What is the Lord's Prayer? Jesus gave his disciples this model prayer when they asked him how to pray — and it has shaped Christian worship for 2,000 years. Here is the complete explanation of every line.
Matthew 6:5-15 records Jesus teaching on prayer in the Sermon on the Mount. His disciples had seen him pray and asked him explicitly: "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples" (Luke 11:1). Jesus's response is not merely a formula to repeat but a model — "pray like this" (Matthew 6:9, Greek: houtōs oun proseuchesthe), not "pray these exact words." The prayer shows the shape, priorities, and posture of authentic prayer, not a magical formula.
The full text (Matthew 6:9-13 NIV): "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today 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 the evil one."
"Our Father in heaven" — The address is the most theologically significant part of the prayer. Jewish prayer in the first century addressed God with honorific titles emphasizing distance and majesty. Jesus invites his disciples to address God as Abba — Father. The plural "Our" (not "My Father") immediately establishes that Christian prayer is communal — even private prayer is made as part of a family. "In heaven" distinguishes this Father from earthly fathers and establishes his transcendence.
"Hallowed be your name" — The first petition is not a request for our needs but for God's glory. To hallow a name is to treat it as holy — to give it the reverence it deserves. This is a prayer that God's reputation would be honored in the world, in our lives, and in our words. It orients all that follows: we seek what God's glory requires before we seek what our needs require.
"Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" — The second and third petitions are inseparable. God's kingdom is wherever God's will is done. "On earth as it is in heaven" describes the standard — in heaven, God's will is done immediately, completely, and joyfully. This petition asks that earthly reality would increasingly conform to heavenly reality. It is a prayer for God's comprehensive rule over all things — personal, ecclesial, social, and cosmic.
"Give us today our daily bread" — The transition from God's concerns to human needs is significant. Only after establishing God's glory and kingdom do we ask for our needs. "Daily bread" (Greek: arton epiousion — bread for today, or for the coming day) encompasses all physical provision: food, shelter, health, work. The present tense ("give us today") teaches daily dependence — not hoarding future provision but trusting God for what today requires. This connects directly to God's provision of manna in the wilderness (Exodus 16) — daily, sufficient, not to be stored.
"Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors" — The most challenging petition. The Greek word opheilema (debts) emphasizes that sin creates a real moral obligation — we owe God a debt we cannot pay. The petition links our experience of God's forgiveness to our practice of forgiving others — Jesus expands on this immediately after the prayer (Matthew 6:14-15). This does not mean we earn forgiveness by forgiving others; it means an unforgiving heart is evidence that one has not genuinely received God's forgiveness.
"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" — The final petition has generated significant theological discussion. James 1:13 states that God does not tempt anyone to sin — so what does it mean to pray that he would not lead us into temptation? The Greek word peirasmos can mean both temptation (to do evil) and trial/testing (a difficult circumstance). The prayer is best understood as asking God not to allow us to enter situations of testing beyond our strength (1 Corinthians 10:13), and to rescue us from the evil one (the devil) who uses our circumstances to draw us into sin.
"For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen" — this doxology appears in many manuscripts and in the Didache (c. 100 AD) but is absent from the oldest Greek manuscripts and most critical editions. It is likely a liturgical addition used in early Christian worship that found its way into some manuscript traditions. Its theology is entirely consistent with the rest of the prayer: the prayer begins with God's name and ends with his kingdom, power, and glory.
See our guide on How to Pray, our guide on What Does the Bible Say About Prayer?, and our guide on What Is the Great Commission? See our Theology Hub. The Gospel Coalition's essay on the Lord's Prayer is excellent. GotQuestions on the Lord's Prayer provides thorough treatment.
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