The Lord’s Prayer Meaning

Before we dig deep into the Lord’s prayer meaning, let’s understand the history behind it.

The Lord’s Prayer, also called the Our Father (Latin: Pater Noster), is a central Christian prayer.

There are 2 versions of the prayer. Jesus can be found teaching his disciples how they should be prayed in Matthew 6:9-13 and in Luke 11:2-4 as well.

Jesus throughout the New Testament and in the Sermon on the mount continues the tradition of prayer found in the Old Testament of the Bible, exemplified by Abraham, Moses, and David (Patriarchs of Israel).

This prayer is the most common prayer that pops in everybody’s mind when nothing seems to be right. It adds meaning to oblivion and purpose to life.

The prayer is a source of divine serenity for those who seek harmony and stability in life but fail to find it.

The Lord’s Prayer

Matthew 6:9-13 Version (KJV)

Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come;
Thy will be done in earth;
as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever.
Amen.

Luke 11:2-4 Version

“He said to them, “When you pray, say: ” ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’

Authoritative Meaning of The Lord’s prayer (Meaning of the Lord’s Prayer verse by verse)

We will tell you verse by verse the correct and faithful meaning of The Lord’s Prayer in simple words.

Our father who art in heaven

The New Covenant practices almsgiving, prayer, and fasting; its prayer is the “Our Father.” We are His precious children. We pray for His mercy and forgiveness to be bestowed upon us.

The word “art” in Old English expresses the state of being. The line “Our Father Which art in heaven” thus signifies that we pray to the almighty who resides in Heaven.

Hallowed be thy name

Hallowed means greatly revered and treated as holy. Hallowed be thy name suggests that God’s name is holy and serene. It is to be regarded with due respect and awe. Even though we consider Him as our savior who is no less than a guardian to us, we must not forget his true designation.

He is the creator of this beautiful universe and the invincible holder of the three O’s i.e. Omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence.

Hallowed be thy name thus signifies that we respect God and are faithful to Him only. If we truly respect the Father, then we respect we will be able to attain salvation and fit in God’s plan.

Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven

The phrase “Thy Kingdom come” suggests that the Kingdom of God is brought to you and it simply conveyed that God will be by our side until the end of time.

The phrase “Thy Will be done” denotes that God’s will shall outshine all other influences to offset your weak nature. Thy will be done also suggests that your wishes if asked from pure intentions will soon be fulfilled.

The phrase “Thy Will be done, On Earth, As it is in heaven” simply says that justice shall be bestowed on Earth, just like in Heaven.

We all shall spread love and serenity on Earth just like it is spread in Heaven. It signifies that comeuppance shall fall upon the wrongdoers and the good shall be showered with love and blessings. God is omnipresent and knows everything happening round the clock.

Give us this day our daily bread

The verse “give us this day our daily bread” is often interpreted in various different ways. For instance, in  Exodus 16:4 God tells Moses that each morning bread will shower/rain down from heaven to feed the children of Israel who are hungry. They are obligated to collect only as much bread as they need for that day and keep none of it for the next day.

It implies that The Father who gives us life gives us “our bread,” which nurtures our needs, both materialistically and spiritually. The closer we get to God the more we yearn for his blessings and presence.

We are asking God to be benevolent as always and provide not only us but also the people deprived of basic necessities like enough good for survival.

When we say thy will be done, we ask that God’s will be done within us, to offset our weak nature, a nature-given to concupiscence and temptation.

As the words suggest, thy will be done means that your wishes or desires will soon be fulfilled.  The verse simply says, “your wishes will be completed on Earth, just like they are in Heaven.”

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors

As the words suggest, We begin our confession as sinners in need of mercy. We accept that we are not infallible and are willing to confess our misdeeds.

The verse symbolizes righteous or moral debts. In laymen’s terms, Jesus is referring to our past sins. We yearn to be understood and forgiven.

This verse also emphasizes stress on the fact that we must learn to forgive others’ mistakes if we ask for our mistakes to be forgiven.

The verse that adds justification to the above said is rightly said in Matthew: “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:14-15).

Read more: Miraculous Padre Pio Prayer for Healing

And lead us not into temptation

As it is clear by the verse, we urge God to protect us from falling for worldly bait.

This petition implores us to bolster us in the battle between materialistic happiness and spiritual happiness. We are praying for the protection of our innocence and soul so that we don’t spend the rest of our lives in remorse by getting ourselves involved in such shenanigans.

We are simply asking God to guide us through choosing the right path so that we don’t end up making impulsive wrong decisions on a whim. We ask Him to help us keep away from greed.

But deliver us from evil

We are requesting the Almighty to guide us and set us free from all sorts of misdeeds, sin, and evil in our lives. We must not face any problems relating to such issues with bad people.

We all have a darker side to our bright side which we tend to overlook. We are asking God to lighten up our path so that we can listen to our visceral sense and distinguish what is right and what is not.

 With the deliverance from the evils that tend to overpower love and humanity, the Church also highlights the essence of the precious gift of serenity and the grace of perseverance in anticipation of Christ’s return.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen

“For thine is the kingdom” asserts that God is the epitome of eternal power. His kingdom; Heaven will not cease and shall run forever. It is highlighted by the next line which says “and the power and the glory forever and ever.”  

By “Amen,” which means “So be it,” we conclude and lay emphasis on what is contained in the prayer and the disciples taught by Jesus to us.

This verse signifies that God is omnipotent. We are assuring God that we know his worth and will not make the blunder to ignore the fact that everything belongs to Him.

He is in control of the universe including Heaven where he rules, He is responsible to make sure we pay for our misdeeds. He is responsible for forgiving us. He deserves all of the admiration and recognition.

Benefits Of The Lord’s Prayer

The Lord’s prayer helps you to commemorate well with God by letting you:

▪︎ Address God’s rightful place as the Father
▪︎ Worship and praise God for who He is and all that He has done
▪︎ Acknowledge that it is God’s will and plans are in control and not your own
▪︎ Ask God for the things that you need
▪︎ Confess all your sins and repent
▪︎ Request protection and help in overcoming sin and Satan’s attacks on us.

Read more: Check out other powerful prayers like Mary Undoer of Knots Novena And Prayers

Some Bible Verses About the Lord’s Prayer For Better Understanding

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

James 5:16

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

Psalm 145:18

The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.

Proverbs 15:29

The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

Romans 8:26

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through our wordless groans.

1 John 5:1

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

Luke 10:21

At that very time, He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. (Read more: Luke 10:21)

Matthew 6:31-32

Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

Matthew 18:23-35

“For this reason, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.