The Bible confirms from cover to cover that God chooses covenants as one of the ways to express His nature. So, is it any surprise, when the Disciples asked Him how they should pray, He naturally directed them to recite a recommitment to His covenant?
Improving on my previous definition,[1]“The Lord’s Prayer serves as our covenant recommitment to submit and depend on God.” And as you’ll discover today, “One reason God considers it vital to verbally recommit to His covenant every day is that it reinforces a _______ of _______.”
Why do I consider the Lord’s Prayer a covenant recommitment? As a recap, the ancient-Jews referred to prayer by the Hebrew term HaTefillah (“The Prayer”). Its root meaning is to self-examine. This term is carried over into the New Testament where it’s used 26 times to specify the Lord’s Prayer as verified by early-Christian practice.[2]
Now, let’s analyze its structure:
SUBMISSION:
(1) Let Your Name be sanctified
(2) Let Your Kingdom come
(3) Let Your Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven
DEPENDANCE:
(1) Give us today our daily bread
(2) Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors
(3) Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one
It breaks out into:
3 HEAVENLY PRIORITIES:
Holiness
Allegiance
Obedience
3 HUMAN NEEDS:
Provision
Forgiveness
Protection
First, the Lord’s Prayer is structured using the 2 basic components of an ancient Near-Eastern Suzerain-Vassal Treaty. The suzerain (king) promises benefits to the vassal (subject) in response to him/her performing certain agreed upon tasks.[3]
The Lord’s Prayer reiterates this covenantal concept:
(1/2) First, you submit to God through holiness, allegiance, and obedience.
(2/2) Then, He grants you provision, forgiveness, and protection.
Look how God repeats this expectation in both the Old and New Covenants:
King David, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4 ESV); and
Jesus, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things [provisions] will be added to you” (Mat 6:33 ESV).
Next, the Lord’s Prayer serves as a covenant recommitment, because it includes (from the onset) the ancient Hebrew precept on behavior (Kiddush HaShem "sanctification of the Name"). Although some English traditions render the first line, “Hallowed be Thy Name,” the accurate translation is, “Let Your Name be sanctified.” It's central in the Old Covenant that a believer’s conduct is to reflect positively upon God (Lev 22:31-33). Likewise, Jesus repeats this requirement in “The Prayer” and His Apostles re-emphasize it:
"But sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts” (1Pe 3:15a Greek).
“It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God” (1Th 4:3-5 NIV).
“…without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Heb 12:14 NIV).
Third and last, in addition to including the ancient concept of a suzerain-vassal treaty as well as the ancient precept of godly behavior, the Lord’s Prayer serves as a covenant recommitment, because Jesus requires the member to render it on behalf of the covenant community.
Remember, Israel is a body comprised of 12 tribes descended from the 12 sons of Jacob whose name God changed to “Israel” (Gen 32:28). Likewise, the Church is a body comprised of those submitted to Jesus Christ who’s given the Name above all names! (Phi 2:9). Jesus wants us to recite “The Prayer” in the plural to remind us:
“If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together” (1Co 12:26 ESV).
“…because as [Jesus] is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17b KJV).[4]
TAKE AWAYS (5):
(1) One of the ways God expresses His nature is through covenant, so it’s natural for Him to instruct us to recite a prayer expressing our commitment to Him.
(2) The New Covenant fulfills God’s covenant with Abraham (Gal 3:8-14); those who submit to Christ are adopted into Abraham’s family tree (3:29), and those who reject Him are removed (Rom 11:19-20)—thus, God never expected us to disregard our ancient-Jewish heritage but to build on it.
(3) Because we’re disconnected from our ancient-Jewish heritage, we lost the true understanding of prayer; this is a reason why English versions mistranslate Isaiah 56:7 and fail to correctly translate the ancient phrase “The Prayer” listed 26 times in the Greek New Testament[5]—our prayer practices today are what the ancients biblically understood as supplemental prayers (supplications).[6]
(4) God prescribed an “Old Covenant Lord’s Prayer” (Isaiah 56:7)[7] superseded by the “New Covenant Lord’s Prayer” taught by Jesus (Mat 6:9; Luke 11:2); both contain the same 7 key elements confirming God intended our primary prayer to be a covenant recommitment—of course, supplications are welcomed in addition to it.
(5) Remember, when we recite the Lord’s Prayer, we are repeating God’s own words back to Him—this pleases Him, because He’s true to His own nature, for: “…if we are faithless, he remains faithful--for he cannot deny himself” (2Ti 2:13 ESV).
BONUS: “One reason God considers it vital to verbally recommit to the covenant every day is that it reinforces a lifestyle of repentance.”
EASY QUIZ: This is because God daily requires you to declare (by covenant) to _______ and _______ on Him.
Please share!
NEXT BLOG:
One Verse that Limits Spiritual Warfare
LORD'S PRAYER:
Our Father, who is in Heaven,
Let Your Name be sanctified,
Let Your Kingdom come,
Let Your Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven,
Give us this day our daily bread,
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors,
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the Evil One,
For Yours is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever, Amen.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] I initially described the Lord’s Prayer as an action of covenant renewal. However, as one of my former Hebrew professors informs: “Only the suzerain in the ancient Near East could renew a covenant. The vassal could not and never did presume to do so. He had no legal authority to do so. The covenantal treaties were after all, the ‘words’ of the suzerain/great king. The vassal could not take it upon himself to renew those words, since they were not his words. Likewise in the Bible only the Lord can renew one of his covenants. Humans cannot presume to do so. It is customary among scholars to call humanly initiated reaffirmations of commitment to (especially) the Mosaic covenant "covenant renewals,’ but this is not true to the facts.” See Jeffrey J. Niehaus. Biblical Theology. Vol. 2, The Special Grace Covenants. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2017, p. 110-11.
[2] Didache also known as “Teaching of the Twelve Apostles,” 8:2-3.
[3] As Dr. Niehaus explains, “For example, if one has a job, the following ‘covenantal’ elements are in place: one has a suzerain (a boss or employer), who promised to provide certain good things for the vassal-to-be (the employee-to-be) and to expect certain things from the vassal-to-be (again, the employee-to-be) before the contract was signed, and such is the historical background, and also the stuff of the classic ‘historical prologue,’ of the covenant or treaty; one has certain tasks to perform on the job and certain rules that must be obeyed and not broken, and these correspond to the ‘stipulations’ of the covenant; the employee will be blessed if he or she does the work assigned as assigned and obeys whatever rules are l place, or the employee will be cursed (e.g., be demoted, suffer a pe cut, or be fired) if he or she fails to do so” (Biblical Theology. Vol. 2, The Common Grace Covenants. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014, p. 36; since I used italics for the paragraph, I underlined what's italicized in the original quote).
[4] This is an accurate translation of the Greek. This is known as an individual-corporate identity. The Apostle John claims the Church as the physical representation of Christ’s body on the earth.
[5] The Greek phrase τῇ προσευχῇ ("The Prayer") is listed 26 times in the New Testament to denote a specific prayer (Matt. 21:22; Luke 6:12; 22:45; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 6:4; 10:4; 10:31; 16:16; Rom. 1:10; 12:12; 15:30; 1 Cor. 7:5; Eph. 1:16; Phil. 4:6; Col. 4:2, 12; 1 Thess. 1:2; 1 Tim. 5:5; Philem. 1:4, 22; 1 Pet. 3:7; Rev. 5:8; 8:3; 8:4).
[6] See my blog “Part 2 – Lord’s Prayer (Christian Heritage)” where I show prayer distinctions.
[7] Jews refer to this prayer as the Amidah (Hebrew for “Standing” indicating it’s to be rendered while standing). This prayer was devised by the sages and referred to by God, Himself, as “My Prayer” in Isaiah 56:7a. See my blog “Part 1 – Lord’s Prayer (Jewish Heritage)” for a full analysis of the Hebrew phrase “my prayer” in the first part of Isaiah 56:7 mistranslated by English versions.
