King when He returns to finally establish His kingdom in full." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, p. 223.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "There is a strong connection, which the [Heidelberg] Catechism picks up on, between the kingdom and the church, which is why the Catechism says the two should not be separated, as if we can ignore the church to focus on the kingdom. There is nothing more important in all the world for the fulfillment of God's plan and the spread of His glory than strong churches."

According to George Ladd, there are five different aspects in the relationship between the kingdom and the church. (A Theology of the New Testament, 103-117.)

The church is not the kingdom.
The kingdom creates the church.
The church gives witness to the kingdom.
The church acts as the instrument of the kingdom.
The church acts as custodian of the kingdom.

Kevin DeYoung writes, "... our prayer for the kingdom to come is not only a prayer for the strength of the church but for the spread of righteousness, justice, grace, and submission to God's Word in the world." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 224.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "... in praying for the kingdom to come, we must pray for the conquering of the King's enemies. We are not praying a namby-pamby prayer for niceness to take over the world. We are asking God to crush His enemies, vanquish His foes, and destroy every power that rises in opposition to His Christ and His Word." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 225.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "Theologians like to talk of the 'already and not yet' of the kingdom. That is, the kingdom has been inaugurated, but it has not been fully established... This means, on the one hand, we should not think of the kingdom of God as Christ's millennial reign sometime in the future. And on the other hand, we should not expect the kingdom to exist among us now in an utopian world of peace and brotherly love. An 'already and not yet' understanding of the kingdom gives us hope for improvement in the world, tempered by a realism that acknowledges the continuing presence of sin, enmity, and rebellion." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 225.)

Al Mohler writes that the second petition, thy kingdom come, shows us how God's name is hallowed in the world. "God reveals his character and reputation as his kingdom spreads to every corner of the earth and as citizens of that kingdom do God's will on earth as it is in heaven." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 72.)

Al Mohler writes, "What is the kingdom of God? That question is one of the oldest and most hotly contested theological issues in the Christian church." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 74.)

Graeme Goldsworthy has defined the kingdom of God as "God's people in God's place under God's rule and blessing." (According to Plan.)

Al Mohler writes, "In our current stage in redemptive history, therefore, God's kingdom is made up of those who believe in Christ (God's people) gathered in local churches across the world (God's place) under the law of Christ and partaking of the new covenant (God's rule and blessing)." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 86.)

Al Mohler says, "Thus, while we are indeed in God's kingdom, we still await the completion of the Great Commission. We still await the coming of the king and the destruction of all wickedness. We long of the day when we will no longer be the church militant, but the church triumphant." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 86.)

Al Mohler writes, "God's kingdom is essentially his reign over his people for their good and his glory." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 88.)

Al Mohler writes, "This leads to a further question: According to Scripture, how does the kingdom of God come from heaven to earth?... Theological liberals in the early twentieth century argued that the kingdom of God arrived through moral reform and social justice. This view, sometimes called the 'social gospel'... saw the kingdom of God as something humanity itself could achieve through social action. Theological conservatives have sometimes also erred in thinking that Christians can usher in the kingdom through political action and cultural influence. The problem with this way of thinking is, of course, that Jesus' kingdom is not of this world (Jn 18:36). Political power and cultural influence are not unimportant, but they can never change the hearts of sinners nor provide the forgiveness of sins. The Bible teaches that God's kingdom only comes as God's preach God's Word, which, coupled with God's Spirit, produces life and obedience." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 88.)

R.C. Sproul says this petition is for "the manifestation of the kingdom of God." (The Prayer of the Lord, 42.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "Thus, when Jesus old His followers to pray, 'Your kingdom come,' He was making them participants in His own mission to spread the reign of God on this planet so that it might reflect the way God's reign is established in heaven to this day." (The Prayer of the Lord, 46.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "John Calvin said it is the task of the church to make the invisible kingdom visible. We do that by living in such a way that we bear witness to the reality of the kingship of Christ in our jobs, our families, our schools, and even our checkbooks, because God in Christ is King over every one of these spheres of life. The only way the kingdom is going to be manifest in this world before Christ comes is if we manifest it by the way we live as citizens of heaven and subjects of the King." (The Prayer of the Lord, 51.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "At the heart of this theme is the idea of God's messianic kingdom. It is a kingdom that will be ruled by God's appointed Messiah, who will be not just the Redeemer of His people, but their King. So when John speaks of the radical nearness of this breakthrough, the intrusion of the kingdom of God, he's speaking of this kingdom of the Messiah." (The Prayer of the Lord, 47.)

A.W. Pink points out that this second petition "is the most brief and yet the most comprehensive." (The Lord's Prayer, 23.)

A.W. Pink writes that there is a threefold application when we pray the second petition: (The Lord's Prayer, 25.)

"First, it applies to the external sphere of God's grace here on earth: 'Let Thy Gospel be preached and the power of Thy Spirit attend it; let Thy Church be strengthened; let Thy cause on earth be advanced and the works of Satan be destroyed!'"
"Second, it applies to God's internal Kingdom, that is, His spiritual reign of grace within the hearts of men: 'Let Thy throne be established in our hearts; let Thy laws be administered in our lives and Thy name be magnified by our walk.'"
"Third, it applies to God's Kingdom in its future glory: 'Let the Day be hastened when Satan and his hosts shall be completely vanquished, when Thy people shall be done with sinning forever, and when Christ shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied (Is 53:11).'"

A.W. Pink points to the following uses of the second petition, "Thy kingdom come." (The Lord's Prayer, 27.)

"We ought to bewail and confess our own failures to promote the Kingdom of God, and those of others. It is our duty to confess before God our wretched, natural depravity and the awful proclivity of our flesh to serve sin and the interests of Satan. We ought to mourn the sad state of the world and its woeful transgressions of God's Law, by which God is dishonored and the kingdom of Satan furthered."
"We are to earnestly seek those graces that twill make our lives a sanctifying influence in the world, in order that God's Kingdom might be both built and maintained. We are to endeavor to subject ourselves to the commandments of Christ that we are wholly ruled by Him, always ready to do His bidding."
"Having prayed for God's enabling, we are to perform all the duties appointed to us by God, bringing forth the fruits that pertain to God's Kingdom. This we are to do with all diligence, using all the Divinely appointed means for the furthering of God's Kingdom."

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Q191) says, "In the second petition (which is, Thy kingdom come), acknowledging ourselves and all mankind to be by nature under the dominion of sin and Satan, we pray, that the kingdom of sin and Satan may be destroyed, the gospel propagated throughout the world, the Jews called, the fulness of the Gentiles brought in; the church furnished with all gospel officers and ordinances, purged from corruption, countenanced and maintained by the civil magistrate: that the ordinances of Christ may be purely dispensed, and made effectual to the converting of those that are yet in their sins, and the confirming, comforting, and building up of those that are already converted: that Christ would rule in our hearts here, and hasten the time of his second coming, and our reigning with him forever: and that he would be pleased so to exercise the kingdom of his power in all the world, as may best conduce to these ends."

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q102) says, "In the second petition, which is, Thy kingdom come, we pray, that Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed; and that the kingdom of grace may be advanced, ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it; and that the kingdom of glory may be hastened."

The Gospel of Mark summarized the message of Jesus in Mk 1:14-15 (see also Mt 4:17). "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!"

William Barclay says "Thy kingdom come" is the "central petition of the Lord's Prayer, for it is quite certain that the Kingdom of God was the central message and proclamation of Jesus." (The Lord's Prayer, 52.)

William Barclay begins his discussion on the kingdom of God with two "general facts" (The Lord's Prayer, 52.):

"It might be better to talk of the kingship or of the reign of God. In modern speech the word kingdom is apt to mean a certain territory or area of land... But in the New Testament the kingdom is not a territory; it is the reign of God."
The terms "kingdom of God" and "kingdom of heaven" are synonyms. "The two phrases mean exactly the same and it is an error to try to make any distinction between them." Matthew rarely uses the term "kingdom of God," and almost always says "kingdom of heaven." Mark and Luke rarely use the term "kingdom of heaven." Barclay says that the reason is that Matthew is the most Jewish of the gospel writers, and as a Jew he tried to avoid using God's name.

William Barclay makes an observation which, if correct, greatly impacts the meaning of the phrase "kingdom of God." He writes, "Hebrew literary style is marked by the continuous use of parallelism. It is common Hebrew practice to say everything twice; and the second arm of the parallel restates, or amplifies, or explains the first." As examples, Barclay points to Psalm 46:7 and Psalm 121:5. When it comes to the Lord's prayer, two petitions appear side by side: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Barclay says, "If we may assume that there is an instance of normal Hebrew parallelism, and that the second arm of the parallel explains and defines the first, then we can arrive at the definition: The kingdom of God is a society upon earth in which God's will is as perfectly done as it is in heaven. That is to say, to do the will of God and to be in the kingdom are one and the same thing." (The Lord's Prayer, 53-54.)

William Barclay adds, "The kingdom involves the individual acceptance of the will of God. Therefore to pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' is to pray, 'Lord, help me to do your will.'" (The Lord's Prayer, 55.)

William Barlcay writes that the kingdom of God begins with an invitation of God to every person to accept His will. "It may be pictured as a feast and a banquet to which the host issues invitations, which the guests can either accept or refuse to their glory or their shame (Mt 22:1-14; Lk 14:16-24). To enter the kingdom is to accept the invitation of God to be his guest, and a guest must always accept the laws and rules of the family into which he enters." (The Lord's Prayer, 57.)

William Barclay writes that the kingdom of God and repentance go hand in hand. "The initial message of Jesus was a summons to repent because God was about to begin his reign (Mk 1:14; Mt 4:17). Repentance is literally a change of mind (metanoia); and conversion is literally a turning round and a facing in the opposite direction. The instinctive human relationship to life is to make our own will, wishes and desires the dominating and moving force in life. When a man enters the kingdom he has that change of mind which makes him stop obeying his own will and begin accepting God's will, which makes him stop looking at himself and start looking at God. A Christian is a man who has accepted the fact that he can never again do what he likes; and that he must for ever after do what God likes. The Christian life begins for a man, and the entry to the kingdom begins for him, when like Paul on the Damascus road, his one question is: 'What shall I do, Lord?' (Acts 22:10)." (The Lord's Prayer, 56.)

William Barlcay writes, "The Jews saw the kingdom in terms of material prosperity, in terms of political power, in terms of national greatness. In the kingdom of God they expected the world to be luxuriant with new beauty and new plenty; thy expected the Jews at last to take their place in world leadership... True these things are part of the kingdom, but they are the end not the beginning of the kingdom; they are not so much the kingdom itself as the results of the kingdom. 'My kingdom is within (or among) you,' Jesus said (Lk 17:21). Jesus was quite clear that the initial change must come in people, for, if it did notany new situation would simply relapse into the old all over again. The different demand that Jesu made was that the individual person must accept the will of God before there could be any change in society at large." (The Lord's Prayer, 58.)

William Barclay writes that "to be in the kingdom and to accept and do the will of God are one and the same thing...." (The Lord's Prayer, 58.)

William Barclay summarizes some of the Bible's teachings on the kingdom of God: (The Lord's Prayer, 58.)

To enter the kingdom of God is worth any effort.

Mt 6:33 "Make the kingdom of God the object of all your endeavor."
Lk 16:16. "The word used for 'entering violently' or 'pressing into' is biazesthai, which si the word used of an army storming a city in a desperate attempt to gain an entry. Matthew repeats the saying (Mt 11:12). It is possible, especially in its Matthew version, that this saying refers to the violent persecution and attack that the kingdom has suffered; but it is more likely, especially in its Luke version, that this saying has the idea of men storming their way into the kingdom as valorous troops would storm their way into a city. 'The kingdom of heaven,' Denny somewhere writes, 'is not for the well-meaning but for the desperate.' The dilettante Christian will never gain entry into the kingdom. The kingdom is for those who are desperately in earnest... Quite simply the meaning is: It is wroth any effort, it is worth any agony, it is worth any blood and sweat and tears to do the will of God, and therefore to be a citizen and member of the kingdom."

The kingdom of God is worth any price. "Jesus told the twin parables of the treasure hid in the field and the pearl of great price (Mt 13:44-46). In both cases the discoverer of the treasure gave his all to become the possessor of the treasure... The meaning is that there is no price too high to pay to be a member of the kingdom and to do the will of God."
To enter the kingdom of God is worth any sacrifice. "The hand, the eye, the foot, which are liable to become a cause of sin have to be torn out and cut off and thrown away (Mt 10:29-30). No sacrifice is too radical and too surgical to make, if it is the price of entering the kingdom and doing the will of God."

William Barclay writes about the qualifications which fit a man to enter the kingdom. (The Lord's Prayer, 60.)

The kingdom and its blessings belong to the poor in spirit (Mt 5:3). "In Greek the word is ptochos, and it means, not only poor, but absolutely and completely destitute. It translates the Hebrew word ani, which describes the poor, humble man, who in his helplessness and his trouble has put his whole trust in God. This then means that the kingdom belongs to those who have recognized their own total destitution and who put their whole trust in God. Entry to the kingdom belongs to the man who humbly rests his poverty in God's wealth, his ignorance in God's wisdom, his sin in God's mercy, his moral failure and his battle with temptation in God's grace."
The kingdom and its blessings belong to those who are persecuted for righteousness (Mt 5:10). "The persecuted are clearly those who love God's will more than personal comfort, personal reputation, personal ambition, personal safety and security, more than even life itself."
Possession of the childlike spirit (Mt 18:2-3; Mk 10:14-15; Mt 19:14; Lk 18:16-17). "The child has two great qualities -- humility and trust. A normal child does not want prominence, place and prestige. A normal child never doubts that his home will be there waiting for him; he will set out on a journey with his parents on which he does not know the way and on which he can pay for nothing in perfect trust. Humility and trust are the passports to the kingdom."
Righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees. Barclay interprets this to mean that as Christians we are called to a life of love, which is far more than keeping the letter of the law.

William Barclay also outlines some of the barriers to entry to the kingdom. (The Lord's Prayer, 62.)

Lip service. "It is not the man who says Lord, Lord, who will enter the kingdom but the man who does the will of God (mt 7:21)."
The unforgiving spirit. Mt 18:23-25
Riches make enter into the kingdom very difficult. Mt 19:23-24; Mk 10:23-27; Lk 18:24-25

William Barclay summarizes the meaning of the second petition. "It is a prayer that we should accept the will of God; that we should pay the price of that acceptance; that we should cleanse life of all that hinders that acceptance; that we should get to ourselves the things which are the passports to the kingdom." (The Lord's Prayer, 65.)

William Barclay writes, "To pray for the kingdom of heaven is to pray that we may submit our wills entirely to the will of God.” (Daily Study Bible, Mt 6:10.)

James Boice writes, "... the kingdom of God comes wherever men believe in Christ and respond to the gospel...." (The Sermon on the Mount, 179.)

James Boice says, "What is God doing in this age? God is calling out a people to himself. He is taking persons of every imaginable condition and from every part of this globe... and he is turning them into men and women in whom Jesus Christ is present and in whom his winsome and righteous character can be seen. In this spiritual aspect the kingdom of God is the rule of Jesus Christ in the lives of those who have been spiritual reborn and who are being daily and increasingly transformed. Therefore, when we pray, 'Your kingdom com,' we ask first that God's gracious rule may come in us, and second that it might come through us to others. Moreover, we take confidence in the fact that it will one day come fully in power in the personal rule of the Lord Jesus Christ at the end of history." (The Sermon on the Mount, 182.)

John 18:36

Luke 17:21

R.T. Kendall wrote that the Jews thought the kingdom of God "would be visible, victorious and exalting Israel over all other nations, especially Rome... They were looking for the nation of Israel to be put back on the map." (The Sermon on the Mount, 230.)

R.T. Kendall wrote of the phrase "kingdom of God" that "Jesus primarily meant the rule of the un-grieved, unquenched Spirit in our hearts." (The Sermon on the Mount, 231.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "The kingdom was taught by Jesus as being the kind of experience God wants for His people -- now -- before Jesus comes again. This means experiencing an internal righteousness that exceeds the righteousness of the Pharisees... Therefore, when Jesus told us to pray, 'Your kingdom come,' He meant inviting the Holy Spirit so to dwell in us that we demonstrate the very righteousness Jesus had preached." (The Sermon on the Mount, 232.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, “The Holy Spirit is a very sensitive person and can be grieved. When He is grieved, it is as if the dove ) a NT symbol of the Spirit) gets frightened and flies away. Not that the Holy Spirit utterly leaves us -- no, that is not the case. But we temporarily lose the blessing of the Spirit -- the anointing. When the Holy Spirit is grieved, the anointing lifts from us; when the Holy Spirit is not grieved -- and the Spirit is Himself -- the anointing enables us to do what had been utterly impossible. This is why I said earlier that the kingdom is the rule of the un-grieved Spirit, and that is precisely what we pray for when we say, ‘Your kingdom come.’” (The Sermon on the Mount, 230.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "To pray, 'Your kingdom come,' is to pray for the success of the Gospel." (The Sermon on the Mount, 233.)

Warren Wiersbe said, "When we pray 'your kingdom come,' we affirm that God is King." (On Earth As It Is In Heaven, 66.)

Ps 24:10
Ps 29:10
Ps 47:2
Ps 47:7
Ps 47:8
Ps 95:3
Ps 97:1
Ps 99:1
Ps 145:1
Rev 1:5
Rev 17:14
1 Tim 1:17
1 Tim 6:15
Rev 19:16

Warren Wiersbe wrote, "The kingdom of God on earth is wherever the Son of God is loved and worshiped and God the Father is glorified through obedience to his will." (On Earth As It Is In Heaven, 70.)

Warren Wiersbe wrote, "'Your kingdom come' implies that God rules first of all in our lives and then through us in the lives of others as we pray for them and minister to them. We want God's kingdom to rule in homes and families, in places of employment and ministry, in various government offices and agencies, and in places of authority and ministry around the world." (On Earth As It Is In Heaven, 73.)

Spiros Zodhiates says there are four things God Jesus wanted us to understand by the second petition (The Lord's Prayer, 137.)

"First of all, that the kingdom of God is not yet fully established on earth, it has not yet come. God is not fully reigning on this earth yet, even though He is reigning in the hearts of those who believe in him."
"Secondly, we should understand that God's kingdom will be fully established at a certain point of time in the future."
"Thirdly... we acknowledge our utter dependence upon God." Zech 4:6
"Fourthly... we are acknowledging that we must do our part in making this kingdom a reality upon earth. And what is our part? It is to make His kingdom known, to proclaim the fact that He is the ruler of the universe, that He can rule now in the hears of people who believe in Him, and that one day He is coming back to rule in absolute righteousness."

Spiros Zodhiates asks about the sphere in which the kingdom of God is to come. (The Lord's Prayer, 141.)

"The first place that the Lord wants to reign is in our hearts.... First of all we are praying for ourselves. We are praying that God's rule may be absolute in our own hearts... No other person, no power, no position, no possession, should be allowed to rule in our heart. God must be the absolute and uncontested Sovereign... Thus when we pray this petition we are asking God to come and rule within our own hearts. Once He ahs come in, we must see to it that this rule is extended to every area of our lives. Whether it be the area of the spiritual or the physical; the mental or the emotional; the personal or the social; the vocational or the recreational -- all must be subjugated to His kingly rule."
"It will ultimately be extended throughout the whole world. Therefore we are to pray... not only for ourselves and our immediate surroundings, but also for the places where God has never yet been known. Every time we pray the Lord's prayer it should make us realize anew our responsibility to spread the gospel everywhere... We out to be 'Christian imperialists' in the best sense of the word, always seeking to extend the kingdom of God to the far corners of the earth."

Spiros Zodhiates explains, "We don't come into the kingdom of God by an external act or rite, we come into it as we open our hearts to the king and invite Him to enter, overthrow the forces of evil that have held sway there, and then rule as our Sovereign Lord." (The Lord's Prayer, 143.)

G.I. Williamson asks, "What is the nature of the kingdom of God for which we pray?" (The Westminster Shorter Catechism: For Study Classes, 332.)

A spiritual kingdom. "The Bible says God already rules over all things (Dan 4:35; Job 1:12)... When we pray 'thy kingdom come,' then, we are not praying that God will get control of all things. He already has this control. What we are praying for is what we sometimes call the kingdom of grace. We pray that the Spirit of God will work in the hearts of men to enable them to will and to do that which is pleasing to God. We might say that all men are ruled by God 'from the outside' by God's absolute sovereignty. But some men are also rule 'from the inside' (by God's Spirit) so that they are doing what God wants them to do because they want to... There is another reason for calling this a spiritual kingdom. It is because some have imagined that we are to pray for a political kingdom... The kingdom for which we pray in this petition is not political... It is the rule of God in the hearts of his people. It is a kingdom that knowns no national boundaries. It wins its victories by the word and Spirit of God."
An antithetical kingdom. "This means that it stands in opposition to everything else... We are praying for war -- conflict -- and victory, a world in which everything will be wholly on God's side."
An eschatological kingdom. "God's kingdom will not come in the final and ultimate sense until Christ returns to restore all things.

Ronald Dunn says the second petition means that "we are to pray that the rule of God will be established." (Don't Just Stand There, Pray Something, 185.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson first set out to show what "your kingdom come" does NOT mean: (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

He does not mean a political or earthly kingdom. Jn 18:36
It is not meant of God's providential kingdom. "This kingdom we do not pray for... for this kingdom is already come. God NOW exercises the kingdom of his providence in the world (Ps 103:19; Ps 75:7). Nothing stirs in the world but God has a hand in it... The kingdom of God's providence rules over all; kings do nothing what what his providence permits and orders."

Next, the Puritan Thomas Watson asks, "What kingdom is meant when we say, 'Your kingdom come'? Positively a twofold kingdom is meant. (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

"The kingdom of grace, which God exercises in the consciences of his people. This is God's lesser kingdom (regnum Dei mikron). When we pray, 'Your kingdom come,' we pray that the kingdom of grace may be set up in our hearts and increased."
"We pray also that the kingdom of glory may hasten, and that we may, in God's good time be translated into it. These two kingdom of grace and glory differ not in nature, but in degree only. The kingdom of grace is nothing but the beginning of the kingdom of glory. The kingdom of grace is glory in the seed; and the kingdom of glory is grace in the flower... The kingdom of grace is glory militant, and the kingdom of glory is grace triumphant."

The Puritan Thomas Watson points out that the natural man, before salvation, is in the kingdom of darkness (Col 1:13-14). The natural man is in the kingdom of darkness in the following ways: (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

He is under the darkness of ignorance. Eph 4:18. "... We have no saving knowledge of God."
The darkness of pollution. Rm 13:12.
The darkness of misery.

The Puritan Thomas Watson says, "That is the first thing implied, 'Your kingdom come'; we pray that we may be brought out of the kingdom of darkness." (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson says, "The second thing implied... is that we pray against the devil's kingdom; that his kingdom may be demolished in the world. His kingdom stands in opposition to Christ's kingdom... He has a kingdom (Jn 16:11). He got it by conquest: he conquered mankind in paradise. He has his throne (Rev 2:13). His throne is set up in the hearts of men; he does not care for their purses, but their hearts. He is served upon the knee (Eph 2:2; Rev 13:4). Satan's empire is very large. Most kingdoms in the world pay tribute to him." (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson writes that Satan's kingdom has two qualifications or characters: (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

It is a kingdom of impiety (it is regnum nequitiae). "Nothing but sin goes on in his kingdom. Murder and heresy, lust and treachery, oppression and division -- are the constant trade driven in his dominions. He is called 'the unclean spirit' Lk 11:24."
It is a kingdom of slavery (it is regnum servitutis). "He makes all his subjects slaves."

The Puritan Thomas Watson writes, "When we pray, 'Your kingdom come,' something is positively intended. We pray that the kingdom of grace may be set up in our hearts (Rm 14:17; Lk 17:21)." Watson goes on to describe the kingdom of grace. "Why is grace called a kingdom? Because when grace comes there is a kingly government set up in the soul. Grace rules the will and affections, and brings the whole man in subjection to Christ; it kings it in the soul, sways the scepter, subdues mutinous lusts, and keeps the soul in a spiritual decorum." (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson lists the following reasons why we must pray for the kingdom of grace to come into our hearts. Until and unless the kingdom of grace is set up in our hearts... (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

We have no right to the covenant of grace.
Our purest offerings are defiled.
We are loathsome in God's eyes. Zech 11:8
We are spiritually illegitimate. Jn 8:44
The kingdom of Satan is set up in them. Acts 26:18
We are exposed to the wrath of God.
We cannot die with comfort.

The Puritan Thomas Watson says that the second petition is also a prayer that "the kingdom of grace may increase, that it may come more into us... that grace may be increased, and that this kingdom may flourish still more in our souls." Watson explains that this is a prayer for more holiness, more spiritual strength to resist temptation, to forgive, to suffer affliction; more resistance to inner sins such as pride, envy, hypocrisy, etc. This is a prayer for more faith; "to trust in God's heart where we cannot see his hand; the believe His love through a frown; to persuade ourselves, when He has the face of an enemy, that He has the heart of a Father." This is a prayer for more holy zeal. This is a prayer for greater diligence and devotion to our calling; that is, to be excellent and cheerful in your job or career. This is a prayer that we grow in our love of the truth. It is a prayer that we can be instrumental to set up the kingdom of God in others. In other words, it s a prayer for spiritual growth and usefulness. (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson says this is also a prayer "that the kingdom of glory may hasten, and that God would in due time translate us into it." By kingdom of glory, Watson means "that glorious estate which the saints shall enjoy when they shall reign with God and angels forever." In the kingdom of glory there will be "a blessed freedom from all evil," which includes "the necessities of nature," "the imperfections of nature," such as our knowledge of both God and the nature. It includes "the toilsome labors of this life," "the original corruption," "all sorrows," "temptation," "all vexing cares," "all doubts and scruples," "all society with the wicked," "all signs of God's displeasure," "all divisions," "vanity and dissatisfaction," "the torments of hell." On the flip side, Watson outlines the privileges of the kingdom of glory, which include "communion with God himself," "we shall, with these eyes, see the glorified body of Jesus Christ," "we shall enjoy the society of an innumerable company of angels," "we shall have sweet society with glorified saints," "there shall be incomprehensible joy," "honor and dignity," "blessed rest," "bodies richly bespangled with glory," and all of this is "eternal." (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson explains that the kingdom of glory begins at death, but is not perfected until the resurrection. (Thomas Watson, The Lord's Prayer.)

It is not surprising that one of the first things Christ has us pray for is for the kingdom of God to come since He commands us to seek first the kingdom of God (Mt 6:33).

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:10) says, "Christians are called to pray and work for the continual advance of God’s kingdom on earth. The presence of God’s kingdom in this age refers to the reign of Christ in the hearts and lives of believers, and to the reigning presence of Christ in his body, the church—so that they increasingly reflect his love, obey his laws, honor him, do good for all people, and proclaim the good news of the kingdom."

The NLT Study Bible (Mt 6:10) says, "In praying for God’s Kingdom to come soon, Jesus’ disciples pray for his justice, righteousness, peace, and mercy to be established."

The CSB Study Bible (Mt 6:10) says, "... the petition your kingdom come has a present and a future focus. The petition asks that disciples submit more fully to God’s will as subjects of his reign through Jesus. We should daily pray for the future consummation of God’s rule in which he will reign fully and completely over the world."

The NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible says, "Rather, God's kingdom exists wherever people acknowledge him as king." (T.D. Alexander, "The Kingdom of God.")

Anthony Hoekema writes, "The kingdom of God is the central theme of Jesus’ preaching, and by implication, of the preaching and teaching of the apostles.” (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

G.E. Ladd writes, “The central thesis of this book [The Presence of the Future] is that the Kingdom of God is the redemptive reign of God dynamically active to establish his rule among men, and that this Kingdom, which will appear as an apocalyptic act at the end of the age, has already come into human history in the person and mission of Jesus to overcome evil, to deliver men from its power, and to bring them into the blessings of God’s reign. The Kingdom of God involves two great moments: fulfillment within history, and consummation at the end of history.” (The Presence of the Future.)

Anthony Hoekema writes, “One who is a believer in Jesus Christ, therefore, is in the kingdom of God at the present time, enjoying its blessings and sharing its responsibilities. At the same time, he realizes that the kingdom is present now only in a provisional and incomplete state, and therefore he looks forward to its final consummation at the end of the age.” (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

Anthony Hoekema writes, “Because the kingdom is both present and future, we may say that the kingdom is now hidden to all except those who have faith in Christ, but that some day it shall be totally revealed, so that even its enemies will finaly have to recognize its presence and bow before its rule.” (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

Jesus proclaimed that the kingdom of God was present in His own person.

Mk 1:15
Lk 4:21
Mt 12:28
Lk 11:20
Lk 17:20-21

Anthony Hoekema wrote, “Jesus himself ushered in the kingdom of God whose coming had been foretold by the OT prophets.” (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

Jesus also proclaimed that the kingdom of God was future:

Mt 7:21-23
Mt 8:11-12
Mt 22:1-14 (Parable of the Marriage Feast)
Mt 13:24-43 (Parable of the Tares)
Mt 13:47-50 (Parable of the Drag Net)
Mt 25:14-30 (Parable of the Talents)
2 Tim 4:18
1 Cor 6:9-10; Gal 5:21; Eph 5:5; 1 Cor 15:50 (where the word "inherit" suggests a benefit to be received in the future)

Anthony Hoekema wrote, "The most widely accepted understanding of the kingdom of God is that its primary meaning is the rule or reign of God rather than a territory over which he rules... It usually describes the reign of God over His people... The kingdom of God, therefore, is to be understood as the reign of God dynamically active in human history through Jesus Christ, the purpose of which is the redemption of God's people from sin and from demonic powers, and the final establishment of the new heavens and the new hearth." (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

Anthony Hoekema wrote, “Man’s duty is not to bring the kingdom of God into existence, but to enter into it by faith, and to pray that he may be enabled more and more to submit himself to the beneficent rule of God in every area of his life. The kingdom is not man’s upward climb to perfection but God’s breaking into human history to establish his reign and to advance his purposes.” (The Bible and the Future, Ch. 4.)

Kim Riddlebarger writes about the Jewish Messianic expectations in the first century. “Several messianic expectations were widely held throughout Palestine in the days of Jesus. First, when the Messiah appeared, he would bring salvation and blessing to his people and judgment on the wicked nations that had oppressed Israel. Second, God would return this long-promised messianic king to David’s royal throne. Third, this messianic king would liberate Palestine from Israel's Gentile oppressors, especially the Romans. When Jesus announced that the kingdom of God was at hand, these were the expectations his hearers used to interpret his words.” (Amillennialism, Ch. 9.)

Kim Riddlebarger writes about the New Testament's teaching that the kingdom of God is present. “What we do find in the gospel accounts is Jesus’s proclamation that a spiritual and non-nationalistic kingdom had drawn near because he had come... Both John the Baptist (Mk 1:15) and Jesus (Mt 10:7) stated that the kingdom was “near.” The Greek term used is engiken, which means that the kingdom has drawn near, that it is present in some sense. A stronger verb is used by Jesus in Lk 11:20, ephthasen, meaning that the kingdom had arrived, though as Ridderbos cautions, there is really no significant difference in the meaning of the two terms... The kingdom of God, therefore, is not a place or a locality in this world, but it is the reign of Christ in the midst of his people until he makes his enemies his footstool.” (Amillennialism, Ch. 9.)

G.E. Ladd writes, “The kingdom of God is the redemptive reign of God dynamically active to establish his rule among men, and that this kingdom which will appear as an apocalyptic act, has already come into human history in the person and in the mission of Jesus to overcome evil, to deliver men from its power, and to bring them into the blessings of God’s reign. The Kingdom of God involves two great moments: fulfillment within history, and the consummation at the end of history.”

Sam Storms writes about the Jewish Messianic expectations in the first century. “The expectant attitude and hope of the first-century Israelite were for dominion in the land that God has promised to Abraham and his seed, together with an everlasting throne, international supremacy, and above all else the presence of the King himself in power and glory to rule over God’s people... The question reverberating in the heart of the Jewish people at the time of Jesus was: ‘When will Yahweh send the Messiah to deliver us from our oppressors and fulfill the covenant promises given to our fathers? Where is God’s promised fulfillment of the kingdom?.. The concept of the kingdom most prevalent in the mind of the OT Jew was that of God’s visible conquest of his enemies, the vindication and restoration of his people, Israel, to supremacy in the land, and the fulfillment of the promises of a Davidic throne and rule upon the earth in power and glory.” (Kingdom Come, Ch. 11.)

N.T. Wright wrote, “God’s kingdom, to the Jew in the village in the first half of the first century meant the coming vindication of Israel, victory over the pagans, the eventual gift of peace, justice and prosperity. It is scarcely surprising that, when a prophet appeared announcing that this kingdom was dawning, and that Israel’s God was at last becoming king, he found an eager audience.”

N.T. Wright wrote, “Jewish hope was concrete, specific, focused on the people as a whole. If Pilate was still governing Judaea, then the kingdom had not come. If the temple was not rebuilt, then the kingdom had not come. If Israel was not observing the Torah properly (however one might define that), then the kingdom had not come. If the pagans were not defeated and/or flocking to Zion for instruction, then the kingdom had not come. These tangible, this-worldly points of reference…are all-important.”

In a sermon called "Heart Surgery 101," Dr. Robert Jeffress said, "The kingdom of God is not a synonym for heaven. A monarch’s kingdom is that area where everyone respects his will. Queen Elizabeth is the monarch over Great Britain; people in that kingdom respect and obey her. But we don’t because we are outside that kingdom. Those living in God’s kingdom respect and obey God’s will. Those outside the kingdom refuse to submit to God’s will. Heaven and hell are simply the eternal continuation of the choices people make on earth."

In a sermon called "Heart Surgery 101," Dr. Robert Jeffress asked, "How do I become a part of the kingdom of God? What if you wanted to become a part of Queen Elizabeth’s kingdom? Should I start drinking tea at 3? Memorize the national anthem? Study the history? Work on our British accent. Does that make us a part of the kingdom? No. We have to become citizens. It is the same way with becoming a part of God’s kingdom. You must become a citizen."

In their book What is the Mission of the Church (Chapter 5), Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert provide the following information about the kingdom of God:

The Kingdom of God is…

The first thing Jesus preaches. Mt 4:17
A major theme of His preaching throughout his ministry (Mt 13).
An essential element of the apostles’ preaching after Jesus’ ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:3; 8:12; 19:8; 28:23, 31).

Already and not yet:

Best way to understand the Bible’s teaching on the Kingdom of God.
Inaugurated eschatology.
A position popularized by GE Ladd and others.
“God’s kingdom has already broken into this world but has not yet been fully realized.”

The kingdom of God is the redemptive reign of God over His people.

“Kingdom doesn’t refer essentially to a piece of land, but rather to rule or reign… In other words, kingdom is a dynamic or relational concept, not a geographical one.”
Ps 145:11
Ps 145:13
It is dynamic (about power) and relationship (about human beings’ relationship to God their king).

Kingdom of God refers to God’s reign specifically over his redeemed people.

“God’s benevolent, redemptive reign over those he has saved.”
Not everyone is a citizen of the kingdo of God.
“The kingdom of God isn’t geographical. Rather, it is defined relationally and dynamically; it exists where knees and hearts bow to the King and submit to him.”
“the only way the kingdom of God – the redemptive rule of God – is extended is when he brings another sinner to renounce sin and self-righteousness and bow his knee to King Jesus.”

The Kingdom of God is the Reign of the Messiah, Jesus

Col 1:13 – the kingdom of God’s beloved son
My kingdom -- Lk 22:30; Jn 18:36; Mt 20:21; Lk 23:42
“In 2 Sam 7, God promised the great King David that his throne would be established forever. Over time, as Israel’s kings failed again and again, the Lord revealed through the prophets that there would one day come a King who would fulfill all God’s promise to his people and establish an eternal kingdom where justice and righteousness would be upheld perfectly forever (Is 9, 11).”

The Kingdom of God involves the age to come breaking into the present age.

The Bible gives us a snapshot of what awaits us at the end:
Is 65:17-25
Rev 21:1-4, 9-27; 22:1-5)
“The coming of the Messiah turned out to be not just one event, but two – his first coming to inaugurate the age to come in the midst of the present age, and his second coming to end, finally, the present age and consummate the age to come. Thus we enjoy the forgiveness of sin even as we struggle with it; thus we enjoy the presence of the Spirit even as we may still grieve him; thus we have been raised with Christ, seated at his right hand in the heavenly places, even as we know we will, for a time, return to dust. And thus we live in a world that is shot through with injustice and sin and oppression and evil and tears and sadness even a world that we know will be shot through with such things until Jesus comes back….”

The kingdom of God is manifested in this present age in the church

The kingdom is not the church.
“The church acts as a sort of embassy for the government of the King. It is an outpost of the kingdom of God surrounded by the kingdom of darkness. And just as the embassy of a nation is meant, at least in part, to showcase the life of that nation to the surrounding people, so the church is meant to manifest the life of the kingdom of God to the world around it.”
“The kingdom of God is God’s redemptive reign, in the person of his Son, Jesus Messiah, which has broken into the present evil age and is now visible in the church.”

How do you get into the kingdom?

“Inclusion in the kingdom of God is wholly conditioned on one’s response to the King.”
“If you want to be included in the kingdom of God, you must respond rightly to the King of the Kingdom.”
“The primary task of Christians in this age, with reference to the kingdom, is not to build it or establish it or even to build for it, but rather to be witnesses to this representing, suffering, forgiving King.”

Since a kingdom is the realm over which a sovereign reigns, then the entire universe, including the earth, is God's kingdom. But when John the Baptist announced the coming, appearing, or arriving of the kingdom, he was talking about the messianic kingdom. The time for God's messiah to reign had begun.

Bruce Wilkinson wrote, “Think of the kingdom as the King’s agenda… When a person seeks ‘His kingdom,’ he invests his life to further what the Lord wants accomplished on this earth. You can’t miss the two most important objectives that Jesus puts on the agenda for His kingdom (Mt 28:19-20): To evangelize everyone in the world with the wonderful gospel of Jesus Christ, so that they will believe on Him and receive salvation. To disciple all believers in the world to obey all that the Bible teaches so that we are all conformed fully into the image of Jesus Christ.” (Experiencing Spiritual Breakthroughs, p. 78.)

J.I. Packer defines the kingdom of God as “the new life of heaven on earth through the Holy Spirit.” (Rediscovering Holiness, 176.)

G.E. Ladd wrote, “The Kingdom can draw near to men (Mt 3:2; 4:17; Mk 1:15; etc.); it can come (Mt 6:10; Lk 17:20; etc.), arrive (Mt 12:28), appear (Lk 19:11), be active (Mt 21:43); Lk 12:32), but men do not give the Kingdom to one another. Further, God can take the Kingdom away from men (Mt 21:43), but men do not take it away from one another, although they can prevent others from entering it. Men can enter the Kingdom (Mt 5:20; 7:21; Mk 9:47; 10:23; etc,), but they are never said to erect it or to build it. Men can receive the Kingdom (Mk 10:15; Lk 18:17), inherit it (Mt 25:34), and possess it (Mt 5:4), but they are never said to establish it. Men can reject the Kingdom, i.e., refuse to receive it (Lk 10:11) or enter it (Mt 23:13), but they cannot destroy it. They can look for it (Lk 23:51), pray for its coming (Mt 6:10, and seek it (Mt 6:33; Lk 12:31), but they cannot bring it. Men may be in the Kingdom (Mt 5:19; 8:11; Lk 13:29; etc.), but we are not told that the Kingdom grows. Men can do things for the sake of the Kingdom (Mt 19:12; Lk 18:29), but they are not said to act upon the Kingdom itself. Men can preach the Kingdom (Mt 10:7; Lk 10:9), but only God can give it to men (Lk 12:32).” (The Presence of the Future.)

D.A. Carson wrote, “The kingdom of God is best thought of as the reign of God… his reign is at present contested; the day will come when it will never be contested again. The kingdom has already dawned; yet the kingdom is still to come, awaiting the return of the king.” (Christ and Culture Revisited, 53.)

Charles Colson gives three reasons why the Jews misunderstood the true nature of the kingdom of God. (God and Government, Kindle Location 1710-1713.)

"They were conditioned to look for salvation in political solutions. More than anything else they wanted to be set free of Roman rule. They longed for a military messiah who would stamp out their hated oppressors."
"Another reason that many Jews missed the full significance of the message of the Kingdom of God was that Jesus spoke about a Kingdom that had come and a Kingdom that was still to come — one Kingdom in two stages."
"The third reason that the Kingdom is often misunderstood: the nature of the King Himself. What king would ever sacrifice himself for his people? Kings sacrifice their subjects, not themselves. What king would wash his servants’ feet, as Jesus did, or freely befriend his lowest subjects? Potentates maintain the mystique of leadership by keeping a distance from those they rule. A certain grandeur seems to robe those who occupy high office."

Charles Colson provides an analogy to explain the already but not yet nature of God's kingdom (God and Government, Kindle Location 1710-1713.) "Probably the most significant event in Europe during World War II was D-Day, June 6, 1944, when the Allied armies stormed the beaches of Normandy. That attack guaranteed the eventual destruction of the Axis powers in Europe. Though the war continued with seeming uncertainties along the way, the outcome was in fact determined. But it wasn’t until May 8, 1945 — VE Day — that the results of the forces set in motion eleven months earlier were realized. We can compare this two-stage process to the strategy of the Kingdom of God. A holy God would not force his dominion over a sinful world. So He first sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross to pay the debt for man’s sin and thereby provide for men and women to be made holy and fit for God’s rule. To extend our war analogy, Christ’s death and resurrection — the D-Day of human history — assure His ultimate victory. But we are still on the beaches. The enemy has not yet been vanquished, and the fighting is still ugly. Christ’s invasion has assured the ultimate outcome, however — victory for God and His people at some future date. The second stage, which will take place when Christ returns, will complete God’s rule over all the universe; His Kingdom will be visible without imperfection. At that time there will be a final judgment of all people, peace on earth, and the restoration of harmony unknown since Eden."

Tony Evans wrote, “A kingdom man may be defined as a man who positions himself and operates according to the comprehensive rule of God over every area of his life. And every area of life should feel the impact of a kingdom man’s presence.” (Kingdom Man: Every Man's Destiny, Every Woman's Dream.)

The MacArthur Study Bible (1 Cor 6:9) says, "The kingdom is the spiritual sphere of salvation where God rules as king over all who belong to Him by faith. All believers are in that spiritual kingdom, yet are waiting to enter into the full inheritance of it in the age to come."

The Kingdom of God is the rule, reign, or dominion of God. It’s both a present reality and a future hope. Let me explain. Right now the Kingdom of God exists in the heart of Christ followers through the presence of the Holy Spirit. That’s where He presently rules and reigns. But one day the Bible tells us that God will reign over everything in heaven and earth. Jesus will come back to judge all people and remove all evil from the world.

What is the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is the rule of Jesus Christ. It is the place where Jesus is in charge. For now, Jesus is in charge of the lives of His people – Christians, or Christ-followers. And when Jesus comes back, His kingdom will be everywhere because Jesus will defeat sin, Satan, death, and suffering, and everything will be brought under His complete control. So the kingdom of God is both a present reality in the lives of Christians, and it is a future hope when Jesus returns. So basically the kingdom of God is a synonym for salvation, or eternal life, or having a right relationship with God. When Jesus talks about how to enter the kingdom of God, He is talking about how to be saved, or how to receive eternal life, or how to enter into a right relationship with God and become a Christian, or a follower of Jesus.

Gene Mims wrote, “The kingdom of God means the reign of God in the lives of His people, enabling them to serve Him wholeheartedly and to live the kind of life Jesus died to give us. In other words, the kingdom of God, in its simplest form, is the rign of Jesus Christ as Lord and King in our lives. It is His Holy Spirit working in us, through us, and around us in such a way that we actually live and do the will of God.” (The Kingdom Focused Church, 40.)

Gene Mims wrote, “The term kingdom is used in the Bible in several ways. Sometimes it refers to the universal reign of God over all creation. God is sovereign over all the universe, and in that sense everything is under His domain. Sometimes the kingdom is a direct reference to the nation of Israel. Israel was designed to be a theocracy (a nation ruled by God), and even when kings were anointed, everyone understood that God reigned over His people in the nation of Israel. A third use is the most often misunderstood, and that is the coming earthly reign of Christ at His return. The fourth usage is the present rule of Christ in the lives of His people.” (Kingdom Focused Church, 41.)

The Thematic Reference Bible says of the kingdom of God, “The term does not refer to a specific geographical area, such as Israel, but to the more general idea of ‘the kingly authority of God.’ The kingdom of God refers to the rule of God over individuals and peoples rather than a specific region or location within which this authority is exercised...The kingly rule of God in the lives of people and nations. It refers to the recognition of the authority of God, rather than a definite geographical area, and begins with the ministry of Jesus Christ... The kingdom of God comes into being wherever the kingly authority of God is acknowledged.”

kingdom | Word Study | 932: kingdom (basileia)

The Complete Word Study Dictionary says basileia means royal dominion, kingdom.

"Kingdom" is found 13 times in Paul's writings and 5 times in the non-Pauline epistles. Baseleia is used over 160 times in the NT.

Your will be done

This is traditionally considered to be the third petition in the Lord's Prayer.

J.I. Packer wrote that this is a prayer "that all his commands and purposes may be perfectly fulfilled." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 22.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "And when I say 'thy will be done,' I should mean this as a prayer that I, along with the rest of God's people, may learn to be obedience." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 57.)

J.I. Packer wrote, "Here more clearly than anywhere the purpose of prayer becomes plain: not to make God do my will (which is practicing magic), but to bring my will into line with his (which is what it means to practice true religion)." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 58.)

Martin Luther explained the third petition like this: "Let thy will be done, O Father, not the will of the devil, or of any of those who would overthrow thy holy Word or hinder the coming of thy kingdom; and grant that all we may have to endure for its sake may be borne with patience and overcome, so that our poor flesh may not yield or give way from weakness or laziness." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 58.)

Jesus voiced this prayer in Gethsemane (Mt 26:39, 42; Lk 22:39-44). After His prayer, Luke records that God sent an angel to strengthen Jesus.

J.I. Packer wrote, "The Greek for 'be done' in both the Lord's Prayer and the Gethsemane story, literally means 'happen,' and God's will here is two things -- his purpose for events and his command to his people. In relation to the former, 'thy will be done' expresses the spirit of meekness, which accepts without complaining whatever God sends, or fails to send. In relation to to the latter, we are asking God to teach us all that we should do and make us both willing and able for the task." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 59.)

J.I. Packer asks, "But how shall we know what God wants of us? By paying attention to his Word and to our own consciences, by noting what circumstances allow, and by taking advice in order to check our own sense of the situation and the adequacy of our insight into what is right. Problems about God's will regularly come clear as they are bounced off other Christian minds. One's own inner state is important too... If you are open to God, God will get through to you with the guidance you need. That is a promise... When you are unclear as to God's will, wait if you can; if you have to act, make what you think is the best decision, and God will soon let you know if you are not on the right track." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 60.)

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Q192) says, "What do we pray for in the third petition? Answer: In the third petition (which is, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven), acknowledging, that by nature we and all men are not only utterly unable and unwilling to know and do the will of God, but prone to rebel against his Word, to repine and murmur against his providence, and wholly inclined to do the will of the flesh, and of the devil: we pray, that God would by his Spirit take away from ourselves and others all blindness, weakness, indisposedness, and perverseness of heart; and by his grace make us able and willing to know, do, and submit to his will in all things, with the like humility, cheerfulness, faithfulness, diligence, zeal, sincerity, and constancy, as the angels do in heaven."

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q103) says, "What do we pray for in the third petition? In the third petition, which is, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven, we pray, that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to his will in all things, as the angels do in heaven."

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q124) says, "What does the third petition mean? 'Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven' means: Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven."

Kevin DeYoung points out that, according to the Heidelberg Catechism, the third petition entails three things: (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 227.)

First, we reject our own wills.
Second, we must trust God's will. "It takes faith to die to ourselves. We will not reject our wills unless we believe that God's will is better... When we pray 'Your will be done,' we are confessing our confidence that God knows best, that His plans are good, that His way is always the right way."
Third, we must carry out God's will.

Kevin DeYoung writes that if we are to do God's will, we must love it as David did in Psalm 119:129-131, 135-136. (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 228.)

Kevin DeYoung distinguishes between God's decreed will and God's desired will. God's decreed will is described in Ephesians 1:11. "God works all things according to the counsel of His will. God's will in this sense, cannot be overturned, negated, or thwarted. What God wills will come to pass." However, there is an aspect of God's will that can be disobeyed. This is God's desired will. And this is what we are concerned with in the Lord's Prayer. (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 227.)

R.C. Sproul says that there are three ways in which the will of God is understood: (The Prayer of the Lord, 54.)

The sovereign, efficacious will of God. The will that causes whatever He decrees to come to pass. As when God said, "Let there be light," or when Jesus commanded Lazarus to come out of the grave.
The preceptive will of God. "His law and commandments, the precepts He issues to regulate the behavior of His creation." For example, the Ten Commandments. The Lord's Prayer is concerned with the preceptive will of God.
His basic disposition or inclination. "In this case, God's will has to do with what is pleasing or displeasing to Him." Sproul cites 2 Pt 3:9 as an example.

R.C. Sproul writes that it is a good thing to add, "If it be Your will," to our prayers. "We are to come to the presence of God in boldness, but never in arrogance." We are not free to name and claim those things that God has not specifically promised in Scripture, such as getting a raise, purchasing a home, or finding healing from a disease. Sproul writes, "We are to come to God and tell Him what we want, but we must trust Him to give the answer that is best for us." (The Prayer of the Lord, 59.)

What does the New Testament say about God's will?

We are to pray for God's will to be done. Mt 6:10
Only those who do God's will will enter the kingdom of heaven. Mt 7:21
The one who does God's will is His brother and sister and mother. Mt 12:50; Mk 3:35
It is not God's will that one of these little ones perish. Mt 18:14
Jesus wanted to gather the children of Jerusalem together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but they were not willing. Mt 23:37
In prayer, Christ submitted His will to that of His Father's. Mt 26:39, 42; Mk 14:36; Lk 22:42
Those who know God's will but don't do it will be punished more severely than those who disobeyed God in ignorance. Lk 12:47-48
Jesus said His food was to do the will of the Father, and to finish His work. Jn 4:34
The Son gives life to whom he wants. Jn 5:21
Jesus did not seek His own will, but the will of the Father. Jn 5:30
Jesus said He did not come to do His own will, but the will of the Father. Jn 6:38
Jesus said that God's will was that Christ would not lose any of those given to Him, but raise them up at the last day. Jn 6:39
God's will is that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life. Jn 6:40
If you want to do God's will, then you will be able to discern God's will. Jn 7:17
God doesn't listen to the prayers of sinners, but to those who are God-fearing and do His will. Jn 9:31
The crucifixion was according to God's will. Acts 4:27-28
David was a man after God's own hear because he was devoted to carrying out all of God's will. Acts 13:22
Paul told the Ephesians that he would return if God wills. Acts 18:18
Paul was warned by a prophet named Agabus that he would be arrested in Jerusalem, and they tried to persuade Paul not to go, but Paul was determined. Therefore they said, "The Lord's will be done." Acts 21:14
Paul always prayed that if it was somehow in God's will, God would let him visit the Roman church. Rm 1:10
The Hoy Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Rm 8:27
By refusing to be conformed to this age, and by being transformed by the renewing of your mind, you can discern God's will. Rm 12:2
God's will is good, pleasing, and perfect. Rm 12:2
Paul asked the Roman church to pray that, by God's will, he would come to visit them. Rm 15:32
Paul was called as an apostle by God's will. 1 Cor 1:1
Paul told the Corinthians that if the Lord wills, he would visit them soon. 1 Cor 4:19
There is a kind of grieving that God wills; a grieving that leads to repentance. 2 Cor 7:11
It was God's will that Christ die for our sins. Gal 1:4
We were predestined to be adopted as sons according to the good pleasure of God's will. Eph 1:5
God made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ. Eph 1:9
We were predestined according to the one who works out everything in agreement with the purpose of his will. Eph 1:11
God works out everything in agreement with the purpose of his will. Eph :11
Don't be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. Eph 5:17
As slaves of Christ, do God's will from your heart. Eph 6:6
Paul prayed for the Colossians to be filled with the knowledge of God's will. Col 1:9
It was God's will to make the gospel known among the Gentiles. Col 1:27
Epaphras prayed for the Colossians to stand mature and fully assured in everything God wills. Col 4:12
God's will is your sanctification: that you keep away from sexual immorality. 1 Thess 4:3
God's will is for you to give thanks in everything. 1 Thess 5:18
God wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 2 Tim 2:4
The writer of Hebrews prayed that we would be equipped with everything good to do his will, working in us what is pleasing in his sight. Heb 13:20-21
Instead of boasting about our plans, we should say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." James 4:15
It is God's will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good. 1 Pt 2:15
Sometimes it is God's will for us to suffer for doing good. 1 Pt 3:17; 1 Pt 4:19
We are to live the rest of our lives not for human desires, but for God's will. 1 Pt 4:2
God isn't willing that any should perish, but all to come to repentance. 2 Pt 3:9
The world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does the will of God remains forever. 1 Jn 2:17
We can be confident that if we ask anything according to his will, God hears us. 1 Jn 5:14
All things that exist were created by God's will. Rev 4:11

Thomas Watson says that the third petition consists of two parts (The Lord's Prayer):

The matter: doing God's will
The manner: as it is in heaven.

Thomas Watson distinguishes between the secret will of God and the revealed will of God. (The Lord's Prayer.)

The secret will is "the will of his decree." This is not what we are praying for. It is secret and cannot be known.
The revealed will is written in the Bible, "which reveals what he would have us do in order to our salvation."

Thomas Watson says that in the third petition we pray for two things: active and passive obedience. (The Lord's Prayer.)

For active obedience -- that we may do God's will actively in what he commands.

"We pray that we may do God's will actively, subscribe to all his commands, believe in Jesus, which is the cardinal grace, and lead holy lives. This is the sum of all religion, the two tables epitomized, the doing God's will."
"We must know his will before we can do it. Knowledge is the eye which must direct the foot of obedience."
But knowledge is not enough! "Knowing God's will may make a man admired, but it is doing it, which makes him blessed!"
Watson points out the dangers and problems of knowledge without obedience:

It does not better the heart. It does not warm the affections, or purify the conscience.
It will lead to a harsher punishment. Lk 12:47

Watson describes why doing God's will is necessary:

Out of equity. "God is our Benefactor. It is but just that, if he gives us our allowance, we should give him our allegiance."
The great design of God in the word is to make us doers of his will. This is why God gave us His law.

The end of the all the promises is to draw us to do his will. God promises great blessings to motivate us to obey. Dt 11:27; Dt 28:1-3
The threatenings of God stand as the angel with a flaming sword to deter us from sin, and make us doers of his will. Dt 11:28
All God's providences are to make us doers of his will.
Afflictions are said to be sent us to make us do God's will. "When Manesseh was in affliction, he besought the Lord, and humbled himself greatly." 2 Chron 33:12
God's mercies are to make us do his will. Rm 12:1

By doing God's will we evidence sincerity.
Doing God's will propagates the gospel.
By doing God's will, we show our love to Christ. Jn 14:21
To do God's will is for our benefit. "It promotes our own self-interest." Dt 10:13
To do God's will is our honor. "A person thinks it an honor to have a king speak to him to do a thing."
It makes us like Christ, akin to him." Jn 6:38
It brings peace in life and death.

In life. Ps 19:11. "When we walk closely with God in obedience, there is a secret joy let into the soul -- and how swiftly and cheerfully do the wheels of the soul move when they are oiled with the oil of gladness."
In death. "If anything make our pillow easy at death, it will be that we have endeavored to do God's will on earth."

If we are not doers of God's will, we shall be looked upon as despisers of his will. It is to despise God. Ps 10:13. It is to slight him, scorn him, and affront him to his face.

Watson explains why not doing God's will is a great evil:

It is sinful. We violate what we have prayed in the Lord's Prayer.
It is foolish, because there is no overcoming God. "If we do not obey him, we cannot resist him."
It is foolish, because if we do it not, we do the devil's will. Jn 8:44
It is dangerous. It brings a spiritual suicide. "If God's will is not done by us, he will have his will upon us! If we obey not his will in commanding, we shall obey it in perishing."

Watson asks, "In what manner are we to do God's will that we may find acceptance?" "Just so, if we do not God's will in the right manner, it is not accepted. We must not only do what he appoints, but as He appoints."

We do God's will acceptably when we do duties spiritually. From an inward principle. The inward principle is faith, which looks at Christ in every duty.
When we prefer his will before all others. When we deny what we want, or others want, in favor of what God wants.
When we do it as it is done in heaven -- as the angels do it.

They do it regularly, without wavering.
They do it entirely, with nothing cut away.
They do it sincerely and without pretense.

Out of pure respect to his command. Though we feel no present joy or comfort in duty, yet because God commands we obey. Abraham's sacrificing Isaac is an example.
To do it with a pure eye to his glory. To honor God and lift up His name in the world.

They do it willingly and without complaint.
They do it fervently, without slackeness.
They give their best in every service. Num 18:29
When we do it readily and swiftly. "The angels do not dispute or reason the cause, but soon as they have their charge and commission from God they immediately obey."
When we do it constantly. Ps 106:3

Watson says that even thought we cannot obey all God's will legally, we may evangelically, which is:

When we mourn that we can do God's will no better; when we fail we weep. Rm 7:24
When it is the desire of our soul to do God's whole will. Ps 119:5
When we endeavor as far as we are able to do the whole will of God. "When a father bids his child to life a heavy object, and the child is not able to do it, but tries, and does his best, the father accepts it as if he had done it. Just so, to endeavor to do our best is to do God's will evangelically."

Watson gives several applications:

For instruction:

See hence our impotence. In other words, see how weak we are to do God's will without praying for His strength.
See the folly of those who live in disobedience.
See that which makes us long to be in heaven, where we will do God's will perfectly.

For reproof.

It reproves those who do not do God's will.
It reproves those who do not do God's will in a right acceptable manner.

For examination.

Let us examine all our actions, whether they are according to God's will.

For exhortation.

Let us be doers of the will of God.

For our wisdom. Dt 4:6
For our safety.

Misery has always attended the doing our own will.
Happiness has always attending the doing God's will.
The way to have our will is to do God's will. "Would we have a blessing in our estate? Let us do God's will."

Watson asks, "How shall we do God's will aright?"

Get sound knowledge. "We must know his will before we can do it."
Let us labor for self-denial. "Unless we deny our own will, we shall never do God's will."
Let us get humble hearts. "Pride is the spring of disobedience."
Beg grace and strength of God to do his will. Ps 143:10

For passive obedience -- that we may submit to God's will patiently, in whatever he inflicts.

"The text is to be understood as well of suffering God's will as of doing it... A Christian, when under any disastrous providence, should lie quietly at God's feet and say, "May your will be done."
Watson describes what this patient submission is not. When a man endures quietly what he cannot avoid. This is necessity rather than patience.
Watson asks, "What accompanies patient submission to God's will?"

You can be deeply sensible of affliction. Not like a Stoic. It is not pretending that it doesn't hurt; or pretending that it doesn't matter.
You may weep under affliction.
You may complain. Ps 142:1-2. "But though we may complain to God, we must not complain of God."

Watson asks, "What is inconsistent with patient submission to God's will?"

Discontent with God's dealings. "Discontent has a mixture of grief and anger in it...."
Murmuring. "Murmuring is the height of impatience; it is a kind of mutiny in the soul against God." Num 21:5. Watson means complaining against God.
Disquietness. This is when you are so worked up that you cannot pray or praise, or think straight.
Self-justification. "I don't deserve this."

Watson asks, "What is patient submission to God's will?"

"It is a gracious frame of soul whereby a Christian is content to be at God's disposal, and acquiesces in his wisdom."
Watson writes that this patient submission lies in three things:

Acknowledging God's hand; seeing God in the affliction. "Affliction does not come by chance." Job 1:21
Justifying God. Ps 22:2
Accepting the punishment. Lev 26:41. In other words, "This is good for me; thank God for His hand of discipline."

Watson describes some of the heavy afflictions that God sometimes lays upon His children:

Poverty.
Reproach. "Luther was called a trumpeter of rebellion... Piety shields from hell, but not from slander."
The death of loved ones.
Infirmity of body. "Sickness takes away the comfort of life."

Watson asks, "When do we not submit to God's will in affliction as we ought?"

"When we have hard thoughts of him, and our hearts begin to swell against him."
"When we are so troubled at our present affliction that we are unfit for duty." We can't pray or praise.
"When we labor to break loose from affliction by indirect means. Many to rid themselves out of trouble, run themselves into sin."

Watson teaches how to get to a place of quiet resignation to God's will in affliction:

Judicious consideration. Eccl 7:14. What should we consider?

Consider that the present state of life is subject to afflictions, as a seaman's life is subject to storms. "Shall a mariner be angry that he meets with a storm at sea?"
Consider that God has a special hand in the disposal of all occurrences.
Consider that there is a necessity for affliction.

To keep us humble.
To reveal His power through our deliverance.
To fulfill His many promises, such as helping us to bear affliction (Ps 37:24, 39); such as joy in affliction (Jn 16:20); to wipe every tear from our eyes (Is 25:8).

Consider that we have brought our troubles upon ourselves.
Consider that God is about to prove and test us. "Hypocrites can serve in a pleasure boat: they can serve God in prosperity; but when we can keep close to him in times of danger, when we can trust him in darkness, and love him when we have no smile and say, 'May your will be done,' that is the trial of sincerity."
Consider that in all our afflictions, God has kindness for us. Watson mentions fourteen:

There is love in it. "Whom the Lord loves, he chastens." Heb 12:6
God deals with us as his children. Heb 12:7
He has left us a promise. "I will be with him in trouble." Ps 91:15
It is great kindness that all troubles that befall us shall be for our profit." Heb 12:10

What profit is in affliction? They are disciplinary; they teach us.

They show us more of our own hearts. Often we do not see the sin in our hearts until times of affliction.
They quicken the spirit of prayer.
They purge out our sins.
They make us more serious -- about getting right with God, and getting ready for heaven.
They wean us the world. "Affliction sounds a retreat to call us off the immoderate pursuit of earthly things."
They purify us. They make us more like Jesus.

It could be worse.
Others have it worse.
If we belong to God, it is all the hell we shall have.
There is kindness in that God gives gracious supports in affliction.
It is preventive. "God, by His afflictive stroke, would prevent some sin."
God mixes His providences. In anger he remembers mercy. Hab 3:2. "Not all pure gall--but some honey mixed with it."
God moderates His stroke. Jer 30:11.
God often sweetens it with divine consolation. 2 Cor 1:4.

Partly by His word. Ps 119:50
By His Spirit.

God curtails and shortens it; he will not let it lie on too long. Is 57:16
There is kindness in affliction, in that it is a means to make us happy. Job 5:17

Consider that it is God's ordinary course to keep his people to a bitter drink, and exercise them with great trials.
Consider what God has already done for you.

He has adopted you for his child.
He has given you Christ.
He has given you grace.

Consider that when God intends the greatest mercy to any of his people, he brings them low in affliction. "As Moses' hand, before it wrought miracles, was leprous; and Sarah's womb, before it brought forth the son of promise, was barren."
Consider the excellency of this frame of soul -- to lie at God's feet and say, 'May your will be done." Watson says that submission to God's will in affliction has in it a mixture of several graces.

Faith. "Faith believes God does all in mercy -- that affliction is to mortify some sin, or exercise some grace."
Love. "Love thinks no evil (1 Cor 13:5). It takes all that God does, in the best sense; it has good thoughts of God -- which causes submission."
Humility. "The humble soul looks on its sins, and how much he has provoked God. He does not say his afflictions are great, but his sins are great."

Consider that people are usually better in adversity than prosperity. Watson mentions the following burdens of prosperity:

The burden of care. The more you have, the more you have to worry about.
The burden of account. The more you have, the more God will hold you accountable for.
The burden of danger. Prosperity brings with it many temptations. "Millions are drowned in the sweet waters of pleasure."

Consider that, having our wills melted into God's is a good sign that the present affliction is sanctified. "The end why God sends affliction is to calm the spirit, to subdue the will, and bring it into subjection to God's will. When this is done, affliction has attained the end for which it came; it is sanctified, and it will not be long before it be removed."
Consider how unworthy it is of a Christian to be froward and unsubmissive, and not bring his will into subjection to God's will.
Consider that frowardness or unsubmissiveness to God is very sinful.
Consider that unsubmissiveness to God's will is very imprudent. "We get nothing by it; it does not ease us of our burden but rather makes it heavier."
Consider that being unsubmissive to God's will in affliction lays a man open to many temptations.
Consider how far unsubmissiveness of spirit is from that temper of soul which God requires in affliction. "He would have us in patience possess our souls... The Greek word for patience signifies to bear up under a burden without fainting or fretting."
Consider what it is which makes the difference between a godly man and an ungodly man in affliction. The godly man submits to God's will, the ungodly man will not submit."
Consider that not to submit to God's providential will is highly provoking to him.
Consider how much God bears at our hand, and shall we not be content to bear something at his hand?
Consider that submitting our wills to God in affliction disappoints Satan of his hope, and quite spoils his design. "The devil's end in all our afflictions is to make us sin."
Consider that to the godly the nature of affliction is quite changed.
Consider how many good things we receive from God, and shall we not be content to receive some bad things.
Consider that the conformity of our wills to God in affliction brings much honor to gospel.
Consider the example of our Lord Jesus -- how submissive and acquiescent was he to his Father!
Consider that to submit our wills to God is the way to have our own will. "But when we are submissive and say, 'May your will be done,' he carves out mercy to us."
Consider that we may the more cheerfully surrender our souls to God when we die -- when we have surrendered our will to God while we live.

Study His will.

His will is sovereign. "He has a supreme right and dominion over his creatures to dispose of them as he pleases... A man may cut his own timber as he will."
God's will is wise. "He knows what is conductive to the good of his people, therefore submit."
God's will is just. Gen 18:25. "God may cross us, but he cannot wrong us."
God's will is good and gracious. "It promotes our interest; if it is his will to afflict us, he shall make us say at last, 'it was good for us that we were afflicted.'"
God's will is irresistible. "We may oppose it, but we cannot hinder it."

Get a gracious heart. Salvation.
Labor to have our covenant interest cleared -- to know that God is our God. Watson here speaks of assurance of salvation. "He who can call God his, knows God loves him as he loves Christ, and designs his salvation...."
Get a humble spirit. "A humble soul has a deep sense of sin, he sees how he has provoked God, he wonders that he is not in hell; therefore, whatever God inflicts, he knows it is less than his iniquities deserve, which makes him say, 'Lord, your will be done.'"
Get your hearts loosened from things below. "Be crucified to the world."
Get some good persuasion that your sin is pardoned. "The pardoned soul says this prayer heartily, 'May your will be done. Lord, use your pruning-knife, so long as you do not come with your bloody axe to hew me down to hell!"
Look more on the light side of the cloud. "That is, let us not look so much on the smart of affliction as the good of affliction."
Pray to God that he would calm our spirits and conquer our wills.
Put a good interpretation upon God's dealings and take all he does in the best sense.
Believe that the present condition is best for you.

Thomas Watson wrote, "The will of God is the rule and standard; it is the sun-dial by which we must regulate all our actions."

James Boice makes an important point. "If we are to understand the fulness of what this statements means, we must begin by realizing that all the troubles that exist in this world exist because someone, or some group of people, wants man's will instead of the will of God." (The Sermon on the Mount, 183.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "The sweetest place in the world to be is in the will of God." (The Sermon on the Mount, 234.)

R.T. Kendall wrote that he learned from studying the Puritan William Perkins (1558-1602) that the will of God is to be understood in two ways: (1) His revealed will and (2) His secret will. (Kendall, The Sermon on the Mount, 235.)

The revealed will of God.

"The revealed will of God is, simply, the Bible."

The secret will of God.

This refers to things like whom one should marry, what your career should be, and where you should live.
This is what is referred to in Is 55:8.
Kendall writes that God can and does at times reveal His secret will to us, just as He spoke to Philip, telling him to go to the desert road where he encountered the Ethiopian eunuch who sitting in his chariot, reading the Bible. Then Spirit told Philip, "Go and join that chariot." This led to a gospel conversation and the conversion and baptism of the Ethiopian.
Kendall, however, warns, "The trouble is, we tend to seek out what God's secret will is before we get to know his revealed will... Getting an undoubted word of knowledge is easier than hours and hours of wrestling with God in reading the Bible and praying. But the latter should be our immediate and fundamental search; the secret will of God will be clear to you when you need to know it. Seek to know the secret will of God as a primary focus, and it will elude you; aspire to know the revealed will of God and you will gain the general knowledge of will -- and receive a 'rhema' word when you aren't expecting it. The more you seek to know God's revealed will, the more you will His secret will unfolded."

R.T. Kendall writes, "We pray that the truth of God as revealed in Scripture will be carried out on this earth. We equally pray that all that God has planned for us will be carried out, in His time. It is a prayer for both the success of what God has promised in His word and the execution of all His purposes in the world." (The Sermon on the Mount, 237.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "Our prayer, therefore, is that God will get what He wants in us, at least." (The Sermon on the Mount, 238.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "I should pray that, as far as we are concerned, there will be no revolt left in us, no rebellion in us, no reluctance in us."

A.W. Pink wrote that there are two parts to this petition: (1) a request for the spirit of obedience; and (2) a statement of the manner in which obedience is to be rendered. (The Lord's Prayer, 29.)

A.W. Pink says that the Bible presents God's will from two distinct viewpoints: His secret will and His revealed will, or His decretive and His preceptive will. (The Lord's Prayer, 29.)

He secret or decretive will.

"The rule of His own actions."
"That which God has decreed is always unknown to men until revealed by prophecies of things to come or by events as they transpire."
"The secret or decretive will of God is always done, equally on earth as in heaven, for none can thwart or even hinder it."
Dt 29:29
Is 46:10
Rm 9:19

God's revealed or preceptive will.

"The rule for our actions, God having made known in the Scriptures that which is pleasing in His sight."
"It is equally evident that God's revealed will is violated every time one of His precepts is disobeyed."
"The revealed or preceptive will of God is stated in God's Word, defining our duty and making known the path in which we should walk."
1 Thess 4:3

A.W. Pink wrote, "The will of God, then, is a phrase that, taken by itself, may express either what God has purposed to do or what He has commanded to be done by us. With regard to the will of God in the first sense, it always is, always has been, and ever shall be done upon earth as it is in heaven, for neither human policy nor infernal power can prevent it. The next now before us contains a prayer that we might be brought into complete accord with God's revealed will." (The Lord's Prayer, 30.)

A.W. Pink wrote, "We do God the will of God when, out of a due regard for His authority, we regulate our own thoughts and conduct by His commandments." (The Lord's Prayer, 30.)

A.W. Pink wrote, "We mock God if we present this request and then fail to make the conforming of ourselves to His revealed will our main business."

A.W. Pink wrote that when we pray this prayer sincerely, we must... (The Lord's Prayer, 31.)

Unreservedly surrender to God;
Renounce the will of Satan;
Renounce our own corrupt inclinations;
Be conscious that there is still much in us that is in conflict with God.
Humbly and contritely acknowledge that we cannot do our Father's will without Divine assistance.
Earnestly desire and seek enabling grace.
Beg God for spiritual wisdom to learn His will. Ps 119:27, 33
Beg God for spiritual inclination toward His will. Ps 119: 32, 36
Beg God for spiritual strength to perform His bidding. Ps 119:25, 28

A.W. Pink wrote, "Possibly the meaning and scope of this petition will best be opened up if we express it thus: O Father, let Thy will be revealed to me, let it be wrought in me, and let it be performed by me." (The Lord's Prayer, 31.)

A.W. Pink wrote, "How is God's will done in heaven? Certain it is not done reluctantly or sullenly, nor is it done hypocritically or Pharisaically. We may be sure that it is executed neither tardily nor fitfully, neither partially nor fragmentarily. In the heavenly courts God's will is performed gladly and joyfully." (The Lord's Prayer, 31.)

To understand how God's will is done in heaven, A.W. Pink looks at several depictions of heaven. In Is 6:2 heavenly adoration and obedience are rendered humbly and reverently, for the seraphim veil their faces before the Lord. God's will is done with alacrity (physical quickness coupled with eagerness or enthusiasm), for Isaiah says that one of the seraphim flew to him from the Divine presence (Is 6:6). There God is praised "constantly and untiringly (Rev 7:15)." (The Lord's Prayer, 32.)

A.W. Pink writes that the standard, "in earth as it is in heaven," is set before us for several reasons: (The Lord's Prayer, 32.)

"To sweeten our subjection to the Divine will." "Heaven is what it is because the will of God is done by all who dwell there. The measure in which a foretaste of its bliss may be obtained by us upon earth will be determined largely by the degree to which we perform here the Divine bidding."
"To show us the blessed reasonableness of our obedience to God." If the angels do God's will (Ps 103:20), then shouldn't we.
It is given as the standard at which we must ever aim at. Col 1:9, 10; 4:12
It is given to teach us not only what to do, but how to do it.

A.W. Pink says to weigh this petition with what has come before it. (The Lord's Prayer, 32.)

"Our Father which art in heaven." If we are His children, then we must obey Him, "for disobedience is that which characterizes His enemies."
"Hallowed be thy name." "Does not a real concern for God's glory oblige us to make a conformity to His will our supreme quest?"
"Thy kingdom come." "Should we not seek to be in full subjection to its laws and ordinances?"

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:10) says this request refers to God's revealed will, "which involves conduct that is pleasing to him as revealed in Scripture."

In the Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, M.E. Osterhaven writes, "God's decretive, or hidden, will, sometimes called his secret will, is that attribute of God by which he has determined what he will do; it is known to him alone. His preceptive, or revealed, will is that attribute by which he tells us what to do. This latter is revealed in Scripture; thus, the law of God is correctly said to be an expression of God's holy will. Deuteronomy 29:29 refers to this distinction within the will of God; Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:17, 25, 32, 35; Romans 9:18–19; 11:33–34; and Ephesians 1:5, 9, 11 refer to his secret will; and Deuteronomy 30:14; Matthew 7:21; 12:50; John 4:34; 7:17; and Romans 10:8; 12:2 refer to his revealed will."

God's will has also been distinguished between his antecedent and subsequent, or consequent will. God's antecedent will is what He wants to happen, but His subsequent or consequent is what He allows due to the entrance of sin. In other words, there is a difference between God's desired or intended will, and His permissive will. (M.E. Osterhaven, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology.)

G.I. Williamson writes, "So we see two aspects this third petition. On the one hand, we pray 'that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know' and 'obey' His revealed will. And then, on the other hand, we also pray that God would 'make us able and willing' to 'submit to his [secret] will in all things." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 339.)

William Barclay asks an important question. "Why is it that we find it so difficult to accept the will of God?" His answer is pride. "The root reason why we find it so difficult to accept the will of God is that we so often in our heart of hearts think that we know better than God." (The Lord's Prayer, 70.)

William Barclay writes that there are two attributes of God that we must believe in order to pray this third request sincerely. (The Lord's Prayer, 70.)

The wisdom of God. "We believe that God in his wisdom knows far better than we do what is for our ultimate good."
The love of God. God wants what is best for us. "A father's hand will never cause his child a needless tear."

Theologians sometimes think about God's will from five different viewpoints:

The providential will of God.

This is also called the decreed (or decretive) will of God, the predetermined will of God, the prevailing will of God, the overruling will of God, and the secret will of God, and the sovereign efficacious will of God.
This is described as God's for-ordained, never changing plan and purpose. It is that which will take place no matter what. There are some things which God has decreed and they will never change. God will not allow the free will of man to thwart His providential will. Sometimes He prevents people from sinning or from making decisions that will interfere with His plan.
An example of the providential rule of God is the story of Balaam. Balak wanted to pay Balaam to curse the Jews, but God would not allow Balaam to do so. Instead, Balaam blessed the Jews (See Numbers 22-24).

The preceptive will of God.

Also known as the revealed will of God, or the moral will of God.
This is the commands, rules, and principles revealed in Scripture.
Examples: The Ten Commandments.

The preferential will of God.

What God gets pleasure from, and what He doesn't get pleasure from.
God wants all people to be saved; He wants all people to be obedient; He wants all marriages to flourish; He doesn't want anyone to sin.

The permissive will of God.

God allows things that are often contrary to what He desires. This is includes man's sinful choices, which result in suffering. God permits suffering, because alleviating suffering would require eliminating free will.
Doesn't want people to sin, suffer, or go to hell, but He permits these things.

The personal will of God.

This is also called God's directive will.
While God's preceptive will is the same for all Christians, it is His general will, the personal will of God involves God's will for your specifically. God's personal guidance in your life.
Examples: Whom to marry; which college to attend; which vocation to pursue; which car to buy.

John MacArthur says that God's will for us can be summarized into four commands (Found: God's Will):

Salvation. Jn 3:16; Jn 6:40; 2 Pt 3:9
Spirit-filled. Eph 5:18
Sanctification. 1 Thess 4:3
Submission. 1 Pt 2:13-15. Good citizens.
Suffering.

will | Word Study | 2307: thelema (will)

on earth as it is in heaven

earth | Word Study | 1093: earth (ge)

11 Give us today our daily bread.

The CSB gives an alternate translation, "Or our necessary bread, or our bread for tomorrow."

This is the fourth petition in the Lord's Prayer.

Warren Wiersbe points out that the request for bread deals with our present needs, the request for forgiveness deals with our past sins, and the request for protection deals with our future activities. (On Earth As It Is In Heaven, 117.)

The Anglican Prayer Book Catechism says, "And I pray unto God, that he will send us all things that be needful both for our souls and bodies."

William Barclay observes the following about the second three requests in the Lord's Prayer. "The first of these three petitions is a prayer for our present need. The second of them is a prayer for our past sin. The third of them is a prayer for our future welfare and goodness. These three short petitions take life, past, present and future, and lay it before God. Food for the present, forgiveness for the past, help for the future -- all of life brought into the presence of God." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 21.)

William Barclay goes on to note that these three requests address all three persons of the Trinity. "When we pray the first of them, the prayer for daily bread, we think of God the Father, the creator and sustainer of all life. When we pray the second of them, the prayer for our forgiveness, we think of God the Son, the Savior and Redeemer of all mankind and of us. When we pray the third of them, the prayer for future help to live without sin, we think of God the Holy Spirit, the Guide, the Helper and the Protector of all life." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 21.)

J.I. Packer noted that this request is a genuine progression from the first three, in three ways (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 71):

The person who prays the first three requests has devoted himself to living totally for God, and this is a request for food so that he has energy for God.
This is an acknowledgement that God is ultimately our provider, and without Him we have nothing. Acknowledging our dependence on God honors Him.
God is actually concerned about our basic physical needs, and not just our spiritual needs. Packer points to Jesus feeding the 4,000 as an example of this. My mind also turns to Matthew 6:33, and 1 Peter 5:7.

J.I. Packer writes, "This petition shows us how to regard our bodies. The Christian way is not to deify them, making health and beauty ends in themselves, as modern pagans do; nor is it to despise them, making scruffiness a virtue, as some ancient pagans (and Christians too, unfortunately) once did. It is rather to accept one's body as part of God's good creation, to act as its steward and manager, and gratefully to enjoy it as one does so." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 71.)

J.I. Packer writes that God wants us to enjoy the physical, material world. "The Bible opposes all long-faced asceticism by saying that if you enjoy health, good appetite, physical agility, and marriage in the sense that you have been given them, you should enjoy them in the further sense of delighting in them. Such delight is (not the whole, but) part of our duty and our service of God, for without it we are being simply ungrateful for good gifts." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 73.)

In other words, Packer says that to not enjoy God's gifts in nature is to be ungrateful.

J.I. Packer points out that in the petition for "our daily bread" we see both intercession and petition; praying for others and for ourselves. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 73.)

J.I. Packer writes, "And 'bread'... stands here for all of life's necessities and the means of supplying them. Thus, 'bread' covers all food; so the prayer is for farmers and against famine. Again, the prayer covers clothing, shelter, and physical health; so the prayer becomes an intercession for social and medical services. Or again, the prayer covers money and power to earn, and so becomes a cry against poverty, unemployment, and national policies that produce or prolong both." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 74.)

J.I. Packer points out that Martin Luther taught that it is in this part of the Lord's Prayer that we pray for those in authority. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 74.)

At the end of his chapter on this petition, J.I. Packer closes with two important points. First, this is a prayer for what need, not for luxuries that we can live without. "The petition does not sanctify greed!" Second, Packer writes that this petition requires faith. "Moreover, we must as we pray be prepared to have God show us, by his providential response of not giving what we sought, that we did not really need it after all. Now comes the real test of faith. You, the Christian, have (I assume) prayed for today's bread. Will you now believe that what comes to you, much or little, is God's answer, according to the promise of Mt 6:33? And will you on that basis be content with it, and grateful for it?" (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 75.)

A.W. Pink reminds us that the fact that the first three petitions focus on God's interests "should sufficiently indicate to us that we must labor in prayer to promote the manifestative glory of God, to advance His kingdom, and to do His will before we are permitted to supplicate for our own needs." (The Lord's Prayer, 35.)

A.W. Pink also points out that of the last three petitions, two of them relate to the concerns of the soul, and one concerns our bodily needs. "This teaches us that in prayer, as in all other activities of life, temporal concerns are to be subordinated to spiritual concerns." (The Lord's Prayer, 35.)

A.W. Pink deals with a number of questions in the following order (The Lord's Prayer, 35):

Why does this request for the supply of bodily needs come before those petitions that concern the needs of the soul?

Matthew Henry wrote, "... our natural [well being] is necessary [for] our spiritual well-being in this world."
Pink wrote, "... God grants to us the physical things of this life as helps to the discharge of our spiritual duties... we are unapt and unfit to perform our higher duties if deprived of the things needed for the sustenance of our bodily existence."
Pink adds a second answer to this question: to increase our confidence in prayer so that we will move to asking for "higher blessings." As we see God answer our requests for temporary things, we will be encouraged to ask for spiritual things.

What is signified, and included in, the term bread?

Pink writes, "our temporal needs... the necessities and conveniences of this life, such as food, raiment [clothing], and housing."
Pink adds that the word "bread" is used instead of the more general term "food" to teach us "to ask not for dainties or for riches, but for that which is wholesome and needful."
Pink says we should only ask God for our needs, and not for non-essentials, or what he calls superfluities. "If God grants us the superfluities of life, we are to be thankful, and must endeavor to use them to His glory, but we must not ask for them." Instead, Pink exhorts the reader to be content (1 Tim 6:8).

In what sense may we suitably beg God for our daily bread when we already have a supply on hand?

Pink gives three answers to this question:

"... because my present temporal portion may speedily be taken from me, and that without any warning."
"... because what we have will profit us nothing unless God deigns also to bless the same to us."
"... love requires that I pray this way, because this petition comprehends far more than my own personal needs."

How can bread be a Divine gift if we earn the same by our own labors?

Pink gives three answers to this question:

Because of our sin, we don't deserve anything good, not even the fruits of our labor.
Because everything belongs to God. Ps 24:1; Hag 2:8
Because everything comes from God, even the strength to work.

What is our Lord inculcating by restricting the request our daily bread?

Pink gives four answers to this question:

We are reminded of our frailty. We need food every day. We can's survive very long without it.
We are reminded of the brevity of life. Why ask for food tomorrow, when we may not be alive tomorrow?
We are taught to not worry about tomorrow.
We are taught to stifle the spirit of covetousness. We are to ask for our needs, not our "greeds."
I will add two more reasons to Pink's list. By teaching us to pray for our daily bread, we are encouraged to pray daily. We are encouraged to keep the lines of communication open.
We are encouraged to keep a good relationship with God. God will not answer our prayers unless we first confess our sins. Since we must pray for our bread daily, we are forced to confess our sins daily.

A.W. Pink says this petition teaches us the following lessons (The Lord's Prayer, 38):

That it is okay to pray for temporary things, and not just spiritual things.
That we are completely dependent upon God for everything.
That our confidence is in God, and not in secondary causes.
That we should be grateful, and return thanks for material as well as spiritual blessings.
That we should practice frugality and discourage covetousness.
That we should have family worship every morning and evening.
That we should pray for the needs of others just as much as for ourselves.

Al Mohler wrote, "... a hyper-spiritual theology that ignores physical needs has never had to come face-to-face with the horrors of deprivation... Those who believe providing for our praying for physical needs is somehow undignified have never witnessed refugees fleeing from a war zone with nothing more than the clothes on their back." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 112.)

Samuel Johnson wrote, "He who would deny the stomach will soon be thinking of nothing but the stomach."

Kevin DeYoung writes that the fourth petition reminds us of our utter dependence on God, and that failure to recognize this is the primary reason for prayerlessness. "There may be many reasons for our prayerlessness -- time management, busyness, lack of concentration -- but most fundamentally, we ask not because we think we need not. Deep down we feel secure when we have money in the bank, a healthy report from the doctor, and powerful people on our side. We do not trust in God alone. Prayerlessness is an expression of our meager confidence in God's ability to provide and our strong confidence in our ability to take care of ourselves without God's help." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 232.)

R.C. Sproul points out that we are taught to ask God to "give" us our daily bread, not to sell it to us, or to give it to us in exchange for any services we might render. The point is that we have nothing to offer God other than our cry for provision. (The Lord's Prayer, 65.)

God is a provider. He provided Abraham with a ram to sacrifice instead of his son (Gen 22:12-13). He provided manna, or bread from heaven for the Israelites when they lived in the wilderness (Ex 16:4). Jesus provided food for five thousand people who gathered to hear Him teach (Mk 14:13-21). And God provided Christ as our substitute.

R.C. Sproul pointed out that "there is a synergistic relationship between divine providence and our labor." In other words, we are not to ask God for our daily bread and then be lazy and unproductive. God answers our prayer as we do our very best to provide for ourselves. (The Lord's Prayer, 67.)

William Barclay writes that the best translation of this petition is "bread for the coming day. If then the prayer is prayed in the morning, it will be a prayer for the needs of the day; if it is prayed in the evening, it will be prayer for the needs of tomorrow." (The Lord's Prayer, 78.)

William Barclay writes about the different ways the fourth petition has been applied over the years (The Lord's Prayer, 78):

It is a prayer for the Sacrament of Christ's body.
It is a prayer for spiritual food -- the Word of God which we are to apply each day.
It is a prayer for Christ, who is the Bread of Life (Jn 6:35).
Barclay adds the the best application is that it is "a petition that God should give to us the simple, ordinary things which we daily need to keep body and soul together."

William Barclay writes, "It is in fact one of the most precious things in life that we can take the simple, ordinary things to God, that God is not only the God of the great world-shaking, epoch-making events, but that he is also the God who cares that his humblest child may have daily bread to eat." (The Lord's Prayer, 80.)

William Barclay expounds the meaning of each word in this petition (The Lord's Prayer, 80):

Our. "The very use of the plural precludes all selfishness in prayer... But he who prays this petition by the very form of the words is committed to a life in which he cannot have too much while others have too little, a life in which a war on want and the determination to bring bread to the hungry becomes for him inescapable duties."
Daily. "It does not look fearfully into the distant future; it is content to take the present and to leave it in the hands of God."
Bread. "The truly Christian man does not pray for luxuries; what he prays for is the simple food which is enough for life... The prayer is for the satisfaction of simple need, not for the service of selfish luxury."

Gregory of Nyssa (Bishop of Cappadocia; lived 335-395) wrote, "So we say to God: Give us bread. Not delicacies or riches, nor magnificent purple robes, golden ornaments or precious stones or silver dishes. Nor do we ask him for landed estates, or military commands, or political leadership. We pray neither for herds or horses and oxen or other cattle in great numbers, nor for a host of slaves. We do not say, give us a prominent position in assemblies or monuments and statues raised to us, nor silken robes or musicians at meals, nor any other thing by which the soul is estranged from the thought of God and higher things; no -- but only bread!"

Give. "... if we prayed this petition and then simply sat down with folded hands and waited, we would quite certainly starve. The food is not going to appear all ready-made on our tables; God is not going to spoon feed any man; prayer is never the easy way to get God to do for us what we can well do, and must certainly do for ourselves... If we would have our food, we must work for it. If God's seed is to grow, man must till the ground and prepare the soil and care for it and tend it. God's giving and man's toiling must go hand in hand; and the more man toils, the more God opens his hand and pours out his gifts upon him."

William Barclay sums up his thoughts with this: "Give us this day our daily bread - in praying this petition we in trust ask God to supply all the physical and the spiritual needs of this life, we commit ourselves to the service of our fellowmen, and we pledge ourselves to the effort of mind and of body which will make it possible for God to give us more and more that our own lives may be enriched and that through us God's gifts may be shared with others." (The Lord's Prayer, 83.)

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q125) says, "What does the fourth petition mean? “Give us this day our daily bread” means: Do take care of all our physical needs so that we come to know that you are the only source of everything good, and that neither our work and worry nor your gifts can do us any good without your blessing. And so help us to give up our trust in creatures and trust in you alone."

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q104) says, "What do we pray for in the fourth petition? In the fourth petition (which is Give us this day our daily bread), we pray that of God's free gift we may receive a competent portion of the good things of this life, and enjoy his blessing with them."

The Westminster Larger Confession (Q193) says, "What do we pray for in the fourth petition? Answer: In the fourth petition (which is, Give us this day our daily bread), acknowledging, that in Adam, and by our own sin, we have forfeited our right to all the outward blessings of this life, and deserve to be wholly deprived of them by God, and to have them cursed to us in the use of them; and that neither they of themselves are able to sustain us, nor we to merit, or by our own industry to procure them; but prone to desire, get, and use them unlawfully: we pray for ourselves and others, that both they and we, waiting upon the providence of God from day to day in the use of lawful means, may, of his free gift, and as to his fatherly wisdom shall seem best, enjoy a competent portion of them; and have the same continued and blessed unto us in our holy and comfortable use of them, and contentment in them; and be kept from all things that are contrary to our temporal support and comfort."

G.I. Williamson wrote, "It is probable that the word translated as 'daily bread' originally referred to the daily rations of a soldier." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 346.)

James Boice points out that the last three requests are for physical needs, forgiveness of sins, and spiritual victories, and that the request our daily bread "includes by implication all the needs of life." (The Sermon on the Mount, 190.)

How do we know that God is willing to answer our prayers and meet our needs? Matthew 7:7-11. James Boice points out that this passage says three things about prayer (The Sermon on the Mount, 190):

We must be God's children before we can come to God.
As God's children we are invited and even urged to come.
God delights to answer those who do come.

R.T. Kendall writes, "The Most High God invites us to pray about the smallest of things. But don't worry about praying over small things; with God everything is small." (The Sermon on the Mount, 239.)

R.T. Kendall asks, "But why would God begin with the body and not the soul? The truth is, it is extremely difficult to cope spiritually when we are unwell -- hungry, thirsty, tired, deep in debt, going without sleep and having no money." (The Sermon on the Mount, 240.)

R.T. Kendall tells about General William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, who "used to say it is hard to preach the Gospel to someone with an empty stomach. Likewise, it is hard to pray when we are overwhelmed with daily physical, emotional and material problems." (The Sermon on the Mount, 240.)

R.T. Kendall suggest more reasons that this request comes before our spiritual needs.

It is difficult to cope spiritually when we are unwell physically.
To remind us that God knows our situation that we are dust. Ps 103:14
To remind us that there are starving people all over the world whom we should pray for and help.
To remind us that we are a part of the Body of Christ, and we should pray for and help them.

R.T. Kendall defines what Jesus meant by "daily bread." "Daily bread refers not only to food on our tables but to life's essential needs. This petition does not refer to literal bread only. Bread in Hebrew meant all kinds of nutrition. But it is even more than that. Daily bread refers to everything nonspiritual that we must have in order to live and cope. It refers to physical needs, emotional needs, material needs... Therefore, when you pray, 'Give us today our daily bread,' you are asking God to step in and give you not only food but also shelter and clothing; to supply your financial needs; to give emotional strength and clarity of mind; to give you friends and fellowship; to grant transportation as needed; to equip you for your jo, career and future; to help you get done what you need to get done this very day; to be at your best to help you in your preparation and to provide providences that further God's plan for your life. Our daily bread, then, covers everything that is essential to our well-being." (The Sermon on the Mount, 240.)

R.T. Kendall wrote about how this petition has been misinterpreted by many over the years. "Contrary to many of the Church fathers, 'our daily bread' i not a reference to our spirituality. The Church fathers missed this point entirely -- including Tertullian, Cyprian and Augustine, who said this request referred to spiritual food. They allegorized this petition, claiming that it referred to invisible bread, the Lord's Supper." In Contrast, the Reformers believed it referred to our basic, physical needs. "Calvin said this petition refers to whatever God knows to be essential. Martin Luther said it meant everything necessary for the preservation of this life: food, a healthy body, good weather, house, home, children, good government -- even peace." (The Sermon on the Mount, 241.)

R.T. Kendall points out that this petition says we are not to pray for luxuries. "In economics there are essentially three levels: needs, comforts, and luxuries. This prayer embraces only needs." (The Sermon on the Mount, 242.)

The Puritan Thomas Watson says that there are two things observable in this petition (The Lord's Prayer):

The order of the prayer.

"First, we pray, 'Hallowed be your name, may your kingdom come, may your will be done,' before we pray, 'Give us this day our daily bread.' God's glory ought to weigh down all before it; it must be preferred before our deepest concerns."
Watson notes that we must prefer God's glory...

Before our own reputation. Acts 5:41
Before our relations. Lk 14:26
Before estate. Heb 10:34
Before our life. Rev 12:2

The matter of the prayer.

"The sum of this petition is that God would give us such competency in outward things, as he sees most excellent for us."

Thomas Watson points out three things about the generosity of God: (The Lord's Prayer.)

He is never weary of giving.
He delights in giving. Mic 7:18
He gives to His enemies.

Thomas Watson makes two points about praying for temporary things like daily bread: (The Lord's Prayer.)

The way we pray for temporary, material things must be different than the way we pray for spiritual things. "In praying for spiritual things we must be absolute. When we pray for pardon of sin, and the favor of God, and the sanctifying graces of the Spirit, which are indispensably necessary to salvation, we must take no denial; but when we pray for temporal things, our prayers must be limited; we must pray conditionally -- so far as God sees them good for us. He sometimes sees cause to withhold temporal things from us -- when they would be snares, and draw our hearts from him; therefore we should pray for these things with submission to God's will."
"When we pray for things pertaining to this life, we must desire temporal things for spiritual ends; we must desire these things to be as helps in our journey to heaven. If we pray for health, it must be that we may improve this talent of health for God's glory, and may be fitter for his service. If we pray for a competency of estate, it must be for a holy end, that we may be kept from the temptations which poverty usually exposes to, and that we may be in a better capacity to so the golden seeds of charity and relieve such as are in need. Temporal things must be prayed for for spiritual ends."

Thomas Watson says there are two reasons why we are told to pray for "this day," rather than for a month or a year: (The Lord's Prayer.)

"That we should not have anxious care for the future."
"To teach us to live every day as if it were our last."

Watson says that the term "bread" in this verse is a synecdoche, a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole, or the whole represents the part. When we say Kansas City won the Super Bowl, the whole city represents the team. When we say that Patrick Mahomes won the Super Bowl, one player represents the whole team. In this verse, "bread" "is put for all the temporal blessings of this life, food, fuel, clothing, etc. [Augustine said, "Whatever serves for our well-being."]" (The Lord's Prayer.)

bread | Word Study | 740: bread (artos)

12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

forgive us our debts

The parallel passage in Luke 11:4 uses a word that means "sins." In this context it refers to spiritual or moral debts.

The NIV Study Bible (Mt 6:12) says this refers to moral debts, i.e., sins.

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:12) says, "Forgive us our debts (the fifth petition) does not mean that believers need to ask daily for justification, since believers are justified forever from the moment of initial saving faith (Rom. 5:1, 9; 8:1; 10:10). Rather, this is a prayer for the restoration of personal fellowship with God when fellowship has been hindered by sin (cf. Eph. 4:30). Those who have received such forgiveness are so moved with gratitude toward God that they also eagerly forgive those who are debtors to them. On sin as a “debt” owed to God, see note on Col. 2:14."

Col 2:14

The ESV Study Bible (Col 2:14) says, "In the Greco-Roman world, the “record of debt” (Gk. cheirographon) was a written note of indebtedness. Paul uses this as a word picture to characterize each person’s indebtedness to God because of sin. God himself has mercifully resolved this problem for all who put their faith in Jesus by taking this note and nailing it to the cross, where Jesus paid the debt. The image comes from the notice fastened to a cross by the Roman authorities, declaring the crime for which the criminal was being executed (see John 19:19–22)."

In a typical Roman crucifixion, a placard or sign was made with the criminal’s crime written on it. Sometimes the sign was carried by the soldier walking in front of the criminal, and sometimes it would hang around the criminal’s neck. Pilate had a sign made that read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”

John 19:30

The Greek word for “It is finished,” tetelestai, was an accounting term. Archeologists have found ancient tax receipts from that time period with the word “tetelestai” written on them, meaning “paid in full.” That’s why Jesus said, “It is finished.” Tetelestai. By His death on the cross in our place, our debt has been paid in full. Nothing else is necessary for our forgiveness. Not good works. Not donations. Not baptism or communion or confession. Not church attendance. Not rule-following. Our debt has been paid in full. Tetelestai.

In a Roman prison cell, there would be a sign placed by the cell listing the crimes. Every day they would be reminded of what they had done and what they had to pay. When they had paid their debt, they would be released, the sign would have something stamped on it; tetelestai. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, with his last breath he shouted, Tetelestai “it is finished;” “paid in full.” With his last breath he shouts to heaven, “Paid in full.” When prisoners would be released they would shout, tetelestai.

The CSB Study Bible (Mt 6:12) says, "The Greek grammar indicates that the disciple prays for forgiveness from God only after having first expressed forgiveness to others."

The NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible (Mt 6:12) says, "Means not that we lose our salvation every time we sin but that our fellowship with God is hindered when we fail to repent of our misdeeds."

This line shows that Jesus did not pray the Lord's Prayer Himself, or at least not the entire thing, because He was sinless. Jn 8:46

J.I. Packer writes, "Scripture presents sins as lawbreaking, deviation, shortcoming, rebellion, pollution (dirt), and missing one's target, and it is always all these things in relation to God; but the special angle from which the Lord's Prayer views it is that of unpaid debts." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 77.)

The parable of the unforgiving servant also presents sin as a debt. Mt 18:21ff

J.I. Packer writes, "Those denominations that say 'trespasses' instead of 'debts'... unfortunately miss the point. Jesus' thought is that we owe God total, tireless loyalty -- zealous love for God and men, all day every day, on the pattern of Jesus' own -- and our sin is basically failure to pay." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 78.)

J.I. Packer asks, "If Christ's death atoned for all sins, past, present, and future (as it did), and if God's verdict justifying the believer ("I accept you as righteous for Jesus' sake") is eternal valid (as it is), why need the Christian mention his daily sins to God at all? The answer lies in distinguishing between God as Judge and as Father, and between being a justified sinner and an adopted son. The Lord's Prayer is the family prayer, in which God's adopted children address their Father, and though their daily failures do not overthrow their justification, things will not be right between them and their Father till they have said, 'Sorry'...." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 78.)

J.I. Packer writes, "Christians must be willing to examine themselves and let others examine them for the detecting of day-to-day shortcomings... The discipline of self-examination, though distasteful to our pride, is necessary because our holy Father in heaven will not turn a blind eye to his children's failings...." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 80.)

J.I. Packer writes, "From one standpoint, Christians' shortcomings offend most of all just because they have most reason (the love of God in Christ) and most resources (the indwelling Holy Spirit) for avoiding sinful ways. Those who think that because in Christ their sins are covered they need not bother to keep God's law are desperately confused (see Rm 6). As it upsets a man more to learn that his wife is sleeping around than that the girl next door is doing it, so God is most deeply outraged when his own people are unfaithful." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 80.)

J.I. Packer writes, "The true Christian will not only seek to find and face his sins through self-examination, but he will labor 'by the Spirit' to 'put to death the deeds of the body' (i.e., the habits of the old sinful self) all his days (Rm 8:13)." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 80.)

J.I. Packer says, "Only the forgiving are forgiven." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 81.)

J.I. Packer writes, "This is not a matter of earning forgiveness by works, but of qualifying by repentance. Repentance -- change of mind -- makes mercy and forbearance central to one's lifestyle. Those who live by God's forgiveness must imitate it; one whose only hope is that God will not hold his faults against him forfeits his right to hold others' faults against them." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 81.)

J.I. Packer writes, "It is true that forgiveness is by faith in Christ alone, apart from works, but repentance is faith's fruit, and there is no more reality in a profession of faith than there is reality of repentance accompanying it." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 81.)

See Mt 6:14ff; 18:35

Al Mohler writes, "[I]n the ancient world debt was punishable by prison sentence. In the Roman Empire, prisons were not generally filled with criminals; they were populated with debtors. Most convicted criminals were executed or were forced to serve some other form of punishment for their crimes, but those who could not make good on their payments were incarcerated until they could pay what they owed. This system was meant to put pressure on the families of the incarcerated debtor to find the necessary money to pay their debts to free their loved one from prison. In the Roman Empire, then, debt typically meant severe pain and tragedy for an individual and a family... Jesus' use of the word debts is meant to evoke in our mind both a serious offense and a corresponding serious punishment. To be forgiven a debt was no mere trifle, but an act of extravagant mercy." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 122.)

Al Mohler writes, "Saying we owe a debt to God means that we have failed to give him the obedience he is rightly due. We owe to God our obedience, and we have failed to pay up. Thus, as sinners, we stand before God condemned, rightly deserving his just wrath." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 123.)

Al Mohler writes, "We can only say these words and ask these things of God when we stand on the finished, atoning work of Jesus Christ... We can only rightly pray the Lord's Prayer when we recognize that we are deeply sinful and only God's grace in Christ can remedy our souls." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 124.)

Al Mohler points out that this petition does not say "forgive us our debts because we forgive our debtors," but "forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debtors." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 124.)

Al Mohler wrote, "The sum and substance of the gospel is that a holy and righteous God who must claim a full penalty for our sin both demands that penalty and provides it. His self-substitution is Jesus Christ the Son, whose perfect obedience and perfectly accomplished atonement on the cross purchased all that was necessary for our salvation... How then do we benefit from the sacrifice of Chris for us? Paul answered that we do not earn the righteousness of God in Christ; instead it is given to us freely when we believe the gospel." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 125.)

Al Mohler writes that this request "is a gospel primer in miniature." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 125.) It teaches four truths:

It establishes that we are sinners in need of forgiveness.
We have the hope of forgiveness. "Only the work of Christ on behalf of sinners could possibly enable a sinner to go before God's holy throne to petition that God forgive his debts."
God is willing to forgive sin.
The relational character of the kingdom of God. "We are included in God's kingdom only by his act of forgiving us and, as a result, we are those who forgive one another -- even when we might want to do otherwise."

Al Mohler writes, "Jesus is decidedly not saying that we are forgiven by God because we have forgiven other people... What Jesus is affirming in these words is that when we experience God's forgiveness, we are fundamentally transformed into forgiving people. In other words, one way we can know if we have experienced God's forgiveness is to see if we have become a forgiving people." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 134.)

Al Mohler writes, "But forgiveness is a necessary evidence that we have received forgiveness." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 138.)

A.W. Pink points out that this is the first time the word "and" is used in the Lord's Prayer. He suggests several reasons for this: (The Lord's Prayer, 41.)

We are taught that without pardon all the good things of this life will benefit us nothing.
To be informed that our sins are so many and so grievous that we deserve not one mouthful of food.
To be reminded that our sins are the great obstacle to the favors that we might receive from God.
To encourage us to go on in faith from strength to strength.

A.W. Pink says, "Our sins are here viewed... under the notion of debts, that is, undischarged obligations or failures to render to God His lawful due. We owe to God sincere and perfect worship together with earnest and perpetual obedience... Failure to discharge our debt of worship and obedience has entailed guilt, bringing us into debt to Divine justice." (The Lord's Prayer, 42.)

William Barclay writes about the Greek word for "debts," opheilema. "It always denotes something which is owed, something which is due, something which it is a duty or an obligation to give or to pay. In other words, it means a debt in the widest sense of the term. At its narrowest it is a money debt; at its widest it is any moral or religious obligation which a man in duty must discharge... Opheilema is that which is owed, that which a man ought to give or to pay, that which it is a moral or religious duty to give. Forgive us, says this petition, for every failure in duty, for failure to render to God and to man that which we ought to have rendered, for the debt to God and to man which we owe and which we have failed to pay." (The Lord's Prayer, 85.)

William Barclay points out that Luke's version (Lk 11:4) uses the word sins. "The word Luke uses is hamartia, which is the commonest of all Greek words for sin. Hamartia was not originally an ethical word; originally it mean quite simply a missing of the mark, as when a javelin, or an arrow, or a blow misses its mark. In this sense, sin is a failure to hit the mark, a failure to realize the true aim of life, a failure to be and to do that which we ought to have done." (The Lord's Prayer, 86.)

William Barclay adds, "Now in the time of Jesus in Palestine the rabbis thought of sin almost exclusively as a failure in obedience to God... not to give obedience to God is to be in debt to God; and therefore their commonest word for sin was choba', which in fact means debt... There is then no difference at all between Matthew and Luke; they are simply both translating the Aramaic choba', and Matthew, being characteristically Jewish, chooses a Greek word meaning debts, while Luke, being characteristically Greek, uses a more general Greek word for sin." (The Lord's Prayer, 86.)

William Barclay comments on the usage by some translators of the word "trespasses." "The truth is that linguistically speaking there is no justification whatever for the use of the word trespasses to render the Greek word opheilemata." He writes that the word was first translated "trespasses" by Tyndale. Barclay offers a couple of possible reasons for this translation by Tyndale. First, he could have been connecting it to the text immediately after the Lord's Prayer, Mt 6:14-15, which uses the word trespasses, or praptomata, "which means properly a false step, a slip, a blunder. It can, for instance, be used for a slip in grammar, and it could quite reasonably be translated trespasses." Also, he could have used "trespasses" because some people in his day were using the Lord's Prayer as justification for not paying their financial debts, because they should be forgiven. (The Lord's Prayer, 87.)

William Barclay writes, "Jesus bade all men to pray that prayer without distinction. He did not say that this is the prayer which sinners ought to pray; he said that this is the prayer that all men out to pray." (The Lord's Prayer, 87.)

William Barclay writes, "To ask for forgiveness for sin is in itself a confession of sin." (The Lord's Prayer, 88.)

The greatest men in the Bible admitted to their sin, or were shown to be sinful:

Moses was shown to be a murderer, and his disobedience prevented him from entering the promised land.
David committed adultery with Bathsheba.
Peter admitted he was a sinful man. Lk 5:8
Paul claimed to be the foremost of sinners. 1 Tim 1:15
John said that anyone who claims to have no sin is deceiving himself. 1 Jn 1:8-9

In the Bible the people most condemned are not sinners, but those who don't acknowledge their sin. Lk 18:9-14

William Barclay writes, "The fact that Jesus taught all men to pray this prayer shows the universality of sin; and to pray this prayer a sense of sin is a prior requirement." (The Lord's Prayer, 88.)

William Barclay writes about Origen (On Prayer, 28:1-5), who described the debts that every person owes simply by being a human being: (The Lord's Prayer, 88.)

A man owes a debt to his fellowman.

To fellow Christians, fellow-citizens, and all men. Strangers, the aged, your own family.

A man owes a debt to himself.

"He owes a debt to his body, not to waste its strength and health in injuring pleasure."
"He owes a debt to his mind, to use it in such a way that it retains its keenness."

A man owes a debt to God.

To love him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.

William Barclay points out that the phrase "as we forgive our debtors" is translated in two ways: (The Lord's Prayer, 90ff.)

"As we forgive our debtors," or,
"As we also have forgiven our debtors."

Barclay writes that one is in the present tense, and one is in the past tense. The difference is due to the use of different manuscripts, and the better manuscripts read the past tense, so that the more correct reading is, "as we have forgiven." Barclay writes, "In the one case we ask God to forgive us as it is or practice to forgive other people; in the other we ask God to forgive us as we have in fact forgiven others before we make our own prayer." Barclay goes on to ask, "Does the 'as' express similarity or proportion? Does the petition mean: 'Forgive us in the same way as we have forgiven others?' Or, does it mean: 'Forgive us in proportion as we have forgiven others?' Barclay says that the Luke version has no ambiguity. It reads, "And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone in debt to us." Barclay says, "In the Luke version we acknowledge that we have no right at all to pray for forgiveness for our own sins before we have forgiven those who have done us wrong." Barclay says that the expansion in Mt 6:14-15 also helps us to understand the meaning. "... the basic fact is that there is the closest possible connection between human and divine forgiveness, and that he who is unforgiving has cut himself off from the forgiveness of God... to be forgiven we must be forgiving." (The Lord's Prayer, 91.)

Mt 18:23-35

Mt 5:7

James 2:13

William Barclay warns that there is danger in this prayer, as it asks God to treat us the way we treat others. "This can only mean that if we are unforgiving, if we pray this when we are in a state of bitterness towards a fellowman, we are deliberately asking God not to forgive us." (The Lord's Prayer, 94.)

William Barclay sums up the fifth petition like this. "... herein we confess our own sin, and herein we accept the fact that only the forgiving can be forgiven." (The Lord's Prayer, 96.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "... prayer should include confession of our sin; as we remember who we are when we come into God's presence, we see that we have come short of His holiness and have need of His forgiveness." (The Prayer of the Lord, 64.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "... when the New Testament addresses sin, one of the main ways in which sin is described is as a debt. When we sin, we put ourselves into debt to God; we incur an obligation; we come to how Him something. Thus, when we ask for His forgiveness, we are asking that He forgive our debt." (The Prayer of the Lord, 74.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "What is the nature of our debt to God? He has commanded us to be holy, even as He is holy; to be perfect, even as He is perfect. With one sin, one transgression, we fall hopelessly short of that standard, placing ourselves in a position of indebtedness we can never escape... We have sinned against God and His perfect holiness multiple times since we got out of our beds this morning. How great is our debt after a lifetime of sin?" (The Prayer of the Lord, 76.)

R.C. Sprouse writes that "this is an aspiration rather than a condition, that Jesus is teaching us to aspire to mirror and reflect the kindness of God, to stand ready to forgive anyone who has sinned against us or offended us when they repent." (The Prayer of the Lord, 82.)

R.C. Sproul sums up the meaning of the fifth petition. "This petition, then, reminds us of the depth of our sinfulness, our need for daily confession, and our need for forgiveness, but also of our Christian duty in our interpersonal relationships on the human level. We are to keep short accounts not just in our vertical relationship with God, but in our horizontal relationships with others." (The Prayer of the Lord, 84.)

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q126) says, "What does the fifth petition means? 'Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors' means: Because of Christ's blood, do not hold us, poor sinners that we are, any of the sins we do or the evil that constantly clings to us. Forgive us just as we are fully determined, as evidence of your grace in us, to forgive our neighbors."

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q105) says, "What do we pray for in the fifth petition? In the fifth petition, which is, 'And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors,' we pray that God, for Christ's sake, would freely pardon all our sins; which we are the rather encouraged to ask, because by his grace we are enabled from the heart to forgive others."

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Q194) says, "What do we pray for in the fifth petition? In the fifth petition (which is, Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors), acknowledging, that we and all others are guilty both of original and actual sin, and thereby become debtors to the justice of God; and that neither we, nor any other creature, can make the least satisfaction for that debt: we pray for ourselves and others, that God of his free grace would, through the obedience and satisfaction of Christ, apprehended and applied by faith, acquit us both from the guilt and punishment of sin, accept us in his Beloved; continue his favor and grace to us, pardon our daily failings, and fill us with peace and joy, in giving us daily more and more assurance of forgiveness; which we are the rather emboldened to ask, and encouraged to expect, when we have this testimony in ourselves, that we from the heart forgive others their offenses."

Kevin DeYoung asks, "Aren't all my sins -- past, present, and future -- already taken care of in Christ? The answer to that last question is yes and no. In a legal sense, all my sins were nailed to the cross. My sin was imputed to Christ while Christ's righteousness was reckoned to me. That's what it means to be justified. I stand before God the judge and he declares, 'You, Kevin DeYoung, miserable sinner, are innocent and pure because you are in Christ.' In a legal sense, I am declared righteous. In a relational sense, however, I must continually seek restoration and forgiveness. Even though I am in Christ, I still say, do, and think things taht are foul, corrupt, and offensive to God. This is the point of 1 Jn 1:8-9...." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 236.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "So if I sin as a Christian, I should not fear condemnation -- for there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rm 8:1) -- but if my conscience is working as it should, I will still feel guilty. Sin is still displeasing to God. Imagine your son has a paper route. You tell your son, 'You must do the paper route. It's your job, not mine.' But one day he purposely skips the route to play with his friends after school. You happen to notice a lonely stack of papers waiting to be delivered. So you load up your car and deliver the papers for him. When he gets home, you want to talk with the boy. Now, you're not going to disown him, but he's been disobedient so there is a strain in the relationship. The parent-child relationship has been disturbed by the son's disobedience. But if your son comes sorrowfully, 'I blew it, Dad. I promised you wouldn't ever have to do my route and I broke that promise. I'm sorry. Forgive me.' Now the relationship is restored. if the son were to carry on with habitual disobedience without asking for forgiveness, the relationship would grow more and more distant. That's why we must continually come to God for forgiveness...." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 236.)

Kevin DeYoung asks, "What exactly is forgiveness? The context of the Lord's Prayer helps us formulate a definition. Forgiveness involves canceling a debt or remitting a payment. Forgiveness doesn't mean the consequences of our actions will be removed..., nor does it mean we can't be discerning in our judgments about others. Forgiveness is not a feeling but a decision to let go of the debt owed us. Forgiveness means we say no to revenge, trusting that God is the one to avenge (Rm 12:17-21)."

Kevin DeYoung distinguishes between partial and full forgiveness. "In one sense, we should forgive all those who sin against us. We should not seek their harm. We should pray for them and desire their good. But in another sense, forgiveness can be granted only those who seek it. That is, while we should always be ready to forgive, unless the other party is willing to repent, forgiveness cannot reach its full bloom. Forgiveness implies the restoration of a relationship and without repentance a broken relationship cannot be truly restored." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 237.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "... this is the most important section of the Lord's Prayer... at the close of the Lord's Prayer Jesus added a P.S." (The Sermon on the Mount, 244.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "I suppose this petition has made liars out of more people than any document in human history!" (The Sermon on the Mount, 244.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "This petition is a plea and a declaration, or promise. The plea is for forgiveness... But the declaration is that we also have indeed forgiven those who have sinned against us. If 'declaration' is too strong a word (stating that we have forgiven others), it is at least a promise that we will do so." (The Sermon on the Mount, 244.)

R.T. Kendall writes that the word "debts" (opheilemata) means what is owed. "We owe a great debt to God: pure obedience. anything that comes short of His glory is sin." (The Sermon on the Mount, 244.)

R.T. Kendall writes that this petition "is not a prayer for salvation." Rather, "It is a necessary prayer for a child of God who has already been saved in order to enjoy fellowship with the Father and also to inherit fully His Kingdom... We want to keep short accounts with God and confess our sins immediately, to enjoy His presence and fellowship." (The Sermon on the Mount, 246.)

R.T. Kendall writes that John Calvin said that "our sins are like a dividing wall, which prevents a person from coming close, and like a cloud, which stops His eyes from seeing us(Lam 3:44)." (The Sermon on the Mount, 246.)

R.T. Kendall writes that there are two assumptions in the fifth petition: (The Sermon on the Mount, 247.)

We need to be forgiven.
People have hurt us.

R.T. Kendall writes, "Praying the petition, 'Forgive us our debts,' is a prayer of contrition, that you are truly sorry for your debts, trespasses, sins, and failures." (The Sermon on the Mount, 247.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "It is a sobering fact that most of the people we have to forgive don't even think they have done anything wrong... It is absolutely true that most people who have hurt us don't think we should be hurt at all." (The Sermon on the Mount, 247.)

R.T. Kendall says that this petition is actually an agreement, or a covenant with God. "A covenant is a contract between to two parties.... You agree to forgive them as you pray for your own forgiveness. Implied in this covenant is that you agree to be forgiven in proportion to the way you forgive... To be forgiven, you agree to forgive; if you don't forgive, you forfeit your own forgiveness." (The Sermon on the Mount, 248.)

R.T. Kendall says that the other person doesn't have to be sorry and repent in order for us to forgive them. (The Sermon on the Mount, 248.)

James Boice distinguishes between two types of forgiveness. There is the forgiveness that one receives at salvation when we first believe in Christ. But the fifth petition of the Lord's Prayer is "speaking of forgiveness in one sense only -- the forgiveness that is given after justification of a disobedient children of God. And we must realize that before this forgiveness is possible it must be preceded by another type of forgiveness by which which one becomes a member of God's family in the first place." (The Sermon on the Mount, 196.)

James Boice adds, "When a sinful human being becomes a Christian he does not cease to be a sinner any more than he ceases to be a human being. Oh, he has a new nature planted within him by God. The new nature does not sin. The new nature will constantly lead him along the paths of holiness if he will yield to it. But the Christian also has a sinful, fallen nature that he will never eradicate in this life. This old nature will get him into trouble again and again, and every time it breaks out he will find that it also breaks the fulness of his fellowship with God. What is the Christian to do in these circumstances? The Bible teaches that he is to return to the Lord again and again to confess his sin and to ask for forgiveness and cleansing. If he neglects to do this, he will lose all the joy of salvation. If he asks for forgiveness, he will enter increasingly into the joy of deepening fellowship with God." (The Sermon on the Mount, 196.)

We are all sinners in need of forgiveness.

1 Jn 1:8
Rm 3:23
Pr 20"9
Eccl; 7:20

1 John 1:9 gives us the assurance that our sins will be forgiven.

Thomas Watson points out that in the last three requests, one has to do with the body, and the other two with our souls. "Observe hence, that we are to be more careful for our souls than for our bodies, more careful for grace than for daily bread; and more desirous to have our souls saved than our bodies fed."

Thomas Watson notes the connection between fourth and fifth petitions. "He writes that "all is not nothing without forgiveness. If our sins are not pardoned, we can take but little comfort in our food. As a man who is condemned takes little comfort from the food you bring him in prison; so, though we have daily bread—yet it will do us no good unless sin is forgiven."

Thomas Watson points out four things about the fifth petition:

A term given to sin -- a debt.
The confession of the debt -- "our debts."
A prayer -- "forgive us."
A condition on which we desire forgiveness -- "as we forgive our debtors."

Thomas Watson says that sin is called a debt because it fitly resembles it:

"A debt arises upon non-payment of money, or the not paying that which is one's due. We owe to God exact obedience, and not paying what is die, we are in debt."
"In case of non-payment, the debtor goes to prison; so, by our sin, we become guilty, and are exposed to God's curse of damnation."

Thomas Watson says that sin is the worst debt for the following reasons:

"Because we have nothing to pay... we can pay neither principal nor interest."
"Because it is against an infinite majesty... Sin wrongs God, and so is an infinite offense."
"Because it is not a single, but a multiplied debt... Forgive us our 'debts'; we have debt upon debt... We do not know how much we owe to God."
"Because it is an inexcusable debt... There is no denying the debt... There is no shifting off the debt."
"Because it carries men, in case of non-payment, to a worse prison than any upon earth, even to a fiery prison."

Thomas Watson makes three observations about bad debtors:

A bad debtor does not love to be called to. They "play away the time."
A bad debtor is unwilling to confess his debt; he will put it off, or make less of it.
A bad debtor is apt to hate his creditor.

Thomas Watson makes the following comments about confession (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 16786):

"Let us confess our debt. Let us acknowledge that we are in arrears with God, and deserve that he should enforce the law upon us, and throw us into hell-prison."
"By confession we give glory to God." Josh 7:19
"If we confess the debt, God will forgive it." 1 Jn 1:9; Ps 32:5
"Let us not confess merely, but labor to get our spiritual debts paid by Christ the Surety."

Thomas Watson asks, "What is forgiveness of sin? It is God's passing by sin, wiping off the score and giving us discharge." (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 16810.)

The nature of forgiveness will more clearly appear, by opening some Scripture phrases; and by laying down some propositions.

To forgive sin is for God to take away iniquity. Job 7:21. Hebrew: lift it off. "It is a metaphor taken from a man who carries a heavy burden which is ready to sink him, and another comes and lifts it off; so when the heaven burden of sin is on us, God in pardoning, lifts it off from the conscience and lays it upon Christ." Is 53:6
To forgive sin is for God to cover it. Ps 85:2. "This was typified by the mercy seat covering the ark to show God's covering of sin through Christ. God does not cover sin in the Antinomian sense -- so as he sees it not -- but he so cover it that he will not impute it."
To forgive sin is for God to blot it out. Is 43:25. "The Hebrew word, to blot out, alludes to a creditor who, when his debtor has paid him, blots out the debt, and gives him an acquittance. Just so, when God forgives sin, he blots out the debt, he draws the red line of Christ's blood over it, and so crosses the debt-book."
To forgive sin is for God to scatter our sins as a cloud. Is 44:22. "Sin is the cloud, an interposing cloud, which disperses, that the light of his countenance may break forth."
To forgive sin is for God to cast our sins into the depths of the sea, which implies buring them out of sight, that they shall not rise up in judgment against us... God will throw them in, not as a cork which rises again, but as lead which sinks to the bottom. Micah 7:19.

The nature of forgiveness will further appear by laying down some propositions respecting it.

Every sin deserves death, and therefore needs forgiveness. As opposed to mortal and venial sins.
It is God alone who forgives sin. Mk 2:7. Referring to John 20:23, Watson says, "Ministers cannot remit sin authoritatively and effectually, but only declaratively. They have a special office and authority to apply the promises of pardon to broken hearts. When a minister sees one humbled for sin, but afraid God has not pardoned him, and is ready to be swallowed up of sorrow, for the easing of this man's conscience, he may, in the name of Christ, declare to him, that he is pardoned. He does not forgive sin by his own authority, but as a herald, in Christ's name, pronounces a man's pardon."
Forgiveness of sin is purely an act of God's free grace. "He forgives as when a creditor freely forgives a debtor... Forgiveness is spun out of the affections of God's mercy; there is nothing we can do that can deserve it; not our prayers, or tears, or good deeds can purchase pardon."
Forgiveness is through the blood of Christ. Eph 1:7. "Free grace is the inward moving cause. Christ's blood is the outward cause of meriting pardon."
In forgiveness of sin, God remits the guilt and penalty.
By virtue of this pardon, God will no more call sin to repentance. Heb 8:12.
Sin is not forgiven until it be repented of. Lk 24:47. Watson lists three ingredients of repentance which must occur before forgiveness:

Contrition, or brokenness of heart. "What is that remorse and sorrow which goes before forgiveness? It is a holy sorrow; it is a grieving for sin, as it is sin, and as it is dishonoring God, and defiling the sou."
Confession.
Conversion, or turning from sin. "There must not only be a turning from sin, but a turning to God (Acts 20:21)... The prodigal not only left his harlots, but arose and went to his father (Lk 15:18). Is 55:7. "A king will not pardon a rebel while he continues in open hostility. Thus repentance goes before remission of sin."

The greatest sins come within the compass of forgiveness. In the parable of the unforgiving servant, the king forgive a debt of ten thousand talents, or 200,000 years' wages for a laborer.
When God pardons a sinner, he forgives all sins. Jer 33:8; Col 2:13
Faith necessarily precedes forgiveness.
Though justification and sanctification are not the same, yet God never pardons a sinner without sanctifying him. 1 Cor 6:11. "Where God pardons, he purifies... So that whoever God forgives, he transforms. Let no man say his sins are forgiven who does not find an inherent work of holiness in his heart."
Where God remits, he imputes righteousness. "This righteousness procures God's favor. God cannot but love us, when he sees His Son's robe, which both covers and adorns us." 2 Cor 5:21
Those whose sins are forgiven must not omit praying for forgiveness.
A full absolution from all sin is not pronounced until the day of judgment.

Thomas Watson provides the following information about forgiveness: (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 16985.)

From the word "Forgive," we learn that if the debt of sin is no other way discharged but by being forgiven, we cannot satisfy for it.
From the word "us," "forgive us," we learn that pardon is chiefly to be sought for ourselves.
From the word "our," "our sins," we learn how just God is in punishing us.
From this word "sins," see from hence the multitude of sins we stand guilty of.

Thomas Watson asks, "How shall we know by the Word that our sins are forgiven?" (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17302.)

The pardoned sinner is a great weeper. "The sense of God's love melts his heart." Lk 7:38
We may know that our sins are forgiven by having the grace of faith. Saving faith has two things:

Renunciation. "A man will renounce all opinion of himself; and he is quite taken off from himself. He sees all his duties are but broken reeds. Though he could weep a sea of tears; though he had all the grace of men and angels, it could not purchase his pardon."
Recumbency. Looking to Christ for salvation.

The pardoned soul is an admirer of God. Micah 7:18
Wherever God pardons sin, he subdues it. Mic 7:10. "Where men's persons are justified, their lusts are mortified."
He whose sins are forgiven is full of love to God. Lk 7:47.
Where sin is pardoned, the nature is purified. The heart is changed. Ez 36:26
Such as are in the number of God's people have forgiveness of sin.
We are pardoned if after many storms we have a sweet calm and peace within. Rm 5:1. "Before conscience accused, now it secretly whispers comfort...."
Sin is forgiven when we have hearts sincere. Ps 32:1-2
He whose sins are forgiven is willing to forgive others who have forgiven him. Eph 4:32

Thomas Watson describes what happens when God forgives a person: (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17423.)

God looks upon the pardoned soul as if he had never sinned.
God will pass an act of oblivion. Jer 31:34.
The pardoned soul is forever secured from the wrath of God. Rm 5:9
Conscience has no more authority to accuse.
Nothing which befalls a pardoned soul shall hurt him. Ps 91:10
Everything has a commission to do him good.
A pardoned soul is not only exempted from wrath, but invested with dignity.
A pardoned soul is made a favorite in heaven.
We may come with humble boldness to God in prayer.
Forgiveness of sins makes our services acceptable. God takes all we do in good part.
Forgiveness of sin is the sauce which sweetens all the comforts of this life. "... there is little comfort in daily bread, unless sins be forgiven."
If sin be forgiven, God will never upbraid us with former sins.
Pardoned sin is a pillar of support in the loss of friends. "God has taken away your child, your husband; but he has also taken away your sins. He has given you more than he has taken away; he has taken away a flower, and given you a jewel."
Where God pardons sins, he bestows righteousness. Is 61:10; 2 Cor 5:21
A pardoned soul needs not fear death.

Thomas Watson writes of the DUTIES of those who have their sins forgiven: (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17507.)

Be much in praise and doxology for God's pardoning love.
Let God's pardoning love to you inflame your hearts with love to God.
Let the sense of God's love in forgiving you make you more cautious and fearful of sin for the future.
If God has given you good hope that you are pardoned, walk cheerfully. Rm 5:11
Has God pardoned you? Do all the service you can for God. 1 Cor 15:58

Thomas Watson explains how to obtain forgiveness of sin. (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17545.)

We must take heed of mistakes about pardon of sin.

Many think their sins are pardoned merely because God is merciful. "God's being merciful shows that man's sins are pardonable. But there is a great deal of difference between sins pardonable and sins pardoned."
Many think that their sins are pardoned merely because Christ died for sins. "Remission of sin is limited to believers."

The second means for pardon of sin is to see yourselves guilty.
The third means for pardon is hearty confession of sin. Ps 32:5; Pr 28:13
Sound repentance. Lk 24:47
Faith in the blood of Christ.
Pray much for pardon. Hos 14:2; Lk 18:13

Thomas Watson writes, "When do we forgive others? When we strive against all thoughts of revenge; when we will not do our enemies harm—but wish well to them, grieve at their calamities, pray for them, seek reconciliation with them, and show ourselves ready on all occasions to relieve them. This is gospel-forgiving." (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17620.)

Thomas Watson makes several remarks about forgiving others: (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17650.)

Herein we resemble God. Ps 86:5
To forgive is one of the highest evidences of grace.
The blessed example of our Lord Jesus teaches this.
The danger of an implacable unforgiving spirit.
God has tied his mercy to the condition that if we do not forgive, neither will he forgive us.
The example of the saints who have been of forgiving spirits. Joseph(Gen 50:21); Stephen; Moses (Ex 15:25).
Forgiving and requiting good for evil is the best way to conquer and melt the heart of an enemy. 1 Sam 24:15-16; Rm 12:20
Forgiving others is the way to have forgiveness of God, and is a sign of that forgiveness.

Thomas Watson teaches how to grow in forgiveness of others: (The Lord's Prayer, Kindle, 17713.)

Let us consider how many wrongs and injuries we have done against God.
Let us see God's hand in all that men do or say against us.
Lay up a stock of faith.
Think how you have often wronged others.
Get humble hearts. "A proud man thinks it a disgrace to forgive an injury."

A.W. Pink writes, "We cannot rightly desire God to forgive us our sins unless we sincerely long for grace to abstain from the like in the future." (The Lord's Prayer, 47.)

forgive | Word Study | 863: forgive (aphiemi)

R.T. Kendall writes, "We therefore ask God to let us off the hook. The Greek word means to 'let be' or 'send away.' We therefore pray that God will overlook our debt. Instead of having to pay, we pray He will leave it as it is without our having to pay, that He will let it be without His holding us responsible. We simply ask God to wipe away our debt." (The Sermon on the Mount, 245.)

This Greek word (aphiemi) is the same used in 1 Jn 1:9. About that verse Lewis Drummond writes, "To ‘forgive’ in John’s terminology means to wipe out a debt. ‘To be cleansed’ implies the blotting out of a stain. God will not only eradicate all debts, He will even blot out the stain of the memory that may drag one down into spiritual depression and guilt (Ps 103:12; Is 43:25).” (Love, 135.)

13 And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. [For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]

And do not bring us into temptation

King James Version: "And lead us not into temptation."
God's Word Translation: "Don't allow us to be tempted."
Contemporary English Version: "Keep us from being tempted."
Complete Jewish Bible: "And do not lead us into hard testing."
Easy-to-Read Version: "Don't let us be tempted."
EasyEnglish Bible: "Do not let us agree to do wrong things."
Good News Translation: "Do not bring us to hard testing."
International Children's Bible: "And do not cause us to be tested."
New International Reader's Version: "Keep us from sinning when we are tempted."
NLT: "And don't let us yield to temptation." The footnote reads, "Or 'And keep us from being tested.'"
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (2021): "And do not bring us to the time of trial." The footnote adds, "Or 'us into testing.'"
New Testament For Everyone: "Don't bring us into the great trial."
Revised Geneva Translation: "And lead us not into trial."

Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament calls this a "Permissive imperative," as grammarians term it. "The idea is then: 'Do not allow us to be led into temptation.'" He points to Luke 22:40 to illustrate the meaning."

Vincent's Word Studies says, "Here, generally of all situations and circumstances which furnish an occasion for sin."

There is a prayer in the Jewish Talmud, in the tractate Berakot, that says, "Lead me not into error, nor into iniquity, nor into temptation nor into disgrace." The Talmud is a written record of ancient rabbinic teaching.

The Anglican Prayer Book Catechism says, "and that it will please him to save and defend us in all dangers ghostly [i.e. spiritual] and bodily."

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q127) says, "What does the sixth request mean? 'And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one' means, By ourselves we are too weak to hold our own even for a moment. And our sworn enemies -- the devil, the world, and our own flesh -- never stop attacking us. And so, Lord, uphold us and make us strong with the strength of Your Holy Spirit, so that we may not go down to defeat in this spiritual struggle, but may firmly resist our enemies until we finally win the complete victory." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 238.)

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q106) says, "What do we pray for in the sixth petition? In the sixth petition (which is, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil) we pray that God would either keep us from being tempted to sin, or support and deliver us when we are tempted."

The Westminster Larger Catechism (Q195) states, "What do we pray for in the sixth petition? In the sixth petition (which is, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil), acknowledging, that the most wise, righteous, and gracious God, for divers holy and just ends, may so order things, that we may be assaulted, foiled, and for a time led captive by temptations; that Satan, the world, and the flesh, are ready powerfully to draw us aside, and ensnare us; and that we, even after the pardon of our sins, by reason of our corruption, weakness, and want of watchfulness, are not only subject to be tempted, and forward to expose ourselves unto temptations, but also of ourselves unable and unwilling to resist them, to recover out of them, and to improve them; and worthy to be left under the power of them: we pray, that God would so overrule the world and all in it, subdue the flesh, and restrain Satan, order all things, bestow and bless all means of grace, and quicken us to watchfulness in the use of them, that we and all his people may by his providence be kept from being tempted to sin; or, if tempted, that by his Spirit we may be powerfully supported and enabled to stand in the hour of temptation: or when fallen, raised again and recovered out of it, and have a sanctified use and improvement thereof: that our sanctification and salvation may be perfected, Satan trodden under our feet, and we fully freed from sin, temptation, and all evil, forever."

Kevin DeYoung writes, "The sixth petition of the Lord's Prayer reminds us that life is a spiritual struggle." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 239.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "Too many of us face the day giving little thought to our enemies. If we were in a physical war, we would scout out our enemies' positions each morning and plan carefully for possible attacks and counterattacks. But when it comes to spiritual battle, we suffer from gross overconfidence. Our sworn enemies -- the flesh, the world, and the Devil -- are not at rest, so neither should we be... How earnestly we ought to pray for protection against our thoughts, the world's lies, and the Devil's stratagems." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 239.)

J.I. Packer says that the word "temptation" here means a "test or trial -- that is, a situation that reveals how far you are able to go right and avoid going wrong." He compares this to a driving test which is designed to show your abilities. "Now, any educational or training program must of necessity include periodic tests for gauging progress, and the experience of taking and passing such tests can be very encouraging to the trainee. In God's program for the spiritual education and growth of Christians, the same applies. God does and must test us regularly, to prove what is in us and to show how far we have come. His purpose in this is wholly constructive, to strengthen us and help us forward. Thus he 'tested' Abraham (so ESV; AV has 'tempt,' RV 'prove') (Gen 22:1, 18)." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 86.)

J.I. Packer asks why we should pray to be spared from temptation if it is beneficial. He gives three reasons. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 86.)

When God tests us for good, Satan (the tempter, Mt 4:3) tries to exploit the situation for our ruin. 1 Pt 5:8
The pressures in times of trial can be so appalling that no Christian can do other than shrink from them.
Knowledge of our own proven weakness and of the skill of Satan compels us to cry in humility and self-distrust, "Lord, if it be possible, please, no temptation! I don't want to risk damaging myself and dishonoring you by falling!"

J.I. Packer writes, "The conclusion of the matter is this. For good and necessary reasons connected with our Christian growth, we shall not be spared all temptation. But if we ask to be spared and watch and pray against Satan's attempts to exploit situations for our downfall, we shall be tempted less than we might have been, and we will find ourselves able to cope with temptation when it comes." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 89.)

J.I. Packer writes, "When you are not conscious of temptation, pray 'lead us into temptation,' and when you are conscious of it, pray 'deliver us from evil,' and you will live." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 90.)

A.W. Pink notes that the last four requests of the Lord's Prayer are for: (The Lord's Prayer, 53.)

Providing grace: "give us"
Pardoning grace: "forgive us"
Preventing grace: "lead us not into temptation"
Preserving grace: "deliver us."

A.W. Pink writes, "It is important to understand that the word tempt has a twofold significance in Scripture, though it is not always easy to determine which of the two applies in a particular passage: (The Lord's Prayer, 48.)

To try (the strength of), to put to the test
To entice to do evil.

A.W. Pink continues, "When it is said that 'God did tempt Abraham' (Gen 22:1), it means that He tried him, putting to the test his faith and fidelity. But when we read that Satan tempted Christ, it signifies that Satan sought to bring about His downfall, morally impossible though it was. To tempt is to make a trial of a person, in order to find out what he is and what he will do."

A.W. Pink says there are three ways that God leads us into temptation: (The Lord's Prayer, 49.)

"First, He does so objectively when His providences, though good in themselves, offer occasions (because of our depravity) for sin."
"Second, God tempts permissively when He does not restrain Satan (which He is under no obligation to do). Sometimes God suffers him to sift us as wheat."
"Third, God tempts men judicially, punishing their sins by allowing the Devil to lead them into further sin, to the ultimate destruction of their souls."

A.W. Pink asks, "But why does God tempt His people, either objectively by His providences, or subjectively and permissively by Satan? He does so for various reasons." (The Lord's Prayer, 49.)

"First, He tries us in order to reveal to us our weakness and our deep need of His grace."
"Second, He tests us in order to teach us the need of watchfulness and prayer."
"Third, our Father subjects us to trials in order to cure our slothfulness."
"Fourth, God puts us to the test in order to reveal to us the importance and value of the armor He has appointed."

A.W. Pink writes, "We are to pray that we may not be led into temptation; or, if God sees fit that we should be tempted, that we may not yield thereto; or if we yield, that we be not totally overcome by sin." (The Lord's Prayer, 50.)

A.W. Pink writes about the believer's responsibility in connection with temptation. (The Lord's Prayer, 50.)

"First, it is our bounded duty to avoid those persons and places that would allure us into sin, just as it is always our duty to be on the alert for the first signs of Satan's approach." 1 Thess 5:22
"Second, we must steadfastly resist the devil." Jas 4:7
"Third, we are to go to God for grace submissively, for the measure He grants us in according to His own good pleasure."

Al Mohler writes that this petition reminds us of some very important points. (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 146.)

"First, Christians must recognize that temptations are a real and daily threat to communion with God and life with Christ. The most dangerous thing a Christian can ever do is believe that he is somehow immune to temptation."
"Second, this petition reminds us that we are not able to resist temptation by our own power."
"Third, Christians must pray for endurance in the fight against temptation."

Al Mohler says that God does not lead us into temptation. Instead, "Jesus is asking God to lead him away from evil and away from the lusts of his own flesh." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 149.)

Al Mohler writes about the difference between tests and temptations. "A test is a trying circumstance or a difficult situation orchestrated in our lives by God. A temptation, however, is an invitation to sin, an encouragement to engage in something contrary to God's law. God certainly tests us, but he never tempts us. We must never allow God's tests to lead to temptations." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 150.)

Al Mohler writes that temptation can be both internal and external. To illustrate internal temptation, he points to James 1:14-15. To illustrate external temptation he points to Mt 4.

R.C. Sproul writes, "Jesus showed that we are to ask the Father to spare us from the temptations and the spiritual attacks that can lead us into new sin." (The Prayer of the Lord, 87.)

R.C. Sproul writes, "The force of the language does not have to do with God's enticing us to sin. A better wording might be, 'Do not lead us into the place of testing.' Jesus is saying that we should pray that the Father will never cause us to undergo a severe test of our faith or our obedience." (The Prayer of the Lord, 88.)

The NET Bible note says this "is a rhetorical way to ask for his [God's] protection from sin."

Another NET Bible note says that an alternative translation is "into a time of testing."

Thomas Constable (Constable's Notes) says, "'Temptation' is the Greek peirasmos and means 'testing.' It refers not so much to solicitation to evil as to trials that test the character. God does not test (peirasmos) anyone (Jas 1:13-14)... Even though God is not the instrumental cause of our testing He does permit us to experience temptation from the world, the flesh, and the devil. Therefore this petition is a request that He minimize the occasions of our testing that may result in our sinning."

William Barclay writes that there are two difficulties with the phrase "And lead us not into temptation." (The Lord's Prayer, 98.)

"How can we reasonably pray not to be led into temptation when in point of fact temptation is so integral to human existence on earth that we cannot conceive of life without it?"
"In what sense can we ever believe that God would lead us into temptation?"

Barclay writes, "... in Greek the word trial and the word temptation are the same word (peirasmos)." (The Lord's Prayer, 98.)

The Bible points out the beneficial nature of trials:

James 1:2
1 Pt 1:6-7

William Barclay writes, "The word which is rendered temptation [in Mt 6:13] is peirasmos. Peirasmos is a noun, and like all Greek nouns which in a -asmos it describes a process." Barclay writes that the best way to understand peirasmos is to examine its verb form, peirazein. "It may be said that the Greek verb peirazein has all the many senses of the English word 'to try.'" Barclay describes the various meanings of peirazein: (The Lord's Prayer, 99.)

"It can mean quite simply 'to try' or 'to attempt' to do something. See Acts 16:7.
"It regularly means 'to test' or 'to prove.' In this sense it can be used as exactly parallel to the verb dokimazein, which is the word for testing or providing the quality of a metal, the genuineness or otherwise of a coin. In this sense peirazein can be used, for instance, for the process of testing the effects of a drug by experiment in its use." See 2 Cor 13:5. "Peirazein describes the process by which the genuineness of anything or anyone is tested, and thereby proved or disproved."
"In the bible peirazein is often used of God's testing men to see whether or not their faith is genuine, loyal, and true... Peirazein is regularly used of the divine placing of a man in a situation which is a test, a situation in which he may fall, but in which he is not mean to fall, a situation which may be his ruin, but out of which he is mean to emerge spiritually strengthened and enriched. It is used of a situation into which temptation to disloyalty certainly enters, but the characteristic of which is not so much temptation as testing."
"Peirazein is frequently used in the New Testament of the action of men who maliciously cross-examine or otherwise test someone with the deliberate intention of catching him out or making him incriminate himself. In this sense it is repeatedly used of the Scribes and Pharisees asking Jesus questions which were designed to entrap him (Mt 16:1; 19:3; 12:18)."
"Peirazein is frequently used of the direct and deliberate seduction to sin which in English is the normal meaning of the word to tempt." 1 Cor 7:5; Mt 4:1-11
"Frequently the Bible speaks of man tempting God (Ex 17:2; Num 14:22; Is 7:12; Mt 4:7; Acts 15:10). The idea there is that a man tests God, in the sense of seeing how far he can go with God. He, as it were, tempts God to use his holy power; to put it in a colloquial phrase, he tries to see just how much he can get away with unpunished."

William Barclay writes that in the KJV the words 'test' and 'tempt' are used in the same sense, as they were in Elizabethan English. The KJV translates Gen 22:1 tempt, while the meaning is test. On at least twenty occasions the RSV alters an KJV tempt into test. (The Lord's Prayer, 100.)

William Barclay writes that peirasmos has in it three ideas: (The Lord's Prayer, 101.)

proving or testing the quality of a person or a thing
putting a person in a situation which is in reality a test but which involves the possibility of failure.
the deliberate invitation and seduction to sin

William Barclay adds that the best English word for peirasmos is trial, and he notes that the RSV substitutes the word trial for the KJV temptation at least 18 times. For example: (The Lord's Prayer, 102.)

James 1:2
1 Pt 1:6
Gal 4:14
James 1:12
2 Pt 2:9
Rev 3:10

William Barclay adds, "A peirasmos is an event or situation which tries a man. It tries him in the sense that it is difficult to bear; and it tries him in the sense that his reaction to it shows what kind of man he is." (The Lord's Prayer, 102.)

William Barclay writes, "Always at the back of it there is the idea that a peirasmos in any sense of the word is something which is calculated to, or at least liable to, take a man's faith and loyalty away." (The Lord's Prayer, 103.)

William Barclay writes about the various ways that "lead us not into temptation" has been translated: (The Lord's Prayer, 104.)

Some stress the word "into." The Greek word is eis, "Which could well stand for the Hebrew lidhe, which means into the hands of, and therefore into the power of." "The meaning would then be something like this, if we put it into an amplified form: "I know that temptation must come to me... But, when it does come, as come it must, do not abandon me to it; do not deliver me helpless into its power; stand by me in my hour of need." "In that case this would not be so much an impossible prayer to be exempted from temptation as a prayer not to be abandoned helpless and unarmed to its attack and to its power. To put it positively, it would be a prayer for help when temptation comes."
Another interpretation "takes the clause to be a prayer not for escape from temptation but for victory over temptation." Origen says, "Accordingly, let us pray to be delivered from temptation, not that we should not be tempted -- which is impossible, especially for those on earth -- but that we may not yield when we are tempted." Luther said, "We cannot help being exposed to the assaults, but we pray that we may not fall and perish under them." Chrysostom says it is a prayer for the total elimination of temptation.
"Augustine says that there were actually manuscripts of the New Testament in Latin in his day which rendered this clause: 'Do not allow us to be led into temptation.' This is in fact the interpretation of Tertullian, Cyprian, and Augustine." "It would be a prayer that neither by our own weakness nor by the malice of others we may be brought into life situations in which we are foolishly and sometimes needlessly exposed to the attack of temptation."

William Barclay adds, "... we can easily imagine a student saying to his teacher, or an athlete saying to his trainer, never doubting the love of the teacher or the good intent of the trainer: 'Go easy with me! Don't push me too hard!' It may well be that this is the best way in which to approach this petition; it may be best simply to see in it the instinctive appeal of the man who knows how weak he is and how dangerous life can be, and who takes his own peril to the protection of God." (The Lord's Prayer, 107.)

R.T. Kendall writes that this is the most difficult petition to understand. The mystery turns on two matters: (The Sermon on the Mount, 250.)

the translation of the Greek peirasmon, which means either temptation, testing or trial, or all three.
the strange request that God should not lead us into temptation or trial, which implies He may well so lead us. (See James 1:13-14.) As well, James also said to consider it pure joy when we face trials because they develop perseverance (James 1:21-3).

R.T. Kendall wrote, "Before the NT came along, the Greek word peirasmon rarely ever meant temptation in the sense of "enticement" to sin, as in temptation to sexual sin. Basically it meant testing. But James clearly takes this word partly to refer to lust. Peirasmon is thus used two ways by James: (1) signifying testing or trial (Jas 1:2 and also James 1:12); and (2) signifying lust, almost certainly sexual lust (James 1:13). Only the context helps us know the exact meaning." (The Sermon on the Mount, 251.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "This petition points to the misery of what may be an unnecessary pitfall. A pitfall is unsuspected danger or difficulty." He says to keep four verses in mind: (The Sermon on the Mount, 251.)

Lk 17:1
Jn 16:33
Eccl 8:14
Eccl 9:11

R.T. Kendall says, "The heart of the Father is revealed in the Lord's Prayer. And this petition shows that He does not want us to suffer. He also knows the pain we will feel if we fall into sin. This is the essential reason for the petition. Our heavenly Father does not want us to suffer as a result of falling into sexual sin or falling into unbelief." (The Sermon on the Mount, 251.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "You don't sin without temptation preceding it. The best way to avoid sin is to avoid temptation. That is, I believe, the Lord's rationale in giving us this petition." (The Sermon on the Mount, 251

R.T. Kendall writes, "There is an essential difference between temptation and testing. Temptation is what God allows to test us; and yet it usually comes immediately from within... When God allows sexual temptation, it is a test, to see whether we will pass o fail." (The Sermon on the Mount, 252.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "We are not praying that we shall not be tempted; we know what will will be tempted, sooner or later. We are not praying that we shall not be tested; we know that we will be tested, sooner or later. We are praying that we shall not be prematurely tested by being brought into something that is beyond our strength. We pray that nothing will bring us into temptation and testing prematurely and unnecessarily... we pray that we will not be thrown into the deep end of testing until we are ready for it... This is surely the basic meaning of this petition." (The Sermon on the Mount, 253.)

R.T. Kendall adds, "Our prayer to God, therefore, is that He will not let us fall into a situation greater than we can cope with -- that is, sooner than we are able to cope with it... He is to telling us to pray to be spared of falling into temptation, trial or testing." (The Sermon on the Mount, 253.)

R.T. Kendall writes that there are two ways that you can pray this petition: (The Sermon on the Mount, 253.)

To challenge God by demanding that He do it all for us -- demanding He give us grace so that we won't feel tempted.
It is pray with the fear that God may allow one to fall. "You, therefore, plead this petition on bended knee, as if to say, 'O God, please help me, please, please do not let me come into temptation."

"The proof that you mean this prayer is that you will do all you can in your own power to avoid a temptation situation."

R.T. Kendall wrote, "When I willfully walk into a situation I know beforehand will mean fierce temptation, and I put the onus on God to uphold me, I am tempting Him. Therefore, to pray the petition, 'Lead us not into temptation,' when I am challenging God by walking deliberately into temptation, I am mocking Him. If I say, 'But I prayed the Lord's Prayer, and the temptation still came,' I am shifting the blame from myself to God." (The Sermon on the Mount, 254.)

R.T. Kendall wrote, "The best way to avoid falling into sin is to avoid the temptation you know is out there." (The Sermon on the Mount, 255.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "The temptation, or testing, is mainly: (1) sexual temptation and (2) unbelief, which are essentially testing. The two can come together simultaneously. You may find yourself asking, 'Why did God let this happen to me? How could this happen, since I prayed for it not to happen?' This is where unbelief will try to set in." (The Sermon on the Mount, 255.)

R.T. Kendall asks, "Why did God not answer our prayer when we prayed not to enter into temptation, but did enter into despite our prayer? It means we were equal to the trial. God knew we could take it. He dignified us! We did not have to face it prematurely. We were ready for it. And we should pass the trial with flying colors! You were handed on a silver platter the means o sanctification: to refine your faith and character (Rm 5:3-4)." (The Sermon on the Mount, 255.)

R.T. Kendall says, "We do, indeed, pray to avoid testing, even knowing that falling into trial is beneficial." (The Sermon on the Mount, 256.)

This petition implies four things:

We are in a war.
We need outside help.
We must pray to receive help.
God wants to give help.

James Boice says there are several distinct types of temptation. Some are from God and some are from Satan. "This is a prayer for deliverance from only one kind." (The Sermon on the Mount, 202.)

James Boice says that the word "temptation" has two meanings. "It can refer either to a direct temptation to do evil, or to a trial, an ordeal, a testing." In James 1:2-3 "the writer is referring to a kind of test that comes to a Christian from God. This is the kind of testing that came to Abraham when God asked him to sacrifice his son, or that comes to us in persecution, sickness, discouragement, or abuse by our family and friends. Through these experiences God strengthens the faith of the Christian... Later on in the same chapter James speaks of another kind of tempting, however. This is not at all from God." He points to James 1:13-14. "This is a temptation to sin, of course... It comes from our own sinful natures." A third type of temptation comes from the devil -- James 4:7. "The temptation referred to in the Lord's Prayer is not the first or the second of these three temptations... It is the temptation that comes to the believer directly from Satan." (The Sermon on the Mount, 202.)

James Boice explains the secret to resisting temptation: (The Sermon on the Mount, 202.)

The temptation of the flesh is to be resisted by fleeing from it. 2 Tim 2:22; 1 Cor 6:18
The temptation from the world is to be resisted by allowing God to transform us by the renewing of our minds. Rm 12:1-2
The temptation of Satan is to be resisted by following James 4:7 -- submit and resist.

Submit: Surrender one's will to God.
Resist. By God's word, by means of the Bible. "Purity of life can be ours to the degree that we feed upon the Bible and study it." Ps 119:11; Eph 6:17; Mt 4

G.I. Williamson wrote, "In order to understand this petition, then, we must first remember that nothing happens to us in this world except by the sovereign will and determination of God (Ps 135:6; Eph 1:11). So whatever temptation may befall us in this world can only be by God's appointment." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 356.)

G.I. Williamson wrote, "... God does not tempt men in an evil sense: He does not entice them, or allure them to do evil. He does not 'lead' them in this way, into temptation. But He does bring them into a situation in which Satan (and their own sinful inclination) can tempt them." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 357.)

G.I. Williamson says, "But here our Lord teaches us that our constant prayer to God is that we might be kept from temptation." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 357.)

G.I. Williamson wrote, "Here it will be evident that the same experience may be (1) a trial -- a test -- appointed by God for His glory and our ultimate good, and (2) a temptation in which Satan seeks to lead us astray." (The Westminster Shorter Catechism For Study Classes, 359.)

N.T. Wright says that "lead us not into temptation" has three levels of meaning: (The Lord and His Prayer, 54.)

Let us escape the great tribulation, the great testing, that is coming on all the world.
Do not let us be led into temptation that we will be unable to bear.
Enable us to pass safely through the testing of our faith.

The NIV Study Bible (Mt 6:13) says, "That is, do not lead us through trials so deep that they would tempt us to be unfaithful to you."

The ESV Study Bible (Mt 6:13) says, "The meaning here most likely carries the sense, 'Allow us to be spared from difficult circumstances that would tempt us to sin.' Although God never directly tempts believers, he does sometimes lead them into situations that test them. In fact, trials and hardships will inevitably come to believers' lives, and believers should 'count it all joy (Jas 1:2) when trials come, for they are strengthened by them (Jas 1:3-4). Nonetheless, believers should never pray to be brought into such situations but should pray to be delivered from them, for hardship and temptation make obedience more difficult and will sometimes result in sin."

The MacArthur Study Bible (Mt 6:13) says, "God does not tempt men, but He will subject them to trials that may expose them to Satan's assaults, as in the case of Job and Peter (Lk 22:31-32)."

The CSB Study Bible (Mt 6:13) says, "The idea is 'do not let us fall to temptation' or 'do not abandon us to temptation.'"

The NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible (Mt 6:13) says, "God never tempts anyone; therefore, this probably means, 'Do not let us succumb to temptation.'"

Thomas Watson wrote, "The meaning is that God would not allow us to be overcome by temptation; that we may not be given up to the power of temptation and be drawn into sin."

Temptation | Word Study | 3986: temptation (peirasmos) -- See the Word Study on "Tempt" in 1 Cor 7:5.

but deliver us from the evil one

The Anglican Prayer Book Catechism says, "and that he will keep us from all sin and wickedness, and from our ghostly enemy, and from everlasting death."

The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "Satan is called the evil one, emphatically. He is the grand enemy of the saints, and that both in a military sense, as he fights against them with his temptations, and in a legal sense, as he is an accuser and pleads against them." (The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson.)

J.I. Packer says that "deliver us from evil" means "either sin or trouble or both, or 'the evil one' who manipulates trouble to induce sin." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 85.)

J.I. Packer writes that the Lord's Prayer teaches us the three dimensions of the Christian life: devotion, dependence, and danger. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 93.)

J.I. Packer writes, "'Deliver us from evil' is a plea for protection in the face of danger that threatens...." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 93.)

The Great Litany in the Book of Common Prayer lists six evils that we need deliverance from:

From all evil and wickedness; from sin; from the crafts and assaults of the devil; and from everlasting damnation, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all blindness of heart; from pride, vainglory, and hypocrisy; from envy, hatred, and malice; and from all want of charity, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all inordinate and sinful affections; and from all the deceits of the world, the flesh, and the devil, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all false doctrine, heresy, and schism; from hardness of heart, and contempt of thy Word and commandment, Good Lord, deliver us.
From lightning and tempest; from earthquake, fire, and flood; from plague, pestilence, and famine, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all oppression, conspiracy, and rebellion; from violence, battle, and murder; and from dying suddenly and unprepared, Good Lord, deliver us.

J.I. Packer writes, "The deliverance we need is not only or mainly from adverse circumstances, but from the spiritual evil within us that makes both adverse and favorable circumstances its springboard for attack. Sin in our hearts, spawning all kinds of inclinations to do something other than God's will and to love something or someone more than God himself, is the source of our danger. Always and everywhere, the danger of being led astray by indwelling sin remains." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 94.)

J.I. Packer asks, "Can you yet see your own life in terms of being threatened and endangered by evil of all sorts, and so of needing God's deliverance every moment?" (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 96.)

Thomas Scott (1747-1821; Anglican pastor and author) wrote, "We are taught to pray for deliverance from all kinds, degrees, and occasions of evil; from the malice, power, and subtlety of the powers of darkness; from this evil world and all its allurements, snares, tempers, and deceits; from the evil of our own hearts, that it may be restrained, subdued, and finally extirpated; and from the evil of suffering."

A.W. Pink writes, "This petition, then, expresses a desire to be delivered from all that is really prejudicial to us, and especially from sin, which has no good in it." (The Lord's Prayer, 54.)

The Christian Standard Bible has a footnote that says "evil one" can be translated "evil" or "evil one."

A.W. Pink writes, "It is true that we have been delivered from the 'power of darkness' and translated into the Kingdom of Christ (Col 1:13), and that, as a consequence, Satan no longer has any lawful authority over us. Nevertheless, our adversary wields an awesome and oppressive power: though he cannot rule us, he is permitted to molest and harass us. He stirs up enemies to persecute us (Rev 12-13), he inflames our lusts (1 Chron 21:1; 1 Cor 7:5), and he disturbs our peace (1 Pt 5:8)." (The Lord's Prayer, 54.)

A.W. Pink writes, "Satan's favorite device is to incite or to deceive us into a prolonged self-indulgence in some one sin to which we are particularly inclined. Therefore, we need to be in constant prayer that our natural corruptions may be mortified. When he cannot cause some gross lust to tyrannize a child of God, he labors to get him to commit some evil deed whereby the name of God will be dishonored and His people offended, as he did in the case of David (2 Sam 11). When a believer has fallen into sin the Devil seeks to make him easy therein, so that he has no remorse for it. When God chastens us for our faults, Satan strives to make us fret against our Father's chastening or else to drive us to despair. When he fails in these methods of attack, then he stirs up our friends and relatives to oppose us, as in the case of Job." (The Lord's Prayer, 54.)

Al Mohler writes about two mistakes that Christians make when thinking of the devil. "Some Christians avoid any discussion of demonic forces because they are overreacting to fanatics who obsess over evil spirits and see the Devil in everything. Still other Christians fear that if we start to talk too much about the Devil, we will inevitably undermine personal responsibility in our sin." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 143.)

In his book The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis said that people are prone to two extremes when it comes to thinking about demonic forces. "There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail and materialist or a magician with the same delight."

John 17:15

Al Mohler writes, "While the final petition of the Lord's Prayer is typically rendered 'deliver us from evil,' most modern scholars and translations note that the most appropriate translation is probably 'deliver us from the evil one.'" (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 155.)

R.C. Sproul writes, "This part of the petition both reinforces and expands what Jesus is teaching us in this petition, for we find here a Hebrew literary strategy called parallelism, a technique that links two statements so that the second illumines the significance of the first." (The Prayer of the Lord, 89.)

R.C. Sproul writes, "He not only is teaching us to pray for deliverance from testing, but teaching us to seek divine protection from the wiles of Satan. He is calling us to pray that we would not be exposed to the Devil's onslaughts, to his attempts to entice us to sin or to destroy our confidence in our Savior by accusing us of our failures and of our imperfections." (The Prayer of the Lord, 90.)

R.C. Sproul mentions several examples from Scripture of God using Satan to test someone:

Adam and Eve.
Job.
Abraham.
Jesus.

R.C. Sproul writes, "We're familiar with the role of Satan as the temper, and that's certainly his stock-in-trade. But if anything is his trademark in terms of the work he does in the life of a Christian, it's no so much the work of temptation as the work of accusation. Satan seeks to do everything he can to paralyze believers with unresolved guilt... When a child of God confesses his sin, God forgive sit -- it's as simple as that. But as soon as God says that believer is forgiven, Satan shows up and says: "Oh, no, you're not. You are still guilty." When a Christian listens to him, he becomes burdened and weighted down with a paralyzing load of guilt. That guilt, in turn, robs the believer of his assurance of salvation." (The Prayer of the Lord, 94.)

R.C. Sproul adds that Paul speaks to the problem of accusation in Rm 8:33-34.

William Barclay writes that the Evil One goes by two names in Scripture: (The Lord's Prayer, 108.)

Satan, which means adversary.
The Devil, which means slanderer.

William Barclay writes, "The aim of the Evil One is by any means to cause a breach between man and God, to break the relationship between man and God." (The Lord's Prayer, 108.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "The evil one is the explanation for all troubles." (The Sermon on the Mount, 258.)

R.T. Kendall says that Jesus teaches us four things about the devil: (The Sermon on the Mount, 259.)

he exists
he is evil -- totally wicked
he is active -- alive and well
he is still under God's control.

R.T. Kendall writes about three ways that we face the devil every day: (The Sermon on the Mount, 260.)

He terrorizes us. He wants us to live in constant fear and anxiety.
He tempts us. There are basically three ways he seeks to defeat us through temptation:

Pride.
Sexual temptation.
Unbelief. "The devil wants to make you doubt -- your salvation, the Bible, God's love for you, His plans for you."

He tests us. He tries to get us to believe lies through false prophets and teachers.

R.T. Kendall writes that there are two extremes when it comes to the study of the devil: (The Sermon on the Mount, 261.)

Ignore him entirely -- to deny that he exists.
Be preoccupied with him and see a demon every bush.

R.T. Kendall teaches the three Rs of spiritual warfare: (The Sermon on the Mount, 261.)

recognize that it is the evil one at work. "When yo are terrorized by fear, when the temptation is vehement, when the testing is overpowering -- count on it: This is the devil."
refuse to think about the thoughts he puts in your mind. Phil 4:8
resist. This means to persevere in refusing to listen to him. James 4:7

Thomas Watson writes, "There is more in this petition than is expressed. The thing expressed is that we may be kept from evil. The thing further intended is that we may make progress in piety."

Titus 2:12

Thomas Watson writes, "Not that we pray to be delivered immediately from the presence and indwelling of sin, for that cannot be in this life -- we cannot shake off this viper. But we pray that God would deliver us more and more from the power and practice, from the scandalous acts of sin which cast a sad reflection upon the gospel."

deliver | Word Study | 4506: deliver (rhuomai)

evil one | Word Study | 4190: evil one (poneros)

J.I. Packer notes that "evil" in Matthew 6:13 means "the evil one." (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, p. 23.)

A.W. Pink writes, "We cannot agree with those who restrict the application of the word evil here to the Devil alone, though doubtless he is principally intended. The Greek may, with equal propriety, be rendered either the evil one or the evil thing; in fact, it is translated both ways." (The Lord's Prayer, 53.)

R.C. Sproul writes about two forms of the word "evil" in Greek. When it ends in "on," it puts the word in the neuter form, and refers to evil in the abstract. But when the word ends in "os," as in the Lord's Prayer, it indicates a masculine noun. "Therefore, what Jesus is saying here is best translated not as 'deliver us from evil' but as 'deliver us from the evil one'... for when the term poneros is used in the New Testament, it is a title specifically for Satan." (The Prayer of the Lord, 90.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "But the probable translation is 'evil one.'" One reason is that the word is in the masculine gender, which always refers to a person. As well, in Mt 6:13 the Greek tou ponerou shows the definite article -- "the evil one." As well, the word apo -- "from" -- in, "Deliver us from evil," almost always refers to a person, not things. (The Sermon on the Mount, 259.)

Things that are evil:

Sinful words. Mt 5:11; Mt 15:4; James 3:8; 1 Pt 3:10
Satan. Mt 5:37; Mt 13:19; Jn 17:15; Eph 6:16; 2 Thess 3:3; 1 Jn 2:13-14; 3:12; 5:18-19.
Unrighteous people. Mt 5:45; Mt 7:11; Mt 12:34; Mt 12:35; Mt 12:39; Mt 12:45; Mt 13:49; Mt 16:4; Mt 22:10; Mt 25:26; 2 Thess 3:2;
Sinful thoughts. Mt 9:4; Mt 15:19; James 2:4;
Demons. Mt 12:45; Lk 7:21
Sin. Mk 3:4; Mk 7:22-23; Rm 12:9; Lk 3:19; Jn 3:19-20; Acts 3:26; Rm 12:9; Rm 12:17; Rm 12:21; Col 1:21; 1 Pt 3:11; 1 Pt 3:12
This present age. Gal 1:4; Eph 5:16; Eph 6:13
False teachers. Phil 3:2
Sinful desires. Col 3:5; James 1:14; 1 Pt 4:3
Sinful suspicions. 1 Tim 6:4
Evil heart. Heb 3:12
Evil conscience. Heb 10:22
Favoring the rich over the poor in church. James 2:4
Boasting about tomorrow. James 3:16
The opposite of good. 3 Jn 11

[For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]

KJV: "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."

The ESV Study Bible says, "'For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen' (ESV footnote) is evidently a later scribal addition, since the most reliable and oldest Greek manuscripts all lack these words, which is the reason why these words are omitted from most modern translations. However, there is nothing theologically incorrect about the wording (cf. 1 Chron. 29:11–13), nor is it inappropriate to include these words in public prayers."

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q128) says, "What does your conclusion to this prayer mean? 'For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever' means, We have made all these requests of You because, as our all-powerful King, You not only want to, but are able to give us all that is good; and because Your holy name, and not we ourselves, should receive all the praise, forever."

Al Mohler writes, "The reason these words are not found in modern translations... is that they probably did not appear in the original copy of Matthew. As a result of studying ancient manuscripts, scholars now believe with some certainty that these words were probably a later addition to the Lord's Prayer. Since the Lord's Prayer seems to end rather abruptly, Christians in the early church added a doxology to the end of the prayer so as to give God the final word of praise in corporate settings." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 166.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "Many of the ancient manuscripts include this doxological ending to the prayer, but some do not, among them the Codex Vaticanus, which is one of the most important of the ancient texts. As a result, there is a widespread belief among scholars that this ending was not in the original prayer but was added very soon afterward because it was customary among the Jews to conclude their prayers with a doxology." (The Prayer of the Lord, 98.)

R.C. Sproul writes, "One of the most beautiful aspects of this concluding line of the Lord's Prayer... is that it return the focus to God." (The Prayer of the Lord, 98.)

R.C. Sproul wrote that the pronoun used to identify God here, "Yours," is in the possessive form. "With these words, believers affirm that the kingdom of heaven, supreme power, and ultimate glory all belong properly to God alone." (The Prayer of the Lord, 99.)

R.C. Sproul describes the three things that belong to God in this verse: (The Prayer of the Lord, 98.)

the kingdom: "He reigns supreme over all things and His kingdom shall have no end... The kingdom of God is not of the people, by the people, or for the people. It is a kingdom ruled by a king, And God does not rule by the consent of His subjects but by His sovereign authority."
the power: "God possess all power in heaven and on earth -- power to create, power to save, and power to enable believers to live the Christian life."
the glory: "As servants of God, we should desire that he be magnified over all things, including ourselves."

R.T. Kendall describes what each word of the doxology means: (The Sermon on the Mount, 263.)

"the kingdom": It is to acknowledge the kingship of God; that you are under God's authority. It is acknowledge that God is in charge and in control; nothing can happen outside His permission (Rm 13:1; Ps 75:6-7; Hos 13:11; Ex 33:19; Col 1:18). It is also to honor and accept His verdict regarding our own inheritance in the Kingdom. "To say, 'Yours is the kingdom,' is to stop snapping our fingers at God and expect Him to act at our command."
"the power": Refers to the Holy Spirit. It is to confess our helplessness without His power.
"the glory": We must not forgive to give God the credit for what He does, should He answer any of the petitions in the Lord's Prayer."

1 Chron 29:10-13

Eph 1:3

Eph 3:20-21

Rm 11:36

J.I. Packer calls this the "praise ending." It "ascribes to God the 'kingdom' (that is, it hails him as God on the throne), the 'power' (that is, it adores him as the God able to do all that we ask), and the 'glory' (that is, it declares, 'we praise thee, O God' here and now). Though the early manuscripts make it clear that this is not from Christ's own lips -- but there is no denying that it fits!" (Praying the Lord’s Prayer, pp. 23.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "Granted, the last line of the Lord's Prayer, because of poor manuscript evidence, is not found in newer English translations. But we can still say the line with confidence, knowing it is an allusion to David's prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:11. The end of the Lord's Prayer reminds us that God is an all-powerful King able to help us, an all-glorious King who deserves our praise forever." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 240.)

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q107) says, "The conclusion of the Lord’s prayer (which is, For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever, Amen) teacheth us to take our encouragement in prayer from God only, and in our prayers to praise him, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to him. And, in testimony of our desire, and assurance to be heard, we say, Amen."

R.T. Kendall writes that the traditional ending "does not seem to be in the older manuscripts." (The Sermon on the Mount, 257.)

This is called a doxology. J.I. Packer defines doxologies as "acts of praise to God for his glory." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 106.)

A.W. Pink says a doxology is an "ascription of praise." (The Lord's Prayer, 57.)

J.I. Packer writes that this "is not in the best manuscripts. Nevertheless, it is in the best tradition!" He adds, "... and if this prayer is not from Jesus' lips it certainly reflects his mind." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 106.)

J.I. Packer notes, "Praise is linked to prayer by the conjunction 'for': 'For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory...' The connection of thought is that we ask our heavenly Father for provision, pardon, and protection with great confidence, since we know that for him to give this to his children on the one hand is within his capacity, and on the other is in line with the character he shows when he deals with men -- that is, his glory. This, therefore, is an actual instance of praise for God's power and glory coming in to undergird prayer for the fruits of both." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 107.)

So, J.I. Packer says that the word "glory" here refers to the character God shows when he deals with men. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 107.)

J.I. Packer writes, "Kingdom and power, as ascribed to God in this doxology, are two words expressing a single composite thought. (Grammarians call this idiom a hendiadys: It is common in ancient literature.) The thought is of omnipotent control. Kingdom is used as in Psalm 103:19, 'His kingdom rules over all': it denotes God's all-embracing mastery of the order of creation... Power is the actual mastery that God's rule shows: not, then, naked arbitrary power, like that of a tornado, or a rogue elephant, or a dotty dictator, but unconquerable beneficence, triumphantly fulfilling purposes of mercy and loving-kindness 'to us and to all men.' It is the power by which God is good to all, and rescued Israel from Egypt, and raised Jesus Christ from the dead." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 107-108.)

So, J.I. Packer says that the word "glory" here refers to the character God shows when he deals with men. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 107.)

Psalms that speak of God's kingship and power: Psalm 47, 93, 97, 145.

J.I. Packer says that when we ascribe the glory to God forever, "we are, first, telling God (and thus reminding ourselves) that he, our Maker and Redeemer, is, and always will be, glorious in all he does, especially in his acts of grace...; and second, we are committing ourselves, now and always, to worship and adore him for it all...." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 113.)

J.I. Packer writes, "The principle of human sin (which is the devil's image in man) is this: glory is not God's, but mine. Accordingly, we parade what we think of as our glory, so that admiring watchers will give us glory. This is one facet of our pride: we call it vanity. Vain persons put on a show with their features, physical shape, clothes, skills, position, influence, homes, brains, acquaintanceships, or whatever they are most proud of, expect applause, and feel resentful and hurtful if people do not play up to them and act impressed... Christianity teaches us, not indeed to pretend that we lack qualities that we know very well that we have, but to acknowledge that all we have is God's gift to us, so that he should be praised and admired for it rather than we. The test is to ask yourself how pleased, or how displeased, you become if God is praised while you are not, and equally if you are praised while God is not. The mature Christian is content not to have glory given to him, but it troubles him if men are not glorifying God." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 113-114.)

J.I. Packer wrote about Richard Baxter, the Puritan devotional writer. When people praised him for his books he would say, "I was but a pen in God's hands, and what praise is due to a pen?"

J.I. Packer writes that the fittest way to end the study of the Lord's Prayer is with a checklist of the main items involves. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 119.)

A.W. Pink wrote, "This doxology may be considered in a least a threefold way: (The Lord's Prayer, 57.)

as an expression of holy and joyful praise;
as a plea and argument to enforce the petitions;
as a confirmation and declaration of confidence that the prayer will be heard.

Prayer and praise usually go together. See Phil 4:6

A.W. Pink writes, "'For thine is the Kingdom.' These words set forth God's universal right and authority over all things, by which He disposes of them according to His pleasure... The words 'and the power' allude to God's infinite sufficiency to execute His sovereign right and to perform His will in heaven and earth. Because He is the Almighty, He has the ability to do whatsoever He pleases... The phrase 'and the glory' sets forth His ineffable excellency: since He has absolute sovereignty over all and commensurate power to dispose of all, He is therefore all-glorious." (The Lord's Prayer, 58.)

A.W. Pink writes that the conjunction 'for' has the force of 'because' or 'on account of' the fact that' thine is the Kingdom, etc. (The Lord's Prayer, 59.)

A.W. Pink writes, "This doxology is not only an acknowledgment of God's perfections, but a most powerful plea as to why our petitions should be heard. Christ is here teaching us to employ the for of argumentation. Thou art able to grant these requests, for Thine is the Kingdom, etc." (The Lord's Prayer, 59.)

A.W. Pink writes, "What instruction is here! First, we are taught to enforce our petitions with arguments drawn from the Divine perfections... Second, we are clearly directed to join petition and praise together. Third, we are taught to pray with the utmost reverence. Since God is so great and powerful a King, He is to be feared. Hence it follows that we are to prostrate ourselves before Him in complete submission to His sovereign will. Fourth, we are instructed to make full surrender and subjection of ourselves to Him; otherwise we do but mock God when we acknowledge verbally His dominion over us. Fifth, by praying thus, we are trained to make His glory our chief concern, endeavoring so to walk that our lives show forth His praise." (The Lord's Prayer, 60.)

Kevin DeYoung writes, "The end of the Lord's Prayer reminds us that God is an all-powerful King able to help us, an all-glorious King who deserves our praise forever." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 240.)

power | Word Study | 1411: power (dunamis)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "The Greek word that is translated as power here is dunamis. It's the same word from which we get the English word dynamite." (The Prayer of the Lord, 100.)

R.T. Kendall says, "There are at least two Greek words that can be translated 'power': dunamis (enabling) and exousia (authority)." Dunamis refers to the enabling energy or power that makes things happen." (The Sermon on the Mount, 265.)

There are two Greek words that are translated power. The first is exousia, and the second is dunamis. Exousia refers to authority. It is the right to do something. That’s what we mean when say, “Thine is the kingdom.” God has the authority or the right to do whatever He wants, and the authority to give us commands, and the authority to answer our prayers however He sees fit. We see the word exousia in the Great Commission in the words of Jesus. Matthew 28:18, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.” The word “authority” there is exousia. It means that God has made Jesus King of kings and Lord of lords. But that’s not the word used in the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer. The word used is dunamis, which is where we get our English word dynamite. It refers to the ability to make something happen. If you have the power to bench press three hundred pounds, it means you have the ability to make that happen. When we say, “Thine is the power,” we are not merely saying that God has the right or the authority to do whatever He wants to do, we are saying that God has the ability to do whatever He wants to do.

To be clear, God’s omnipotence doesn’t mean that He can do anything. There are actually some things God can’t do. God can’t lie. He can’t destroy Himself. He can’t create a rock so big that He can’t move it. He can’t create a square circle. God’s omnipotence means He means He can do anything that conforms to His will and character.

glory | Word Study | 1391: glory (doxa)

Spiros Zodhiates wrote, "'To glorify' in Greek means 'to recognize one for what he is.' The verb doxazo is derived from dokeo, which means 'to form an opinion.' But it doesn't speak of the state of being." (The Lord's Prayer, p. 21.)

According to J.I. Packer, the word "glory" in the doxology of the Lord's Prayer refers to the character God shows when he deals with men. (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 107.)

J.I. Packer writes, "In the New Testament the word 'glory' carries two interlocked layers of meaning, each of which entails the other. Layer one is the manifested praiseworthiness of the Creator; layer two is the praise that this draws from his creatures. Which layer is on top depends on whether the reference is to the glory that God has and shows and gives or to that which he is given." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 111.)

J.I. Packer writes, "In the Old Testament, God displayed his glory in typical, visual form as an awe-inspiring expanse of bright light (the shekinah, as later Judaism called it). This was the sign of his beneficent presence in both the tabernacle and the temple (Ex 40:34; 1 Kings 8:10ff). The essential and abiding revelation of God's glory, however, was given by his great acts of merited judgment and unmerited love, and in his 'name' -- which was no mere label, as our names are, but a disclosure of God's nature and character. Jehovah (Yahweh, as modern scholars render it) means "I am (and will be) what I am (and will be)" (see Ex 3:13-15), and the full statement of God's 'name' declares precisely what he is and will be. This statement was made to Moses; when Moses asked God, 'show me thy glory,' God respond not only by a visual manifestation, but also by declaring, '... my name [is] the Lord [Yahweh]... a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgress and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty' (Ex 33:18-34:7). This moral character is the essential glory of God." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 111-112.)

J.I. Packer says, "Great as is the physical glory of shekinah light, the moral glory of God's redeeming love is greater." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 113.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, “It was the habit of Johann Sebastian Bach to write, at the bottom of each of his musical compositions, the initials “S.D.G.” to remind himself and everyone who played his compositions that the glory was God’s alone. “S.D.G.,” of course, stands for the Latin phrase Soli Deo gloria, which means “Glory to God alone.” Bach didn’t write simply “D.G.” -- “Glory to God.” It always had to be “S.D.G.” -- “Glory to God alone.” That’s what we affirm at the end of the Lord’s Prayer.” (The Prayer of the Lord, 102.)

R.T. Kendall writes, "In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word is kabodh. It means 'heaviness.' We may say of someone today, 'He or she is a heavyweight,' meaning they are not common or ordinary but have a lot of importance -- as a senator, member of parliament or bishop... But this heaviness can also be almost physical, even visible. When the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the Temple for the first time, the Temple was 'filled with a cloud, and the priests could not perform their service becasue of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the temple of God' (2 Chron 5:13-14)... The New Testament word for glory is doxa, from which we get 'doxology.' It means 'praise.' But it comes from a root word that actually means 'opinion.' This is very important. God has an opinion.. on everything! Furthermore, He wants to share His opinion -- and for us to take it seriously. This is because He wants praise and glory for every idea He has, every opinion He shares." (The Sermon on the Mount, 267.)

Amen | Word Study | 281: Amen (amen)

The NLT Study Bible says "Amen" means "let it be so." "This word is an affirmation of the truth of what has been said. It can express either the firm belief that something is true ("Yes!") or the desire that something will happen ("let it be so"). It is also used as a formulaic response in praising God, something doubled for emphasis." (NLT Study Bible, 2216.)

The Anglican Prayer Book Catechism, in answer to the question, "What desirest thou of God in this Prayer?", says "Amen" means "So be it."

The Heidelberg Catechism (Q129) says, "What does that little word 'Amen' express? 'Amen' means, This is sure to be! It is even more sure that God listens to my prayer, than that I really desire what I pray for." (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 238.)

Kevin DeYoung writes that "Amen" is not short for "prayer over" but means "Truly!" "Verily!" or "This is sure to be!" (The Good News We Almost Forgot, 240.)

J.I. Packer writes, "'Amen' is a Hebrew word used in the Old Testament and synagogue worship, whence it was passed into Christian speech. In Scripture it not only ends prayer, showing an earnest wish to be heard, but also voices acceptance of such things... Its root meaning is 'true, firm, solid, certain,' and what it expresses is an emphatic yes to what has been said: 'definitely yes' as a man from the English Midlands might say, or 'that's the truth' as in colloquial American. 'So be it,' the usual paraphrase of 'amen,' is too weak: 'amen' expresses not just a wish, but a committed confidence -- 'so shall it be.'" (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 117.)

J.I. Packer writes, "'Amen' may either follow an utterance or precede it ('verily' in Jesus' formula, recurring more than fifty times; 'verily I say...' is 'amen' in the original. Either way, however, it underlines the utterance as an important one with which the speaker full identifies." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 118.)

J.I. Packer writes, "The effect of saying 'amen,' assuming it is said with heart no less than voice, is to associate oneself with both promises and prayers in a way that makes them one's own." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 118.)

J.I. Packer writes, "'Amen' (best said loudly and with emphasis) is our final profession of having meant what we have said and identifying completely with the attitudes, hopes, and goals that the prayer expresses." (Praying the Lord's Prayer, 118.)

Al Mohler says the word "Amen" "signals agreement and affirmation." (The Prayer That Turns The World Upside Down, 171.)

Martin Luther writes, "And do not leave this prayer unless you have thought, 'All right, God has heard my prayer, and I truly know this for certain, for that is what 'Amen' means."

A.W. Pink says, "This word intimates the two things required in prayer, namely, a fervent desire and the exercise of faith. For the Hebrew word Amen (often translated 'verily' or 'truly' in the twofold meaning of supplication and expectation is plainly hinted at in the double use of Amen in Psalm 72:10... God has determined it shall be so, and the whole Church expresses its part and clause of the prayer... Uttering the Amen, both in public and private prayers, we express our longings and affirm our confidence in God's power and faithfulness. It is itself a condensed and emphatic petition: believing in the verity of God's promises and resting on the stability of His government, we both cherish and acknowledge our confident hope in a gracious answer." (The Lord's Prayer, 61.)

R.C. Sproul wrote, "This is an Old Testament word, derived from the Aramaic, that means 'truly' or 'so be it.' Having prayed according to Jesus' instructions, we declare 'so be it.'" (The Prayer of the Lord, 103."

The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q107) says that "Amen" is a testimony of our desire and assurance to be heard.

R.T. Kendall writes, "Amen is the Aramaic word that means 'so be it.' We use 'Amen' to endorse another's prayer; we say it at the end of our own prayer, as if to confirm we mean what we just said." (The Sermon on the Mount, 268.)

The Lexham Bible Dictionary says, "A Hebrew word that has served as a declaration of affirmation and as the closing exclamation of agreement to a doxology or prayer in Jewish and Christian liturgy."

"The common understanding of the Hebrew term 'amen' is 'truly, surely, let it be so.' It carries a basic meaning of 'reliable,' 'trustworthy', or 'firm'."
"By the time of Jesus’ life and ministry, “amen” had become a sacred word that was well established in Jewish liturgy. The New Testament transliterates the Hebrew term אָמֵן (amen) into Greek as ἀμήν (amēn). The term appears 129 times in the New Testament. More than half of these occurrences are in the Gospels, with 99 occurrences being spoken by Jesus."
"'Amen' is most commonly used in the New Testament as Jesus’ acknowledgment of the truth and authority of His teachings, statements, or corrections of religious law (Moberly, “אמן, 'mn“; Osborne, Gospel of John, 40). The term appears either at the beginning or end of Jesus’ theological statements and holds the sense of “truly I say to you” or “in truth I tell you” (Bauer, “ἀμήν, amēn,” 53–54). This “amen” formula occurs 49 times in the Synoptic Gospels (30 times in Matthew, 13 in Mark, and 6 in Luke), and 50 times in John’s Gospel, always appearing in John as a doublet (“Amen, amen,” with the doubling implying emphasis)."

List of Resources on the Lord's Prayer:

Westminster Larger Catechism (Questions 179-196)
Westminster Shorter Catechism (Questions 98-107)
The Heidelberg Catechism (Questions 116-129)
First Catechism, (Questions 109-125), 2003, Great Commission Publications
Belonging to God: A First Catechism
The Lord's Prayer, by Thomas Watson
Praying the Lord's Prayer, by J.I. Packer
The Prayer of the Lord, by R.C. Sproul
The Lord and His Prayer, by N.T. Wright
The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down, by Albert Mohler
Lord, Teach Us, by William Willimon and Stanley Hauerwas
The Lord's Prayer, by A.W. Pink
On Earth as it is in Heaven, by Warren Wiersbe
The Lord's Prayer, by William Barclay
The Lord's Prayer, by Spiros Zodhiates
The Good News We Almost Forgot, by Kevin DeYoung
The Sermon on the Mount, by James Montgomery Boice
The Sermon on the Mount, by R. T. Kendall
The Westminster Shorter Catechism: For Study Classes, by G.I. Williamson

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