Lord's Prayer

The Sermon on the Mount by Carl Heinrich Bloch

The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father, Pater Noster,^[1] and the Model Prayer^[2] is a venerated Christian prayer originally recorded in Koine Greek that, according to the New Testament, was taught by Jesus to his disciples. Two forms of it are recorded in the New Testament: a longer form in the Gospel of Matthew^[6:5–13] as part of the Sermon on the Mount, and a shorter form in the Gospel of Luke^[11:1–4] as a response by Jesus to a request by "one of his disciples" to teach them "to pray as John taught his disciples."

In the fourth petition, the original text of the prayer (in Greek) uniquely contains the word epiousios, which does not appear in any other extant classical or Koine Greek literature. The prayer concludes with "deliver us from evil" in Matthew, and with "lead us not into temptation" in Luke. The first three of the seven petitions in Matthew address God; the other four are related to human needs and concerns. The liturgical form is the Matthean. Some Christians, particularly Protestants, conclude the prayer with a doxology, a later addendum appearing in some manuscripts of Matthew.

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

The quite different form in the ESV version of Luke 11:2–4 Father hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. . . Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.

The context of the prayer in Matthew is a discourse deploring people who pray ostentatiously.

In biblical criticism, the prayer's absence in the Gospel of Mark together with its occurrence in Matthew and Luke has caused scholars who accept the two-source hypothesis (against other document hypotheses) to conclude that it is probably a logion original to Q.^[3]

Underscoring the scope and foundational importance of the Lord's Prayer, initial words on the topic from the Catechism of the Catholic Church teach that it "is truly the summary of the whole gospel."^[4] On Easter Sunday 2007, it was estimated that many of the two billion Catholic, Anglican, Protestant and Eastern Orthodox Christians who were sharing in the celebration of Easter would read, recite, or sing the short prayer in hundreds of languages.^[5] Although theological differences and various modes of worship divide Christians, according to Fuller Seminary professor Clayton Schmit, "there is a sense of solidarity in knowing that Christians around the globe are praying together..., and these words always unite us."^[5]

The Lord's Prayer in German Das Vaterunser on a woodcut by Lucas Cranach the Elder during the Protestant Reformation under Martin Luther.

Text

Original Greek and translated Latin versions

	Pater Noster The Lord's Prayer in Latin sung in Gregorian chant
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The Lord's Prayer in Gregorian chant.

Given here is the Greek text of Matthew 6:9–13 and the Latin text of the Vulgate (and the Nova Vulgata).

Original text in Greek[6] Πάτερ ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς· ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου· ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου· γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου,· ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς· τὸν ἄρτον ἡμῶν τὸν ἐπιούσιον δὸς ἡμῖν σήμερον· καὶ ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ὀφειλήματα ἡμῶν, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφήκαμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν· καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν, ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ.

Translated Latin version Nova Vulgata; [7] Pater noster, qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum, adveniat regnum tuum, fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo, et in terra. Panem nostrum supersubstantialem da nobis hodie; et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris; et ne inducas nos in tentationem; sed libera nos a Malo.[8][9]

The Greek Orthodox Church uses a slightly different Greek version based on Byzantine text-type, having ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς instead of ἐπὶ γῆς on line 5 and ἀφίεμεν instead of ἀφήκαμεν (present rather than perfect tense) on line 8.

The Latin version of this prayer has had cultural and historical importance for most regions where English is spoken. The text used in the Latin liturgy (Mass, Liturgy of the Hours, etc.) differs from that found in the Vulgate; as indicated by italics: "Pater noster, qui es in caelis: sanctificetur nomen tuum; adveniat regnum tuum; fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo, et in terra. Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie; et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris; et ne nos inducas in tentationem; sed libera nos a malo."^[10]

The doxology associated with the Lord's Prayer is found in four Vetus Latina manuscripts, only two of which give it in its entirety. The other surviving manuscripts of the Vetus Latina Gospels do not have the doxology. The Vulgate translation also does not include it, thus agreeing with critical editions of the Greek text.

The Latin liturgical rites never attach it to the Lord's Prayer, although it appears in the Mass of the Roman Rite, as revised in 1969, separated from the Lord's Prayer by the prayer, Libera nos, quaesumus..., which elaborates on the final petition, Libera nos a malo (Deliver us from evil).

English versions

James Tissot – The Lord's Prayer (Le Pater Noster) – Brooklyn Museum

There are several different English translations of the Lord's Prayer from Greek or Latin, beginning around AD 650 with the Northumbrian translation. Of those in current liturgical use, the three best-known are:

• The translation in the 1662 Anglican Book of Common Prayer (BCP) of the Church of England
• The slightly modernized form used in the 1928 version of the Prayer Book of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (along with the doxology) and in the English vernacular translation of the Catholic Mass
• The 1988 translation of the ecumenical English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC)

The square brackets in three of the texts below indicate the doxology often added at the end of the prayer by Protestants and, in a slightly different form, by the Byzantine Rite ("For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory: of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen."^[11]), among whom the prayer proper is usually recited by the cantors and congregation in unison, and the doxology by the priest as the conclusion of the prayer. The Anglican Book of Common Prayer adds it in some services but not in all. Older English translations of the Bible, based on late Byzantine Greek manuscripts, included it, but it is excluded in critical editions of the New Testament, such as that of the United Bible Societies. It is absent in the oldest manuscripts and is not considered to be part of the original text of Matthew 6:9–13. The Catholic Church has never attached it to the Lord's Prayer, but has included it in the Roman Rite Mass as revised in 1969, not as part of the Our Father but separated from it by a prayer called the embolism spoken or sung by the priest (in the official ICEL English translation: "Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.") that elaborates on the final petition, "Deliver us from evil." For more information on this doxology, see Doxology, below. When Reformers set out to translate the King James Bible, they assumed that a Greek manuscript they possessed was ancient and therefore adopted the phrase "For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever" into the Lord’s Prayer. Later scholarship demonstrated that the manuscript was actually a late addition based on Eastern liturgical tradition.

1928 Episcopal BCP (with doxology)[12] and current Catholic (without doxology)[13] English vernacular version Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [The 1928 BCP adds: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.]

1662 Anglican BCP[14] Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. When before the Collect the priest alone recites the prayer, the people here respond: Amen. When after all have communicated the people repeat each petition after the priest, the prayer ends: For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

1988 ELLC[15] Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and for ever. Amen.

Other English translations are also used.

Though Matthew 6:12 uses the term debts, the older English versions of the Lord's Prayer uses the term trespasses, while ecumenical versions often use the term sins. The latter choice may be due to Luke 11:4, which uses the word sins, while the former may be due to Matthew 6:14 (immediately after the text of the prayer), where Jesus speaks of trespasses. As early as the third century, Origen of Alexandria used the word trespasses (παραπτώματα) in the prayer. Though the Latin form that was traditionally used in Western Europe has debita (debts), most English-speaking Christians (except Scottish Presbyterians and some others of the Reformed tradition), use trespasses. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Established Presbyterian Church of Scotland as well as the Congregational denomination follow the version found in Matthew 6 in the Authorized Version (known also as the King James Version), which in the prayer uses the words "debts" and "debtors".

All these versions are based on the text in Matthew, rather than Luke, of the prayer given by Jesus:

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

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

Aramaic version

The Lord's Prayer in Syriac

The Lord's Prayer exists in the Aramaic language in the Syriac Peshitta version of the New Testament. The dialect of Syriac in which it is written is not the dialect that would have been spoken by Jesus of Nazareth or his followers.^[16] However, the dialects are quite similar.

Analysis

The Lord's Prayer in Greek

Subheadings use 1662 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) (see above)

Introduction

"Our Father, who art in heaven"^[17]

This explains that God, the Father, rests in Heaven.

First Petition

Catholic supplicant invoking the Lord's Prayer in Mexico

"Hallowed be thy name"

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams explains this phrase as a petition that people may look upon God's name as holy, as something that inspires awe and reverence, and that they may not trivialize it by making God a tool for their purposes, to "put other people down, or as a sort of magic to make themselves feel safe". He sums up the meaning of the phrase by saying: "Understand what you're talking about when you're talking about God, this is serious, this is the most wonderful and frightening reality that we could imagine, more wonderful and frightening than we can imagine."^[18]

Second Petition

"Thy kingdom come"

"This petition has its parallel in the Jewish prayer, 'May he establish his Kingdom during your life and during your days.'^[19] In the gospels Jesus speaks frequently of God's kingdom, but never defines the concept: "He assumed this was a concept so familiar that it did not require definition."^[20] Concerning how Jesus' audience in the gospels would have understood him, G. E. Ladd turns to the concept's Hebrew Biblical background: "The Hebrew word malkuth [...] refers first to a reign, dominion, or rule and only secondarily to the realm over which a reign is exercised. [...] When malkuth is used of God, it almost always refers to his authority or to his rule as the heavenly King."^[21] This petition looks to the perfect establishment of God's rule in the world in the future, an act of God resulting in the eschatological order of the new age.^[22]

The request for God's kingdom to come is commonly interpreted at the most literal level: as a reference to the belief, common at the time, that a Messiah figure would bring about a kingdom of God. Traditionally, the coming of God's kingdom is seen as a divine gift to be prayed for, not a human achievement. This idea is frequently challenged by groups who believe that the Kingdom will come by the hands of those faithful who work for a better world. These believe that Jesus' commands to feed the hungry and clothe the needy are the kingdom to which he was referring.

Hilda C. Graef notes that the operative Greek word, basileia, means both kingdom and kingship (i.e., reign, dominion, governing, etc.), but that the English word kingdom loses this double meaning.^[23] Kingship adds a psychological meaning to the petition: one is also praying for the condition of soul where one follows God's will.

Third Petition

"Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven."

John Ortberg interprets this phrase as follows: “Many people think our job is to get my afterlife destination taken care of, then tread water till we all get ejected and God comes back and torches this place. But Jesus never told anybody—neither his disciples nor us—to pray, 'Get me out of here so I can go up there.' His prayer was, 'Make up there come down here.' Make things down here run the way they do up there.”^[24] The request that “thy will be done” is God’s invitation to “join him in making things down here the way they are up there.”^[24]

Fourth Petition

"Give us this day our daily (epiousios) bread"

As mentioned earlier in this article, the original word ἐπιούσιος (epiousios), commonly characterized as daily, is unique to the Lord's Prayer in all of ancient Greek literature. The word is almost a hapax legomenon, occurring only in Luke and Matthew's versions of the Lord's Prayer, and nowhere else in any other extant Greek texts. While epiousios is often substituted by the word "daily," all other New Testament translations from the Greek into "daily" otherwise reference hemeran (ἡμέραν, "the day"), which does not appear in this usage.^{[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35]}

Via linguistic parsing, Jerome translated "ἐπιούσιον" (epiousios) as "supersubstantialem" in the Gospel of Matthew, but chose "cotidianum" ("daily") in the Gospel of Luke. This wide-ranging difference with respect to meaning of epiousios is discussed in detail in the current Catechism of the Catholic Church by way of an inclusive approach toward tradition as well as a literal one for meaning: "Taken in a temporal sense, this word is a pedagogical repetition of "this day," to confirm us in trust "without reservation." Taken in the qualitative sense, it signifies what is necessary for life, and more broadly every good thing sufficient for subsistence. Taken literally (epi-ousios: "super-essential"), it refers directly to the Bread of Life, the Body of Christ, the "medicine of immortality," without which we have no life within us."^[36]

Epiousios is translated as supersubstantialem in the Vulgate (Matthew 6:11) and accordingly as supersubstantial in the Douay-Rheims Bible (Matthew 6:11).

Barclay M. Newman's A Concise Greek-English Dictionary of the New Testament, published in a revised edition in 2010 by the United Bible Societies has the following entry:

ἐπι|ούσιος, ον (εἰμί) of doubtful meaning, for today; for the coming day; necessary for existence^[37] It thus derives the word from the preposition ἐπί (epi) and the verb εἰμί (eimi), from the latter of which are derived words such as οὐσία (ousia), the range of whose meanings is indicated in A Greek-English Lexicon.^[38]

Fifth Petition

"And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us"

The Presbyterian and other Reformed churches tend to use the rendering "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors". Roman Catholics, Anglicans and Methodists are more likely to say "trespasses ... those who trespass against us".^[39] The "debts" form appears in the first English translation of the Bible, by John Wycliffe in 1395 (Wycliffe spelling "dettis"). The "trespasses" version appears in the 1526 translation by William Tyndale (Tyndale spelling "treaspases"). In 1549 the first Book of Common Prayer in English used a version of the prayer with "trespasses". This became the "official" version used in Anglican congregations.

After the request for bread, Matthew and Luke diverge slightly. Matthew continues with a request for debts to be forgiven in the same manner as people have forgiven those who have debts against them. Luke, on the other hand, makes a similar request about sins being forgiven in the manner of debts being forgiven between people. The word "debts" (ὀφειλήματα) does not necessarily mean financial obligations, as shown by the use of the verbal form of the same word (ὀφείλετε) in passages such as Romans 13:8. The Aramaic word ḥôbâ can mean "debt" or "sin".^[40][41] This difference between Luke's and Matthew's wording could be explained by the original form of the prayer having been in Aramaic. The generally accepted interpretation is thus that the request is for forgiveness of sin, not of supposed loans granted by God.^[42] Asking for forgiveness from God was a staple of Jewish prayers. It was also considered proper for individuals to be forgiving of others, so the sentiment expressed in the prayer would have been a common one of the time.

Anthony C. Deane, Canon of Worcester Cathedral, suggests that the choice of the word "ὀφειλήματα" (debts), rather than "ἁμαρτίας" (sins), indicates a reference to failures to use opportunities of doing good. He links this with the parable of the sheep and the goats (also in Matthew's Gospel), in which the grounds for condemnation are not wrongdoing in the ordinary sense but failure to do right, missing opportunities for showing love to others.^{[Matt. 25:31–46][43]}

"As we forgive...". Divergence between Matthew's "debts" and Luke's "sins" is relatively trivial compared to the impact of the second half of this statement. The verses immediately following the Lord's Prayer,^{[Matt. 6:14–15]} show Jesus teaching that the forgiveness of our sin/debt (by God) is contingent on how we forgive others. Later, Matthew elaborates with Jesus' parable of the unforgiving servant.^{[Matt. 18:23–35]} In this parable, forgiveness from the king (God) is conditional on the servant's forgiveness of a small debt owed to him.

Sixth Petition

"And lead us not into temptation"

Interpretations of the penultimate petition of the prayer—not to be led by God into peirasmos—vary considerably. The range of meanings of the Greek word "πειρασμός" (peirasmos) is illustrated in The New Testament Greek Lexicon. In different contexts it can mean temptation, testing, trial, experiment. Although the traditional English translation uses the word "temptation" and Carl Jung saw God as actually leading people astray,^[44] Christians generally interpret the petition as not contradicting James 1:13–14: "Let no one say when he is tempted, 'I am being tempted by God', for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire." Some see the petition as an eschatological appeal against unfavourable Last Judgment, a theory supported by the use of the word "peirasmos" in this sense in Revelation 3:10. Others see it as a plea against hard tests described elsewhere in scripture, such as those of Job.^[45] It is also read as: "Do not let us be led (by ourselves, by others, by Satan) into temptations". Since it follows shortly after a plea for daily bread (i.e., material sustenance), it is also seen as referring to not being caught up in the material pleasures given. A similar phrase appears in Matthew 26:41 and Luke 22:40 in connection with the prayer of Jesus in Gethsemane.^[46]

Seventh Petition

"But deliver us from evil"

Translations and scholars are divided over whether the final word here refers to "evil" in general or "the evil one" (the devil) in particular. In the original Greek, as well as in the Latin translation, the word could be either of neuter (evil in general) or masculine (the evil one) gender. Matthew's version of the prayer appears in the Sermon on the Mount, in earlier parts of which the term is used to refer to general evil. Later parts of Matthew refer to the devil when discussing similar issues. However, the devil is never referred to as the evil one in any known Aramaic sources. While John Calvin accepted the vagueness of the term's meaning, he considered that there is little real difference between the two interpretations, and that therefore the question is of no real consequence. Similar phrases are found in John 17:15 and 2 Thessalonians 3:3.^[47]

Doxology

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

The doxology of the prayer is not contained in Luke's version, nor is it present in the earliest manuscripts of Matthew,^[48] representative of the Alexandrian text, although it is present in the manuscripts representative of the Byzantine text.^[49] Most scholars do not consider it part of the original text of Matthew.^[50][51] New translations generally omit it.^[52]

The first known use of the doxology, in a less lengthy form ("for yours is the power and the glory forever"),^[53] as a conclusion for the Lord's Prayer (in a version slightly different from that of Matthew) is in the Didache, 8:2. It has similarities with 1 Chronicles—"Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all." In the Byzantine Rite, a similar doxology is sung within the context of the Divine Liturgy. Following the last line of the prayer, the priest sings "For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages."

Latin Church Roman Catholics, as well as some Lutherans,^[54] do not include the doxology when reciting the Lord's Prayer; but it was added as an independent item, not as part of the Lord's Prayer, in the Roman Rite Mass of 1970. The Anglican Book of Common Prayer sometimes gives the Lord's Prayer with the doxology, sometimes without.^[55] Most Protestants append it to the Lord's Prayer.

Use as a language comparison tool

Detail of the Europa Polyglotta published with Synopsis Universae Philologiae in 1741; the map gives the first phrase of the Lord's Prayer in 33 different languages of Europe.

In the course of Christianization, one of the first texts to be translated between many languages has historically been the Lord's Prayer, long before the full Bible would be translated into the respective languages. Since the 16th century, collections of translations of the prayer have often been used for a quick comparison of languages.

The first such collection, with 22 versions, was Mithridates de differentis linguis by Conrad Gessner (1555; the title refers to Mithridates VI of Pontus who according to Pliny the Elder was an exceptional polyglot).

Gessner's idea of collecting translations of the prayer was taken up by authors of the 17th century, including Hieronymus Megiserus (1603) and Georg Pistorius (1621). Thomas Lüdeken in 1680 published an enlarged collection of 83 versions of the prayer, of which three were in fictional philosophical languages. Lüdeken quotes as a Barnum Hagius as his source for the exotic scripts used, while their true (anonymous) author was Andreas Müller. In 1700, Lübeck's collection was re-edited by B. Mottus as Oratio dominica plus centum linguis versionibus aut characteribus reddita et expressa. This edition was comparatively inferior, but a second, revised edition was published in 1715 by John Chamberlain. This 1715 edition was used by Gottfried Hensel in his Synopsis Universae Philologiae (1741) to compile "geographico-polyglot maps" where the beginning of the prayer was shown in the geographical area where the respective languages were spoken. Johann Ulrich Kraus also published a collection with more than 100 entries.^[56]

Lord's Prayer in Chinese

These collections continued to be improved and expanded well into the 19th century; Johann Christoph Adelung and Johann Severin Vater in 1806–1817 published the prayer in "well-nigh five hundred languages and dialects".^[57]

Samples of scripture, including the Lord's Prayer, were published in 52 oriental languages, most of them not previously found in such collections, translated by the brethren of the Serampore Mission and printed at the mission press there in 1818.

A translation of the Lord's Prayer is one of the few texts J. R. R. Tolkien ever wrote in his most expansive fictional language, Quenya, that he did not originally compose himself as part of his universe for The Lord of the Rings. As Tolkien was a Latin Rite Catholic, the doxology is excluded from his translation.

Relation to Jewish prayer

There are similarities between the Lord's Prayer and both biblical and post-biblical material in Jewish prayer especially Kiddushin 81a (Babylonian).^[58] "Hallowed be thy name" is reflected in the Kaddish. "Lead us not into sin" is echoed in the "morning blessings" of Jewish prayer. A blessing said by some Jewish communities after the evening Shema includes a phrase quite similar to the opening of the Lord's Prayer: "Our God in heaven, hallow thy name, and establish thy kingdom forever, and rule over us for ever and ever. Amen." There are parallels also in 1 Chronicles 29:10–18.^[59]

Rabbi Aron Mendes Chumaceiro has said^[60] that nearly all the elements of the prayer have counterparts in the Jewish Bible and Deuterocanonical books: the first part in Isaiah 63:15–16 ("Look down from heaven and see, from your holy and beautiful habitation ... For you are our Father ...") and Ezekiel 36:23 ("I will vindicate the holiness of my great name ...") and Ezekiel 38:23 ("I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations ..."), the second part in Obadiah 1:21 ("Saviours shall go up to Mount Zion to rule Mount Esau, and the kingdom shall be the LORD's") and 1 Samuel 3:18 ("... It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him"), the third part in Proverbs 30:8 ("... feed me with my apportioned bread"), the fourth part in Sirach 28:2 ("Forgive your neighbour the wrong he has done, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray"). "Deliver us from evil" can be compared with Psalm 119:133 ("... let no iniquity get dominion over me."). Chumaceiro says that, because the idea of God leading a human into temptation contradicts the righteousness and love of God, "Lead us not into temptation" has no counterpart in the Jewish Bible/Christian Old Testament.

The word "πειρασμός", which is translated as "temptation", could also be translated as "test" or "trial", making evident the attitude of someone's heart. Well-known examples in the Old Testament are God's test of Abraham (Genesis 22:1), his "moving" (the Hebrew word means basically "to prick, as by weeds, thorns") David to do (numbering Israel) what David later acknowledged as sin (2 Samuel 24:1–10; see also 1 Chronicles 21:1–7), and the Book of Job.

See also

• Amen
• Baba Yetu, a composition by Christopher Tin in which the lyrics are a Swahili translation of the prayer
• Catechism of the Catholic Church on The Lord's Prayer
• Christian Worship
• Didache early book of rituals which mentions saying the prayer 3 times daily
• Discourse on ostentation, a portion of the Sermon on the Mount
• Epiousios, for the meaning of the phrase usually rendered as "our daily bread"
• Five Discourses of Matthew
• High Priestly Prayer
• The Lord's Prayer (Sister Janet Mead song)
• Lord's Prayer in Eucharistic theology
• Novum Testamentum Graece, the primary source for most contemporary New Testament translations
• Pierres de Lecq
• Prayer in Christianity
• Prayer in the New Testament
• Prayer

References

Notes

1. John Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary
2. LORD'S PRAYER, THE - New Catholic Encyclopedia - encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
3. Farmer, William R., The Gospel of Jesus: The Pastoral Relevance of the Synoptic Problem, Westminster John Knox Press (1994), p. 49, ISBN 978-0-664-25514-5
4. http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a1.htm
5. Kang, K. Connie. "Across the globe, Christians are united by Lord's Prayer." Los Angeles Times, in Houston Chronicle, p. A13, April 8, 2007
6. The text given here is that of the latest edition of Greek New Testament of the United Bible Societies and in the Nestle-Aland Novum Testamentum Graece, the text used in almost all modern translations of the New Testament. Older translations are based on a Byzantine-type text with ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς in line 5 (verse 10) instead of ἐπὶ γῆς, and ἀφίεμεν in line 8 (verse 12) instead of ἀφήκαμεν, and adding at the end (verse 13) the doxology ὅτι σοῦ ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία καὶ ἡ δύναμις καὶ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. ἀμήν.
7. Vulgate and Nova Vulgata. In the Clementine edition, the Vulgate varies from the Nova Vulgata only in punctuation and in having "ne nos inducas" in place of "ne inducas nos", while another edition has "qui in caelis es" in place of "qui es in caelis"; "veniat" in place of "adveniat"; "dimisimus" in place of "dimittimus"; "temptationem" in place of "tentationem".
8. In the Nova Vulgata, the official Latin Bible of the Catholic Church, the last word is capitalized, indicating that it is a reference to Malus (the Evil One), not to malum (evil).
9. The Byzantine doxology is never joined immediately to the Lord's Prayer in the Latin liturgy or the Latin Bible. In the Roman Missal this doxology appears (separated from the Lord's Prayer by the embolism) in the form "quia tuum est regnum, et potestas, et gloria, in saecula"; others have translated it into Latin as "quia tuum est regnum; et potentia et gloria; per omnia saecula or in saecula saeculorum."
10. Missale Romanum. Editio typica altera. Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1975, p. 472
11. In Greek: Ὅτι σοῦ ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία καὶ ἡ δύναμις καὶ ἡ δόξα· τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος· νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.
12. The Book of Common Prayer (1928)
13. Catechism of the Catholic Church
14. The Communion
15. Praying Together
16. Casey, Maurice. (1998). The Aramaic Sources of Mark's Gospel. Cambridge University Press. p. 4.
17. Our Father - The prayer which Jesus Christ taught to His disciples. - Catholic Planet. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
18. Rowan Williams, The Lord's Prayer
19. G. Dalman, The Words of Jesus (1909), 99. As cited in G. E. Ladd, The Presence of the Future (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1974), 137
20. George Eldon Ladd, The Presence of the Future: The Eschatology of Biblical Realism, Eerdmans (Grand Rapids: 1974), 45.
21. George Eldon Ladd, The Presence of the Future: The Eschatology of Biblical Realism, Eerdmans (Grand Rapids: 1974), 46–47.
22. G. E. Ladd, The Presence of the Future (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1974), 136–137
23. Hilda C. Graef, St. Gregory of Nyssa: The Lord's Prayer and the Beatitudes (Ancient Christin Writers, No. 18), Paulist Press (New York: 1954), n.68, p. 187.
24. Ortberg, John Ortberg. “God is Closer Than You Think”. Zondervan,2005, p.176.
25. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/matthew/6-11.htm
26. The New Greek-English Interlinear New Testament, 1993, The United Bible Societies, (basis: UBS4 Greek text), page x of Introduction
27. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/matthew/20-2.htm
28. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/luke/9-23.htm
29. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/acts/6-1.htm
30. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/acts/17-11.htm
31. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/acts/17-17.htm
32. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/acts/19-9.htm
33. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/2_corinthians/11-28.htm
34. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/hebrews/3-13.htm
35. http://biblehub.com/interlinear/hebrews/10-11.htm
36. http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a3.htm
37. Cf. Barclay M. Newman, A Concise Greek-English Dictionary of the New Testament, Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, United Bible Societies 2010 ISBN 978-3-438-06019-8. Partial preview
38. Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon: οὐσία
39. Chaignot, Mary Jane. Questions and Answers. <http://biblewise.com/archives/2005/september/overview/questions.htm#trespasses> Accessed:11 Feb 2013
40. Nathan Eubank, Wages of Cross-Bearing and Debt of Sin (Walter de Gruyter 2013 ISBN 978-31-1030407-7), p. 2
41. John S. Kloppenborg, Q, the Earliest Gospel (Westminster John Knox Press 2008 ISBN 978-1-61164058-8), p. 58
42. See: Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, edited by Kittel and Friedrich, Abridged in One Volume by Goeoffrey W. Bromiley; William B. Eeerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Mich; 1985; Pages 746–750: Gives use of ὸφείλω opheilo (to owe, be under obligation), ὸφειλή opheile (debt, obligation) and two other word forms as used in the New Testament and outside the New Testament, including use in Judaism.
43. A Study of the Lord's Prayer, Chapter VI
44. Jung, Carl, "Answer to Job"
45. Psalm 26:2 and Psalm 139:23 are respectful challenges for a test to prove the writer's innocence and integrity.
46. Clontz, T.E. and J., "The Comprehensive New Testament", Cornerstone Publications (2008), pp. 451–452, ISBN 978-0-9778737-1-5
47. Clontz, p. 452
48. Nicholas Ayo, The Lord's Prayer: A Survey Theological and Literary, University of Notre Dame Press (1993), p. 7, ISBN 978-0-268-01292-2
49. Clontz, p. 8
50. David E. Aune, The Blackwell Companion to the New Testament (Blackwell 2010 ISBN 978-1-4051-0825-6), p. 299.
51. Kurt Aland and Barbara Aland, The Text of the New Testament (Eerdmans 1998 ISBN 0-8028-4098-1), p. 306.
52. The doxology is not included in the following modern translations: American Standard Version Contemporary English Version English Standard Version GOD'S WORD Translation Good News Translation New International Reader's Version New International Version New Living Translation Today's New International Version. It is enclosed in square brackets in Holman Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible New Century Version. Two publications that are updates of the Authorized King James Version rather than new translations keep it: 21st Century King James Version and New King James Version; but the second of these adds a note: " "NU-Text omits For Yours through Amen."
53. The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, commonly called the Didache, in Christian Classics Ethereal Library
54. Lutheran Service Book, Divine Service III
55. For instance, in Morning Prayer the doxology is included in the Lord's Prayer in the Introduction, but not in the Prayers after the Apostles' Creed.
56. Augustin Backer, Alois Backer, Bibliothèque des écrivains de la compagnie de Jésus ou notices bibliographiques, vol. 5, 1839, 304f.
57. Mithridates oder allgemeine Sprachenkunde mit dem Vater Unser als Sprachprobe in bey nahe fünf hundert Sprachen und Mundarten, 1806–1817, Berlin, Vossische Buchlandlung, 4 volumes. Facsimile edition, Hildesheim-Nueva York, Georg Olms Verlag, 1970.
58. Clontz, p. 451
59. Clontz, pp. 8, 451
60. "Verdediging is geen aanval" pp. 121–122

Bibliography

• Albright, W.F. and C.S. Mann. "Matthew." The Anchor Bible Series. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1971.
• Augsburger, Myron. Matthew. Waco, Texas: Word Books, 1982.
• Barclay, William. The Gospel of Matthew: Volume 1 Chapters 1–10. Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 1975.
• Beare, Francis Wright. The Gospel According to Matthew. Oxford: B. Blackwell, 1981.
• Brown, Raymond E. The Pater Noster as an Eschatological Prayer, article in Theological Studies (1961) Volume 22, pages 175-208: available online as a PDF file from the website of Marquette University; also reprinted in New Testament Essays (1965)
• Clontz, T.E. and J., "The Comprehensive New Testament with complete textual variant mapping and references for the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo, Josephus, Nag Hammadi Library, Pseudepigrapha, Apocrypha, Plato, Egyptian Book of the Dead, Talmud, Old Testament, Patristic Writings, Dhammapada, Tacitus, Epic of Gilgamesh", Cornerstone Publications, 2008, ISBN 978-0-9778737-1-5
• Filson, Floyd V. A Commentary on the Gospel According to St. Matthew. London: A. & C. Black, 1960.
• Fowler, Harold. The Gospel of Matthew: Volume One. Joplin: College Press, 1968
• France, R.T. The Gospel According to Matthew: an Introduction and Commentary. Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 1985.
• Hendriksen, William. The Gospel of Matthew. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 1976
• Hill, David. The Gospel of Matthew. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981
• "Lilies in the Field." A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature. David Lyle Jeffrey, general editor. Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans, 1992.
• Lewis, Jack P. The Gospel According to Matthew. Austin, Texas: R.B. Sweet, 1976..
• Luz, Ulrich. Matthew 1–7: A Commentary. trans. Wilhlem C. Linss. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1989.
• Morris, Leon. The Gospel According to Matthew. Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans, 1992.
• Schweizer, Eduard. The Good News According to Matthew. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975
• Underhill, Evelyn, Abba. A meditation on the Lord's Prayer (1940); reprint 2003.

External links

Text

• The full text of Lord's Prayer at Wikisource
• Audio of the Lord's Prayer in 50 languages
• The Lord's Prayer in 1,697 languages and dialects
• Pater Noster : a chirographic opus in one hundred and twenty-six languages, by Z. W. Wolkowski
• Matthew 6:9–13 in the English Standard Version Bible, set to music
• Matthew 6:9–13 in the King James Version Bible, set to music by Ralph Merrifield. New Hope Music, used by permission

Comment

• Catechism of the Catholic Church
• Jewish Encyclopedia
• Max Heindel: Rosicrucian view
• Jehovah's Witnesses view
• Rudolf Steiner lecture
• The communal nature of The Lord's Prayer
• The Lord's Prayer Parsed : A unique interpretation of The Lord's Prayer