Matthew 6:9-13 [NLT]
9 Pray like this:
Our Father in heaven,
may your name be kept holy.
10 May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today the food we need,
12 and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
13 And don’t let us yield to temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.
Dear God, it’s interesting to compare the different Bible translations for the Lord’s Prayer. Subtle word changes can make a difference. I normally use either the New Living Translation or the New American Standard. In this case, I’ve put the NLT above.
I want to start this by putting some other versions below. Let’s start with the one a lot of us know by heart–the King James Version:
9 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, for ever. Amen.
Then I want to look at the most popular version when I was a kid, the NIV:
9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
And finally, for some variety, The Message:
With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:
Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what’s best—
as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You’re in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You’re ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
A couple of interesting things. First, for whatever reason, the KJV adds “for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.” Where did that come from? Not that I disagree, but the others don’t have that at all.
I also think The Message is a radical departure from the others, and I don’t like it. I think Mr. Peterson changed too much to make it contemporary. Having tried to take some old English texts and translate them into modern English, I can appreciate how hard this is. That being said, I think he went too far afield from what is meant.
The part about “trespasses,” “debts,” and “sins” is interesting. Of course, most of us learned trespasses, but I never understood that as a child. I had a pastor in middle school and high school that used “sins.” I like that better.
With all of that said, when I am in church and saying the prayer, here is what I say. And I pray this to you now:
My Father, who is in Heaven
Hallowed (I’ve never found a better word than that) be your name
Your kingdom come, your will be done
On Earth as it is in Heaven
Give me this day my daily bread
And forgive me of my sins,
As I forgive those who sin against me
And lead me not into temptation,
But deliver me from evil
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
Now and forever.
I pray all of this by the power of the blood of the man, your son, who taught me to pray it,
Amen
Emails to God 