Matthew 6:9, “Our Father”

By Thomas Thorne

McDowell County

 

Possibly the most famous prayer ever in Christianity is the sample prayer Jesus gave in Matthew 6:9-13: “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. ¹⁰ Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread. ¹² And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. ¹³ And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen” (KJV).

This classic prayer can be divided into seven sections:

Prologue: After this manner therefore pray ye: (v.9)

1. Part 1: “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” (v.9)
2. Part 2: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” (v. 10)
3. Part 3: “Give us this day our daily bread.” (v. 11)
4. Part 4: “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” (v. 12)
5. Part 5: “And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” (v. 13)

Conclusion: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen (v. 13).

When reading, studying, and using this prayer, I would say that if any of these portions are skipped over or slightly ignored, they would probably be the prologue and part 1.  I think we need to re-examine the first part of this prayer. In my article today I want to show the importance of the prologue (“After this manner pray ye”) and the first part (“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name”) of Jesus’ sample prayer.

We know that Jesus was Jewish.  He probably spoke Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, but regardless, I’m confident that He spoke Hebrew.  Jesus was from a Jewish heritage and therefore it can reasonably be concluded that He spoke and thought like a Jew.  Near the beginning of this passage, in verse nine, is the word translated into English as “therefore.” If Jesus was speaking Hebrew, the word “la-kane” would most likely been used. La-kane, which is translated as “therefore” was a powerful word, more so than in English today. Zephaniah 2:9 starts out with the word “la-kane (therefore),” and goes on to say “as I live, declares the LORD of hosts.“  The rest of the verse proceeds to give a serious warning to the nation of Moab. God is making a promise to Moab with the certainty of, “As I live, declares the LORD of hosts” and this promise is introduced with the word “la-kane,” translated as “therefore.” At the very beginning of His sample prayer, Jesus, if speaking in Hebrew could have been using the Hebrew adverb – la-kane –  that indicates a sense of urgency. In other words, He could have been telling His disciples (and others, including us), to “hold on, wait, listen to what I have to say– this is important, this is a proper outline to use when communicating with God.” So in the prologue, before the prayer actually starts, Jesus is introducing it with a powerful  Hebrew word indicating the importance of using the correct method to communicate with God. Telling us “this is important.”

Moving on to the second half of verse 9, “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” In what I have categorized as “Part 1” of this prayer, Jesus makes appropriate recognition of who He is talking to, “Our (not just His) Father (the creator of the universe, the master designer, the King) who is in heaven, hallowed by thy name.” God is in heaven and we are on earth – He is superior to us in wisdom, power, and ability. His name, reputation, and authority are holy, set apart, and totally different from that of mankind. He is our ruler. We need to pay attention to Him, what He has said, and what He will say. God is in charge. It’s easy to begin a prayer with the words, “Almighty God,” “Father in heaven,” or “Father” and then jump right into our prayer with our requests and concerns. Please understand that I am not saying that there is anything wrong with addressing God as any of these names, but I think there is more to this quick sentence than just a quick opening. Consider the following:

• How many verses are there in the sample prayer Jesus has given us in Matt. 6?
• Verse 9, the prologue plus part 1, telling us the importance of following the pattern shown plus acknowledging God, is one whole verse, 1/5 of the prayer.
• Is this an indication that our prayers should, on average, be close to 1/5 recognition and praise to God before we even start further petitions?
• This may not be an issue for any of you, but I know that often when I pray, I have several specific things I want to talk about and gain guidance on as well as concerns for the Father’s will to be done, and it’s easy to just start right into a prayer without adequately or respectfully acknowledging who I am talking to.
• I believe that Jesus, by saying “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name” in the sample prayer is giving us instructions to spend time acknowledging God at the beginning of our prayers – and not to be too fast or hasty in doing so.

In the first verse of Jesus’ sample prayer that He shared with everyone, He indicated that it is important to offer prayers to God in the correct manner. He also spent a good portion of this prayer showing respect for God and acknowledging His position. In next month’s article, I am going to look at Psalm 103:1-2 from a different angle and focus on the word “benefits,” asking us to consider some of the benefits God provides.

Shalom,

Tom Thorne

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Tom and Amy Thorne are coordinators of Avdai-El-Elyon – Servants of the Most High God fellowship in Marion, NC. Tom can be reached at [email protected].

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