Teach Us to Pray
And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’” Luke 11:4 · Berean Standard Bible
Forgive us, because we forgive others. And please don't let us be pulled into temptation. Jesus connects receiving God's grace with extending it to the people who've hurt you.
You can't hoard forgiveness. Jesus ties your experience of being forgiven directly to your willingness to forgive others. It's uncomfortable but freeing.
Jesus wraps up the model prayer with the hardest and most important parts: forgiveness and protection.
The prayer ends where it gets personal. Forgiving others isn't optional -- it's woven right into how you talk to God. And asking for help with temptation shows it's okay to admit you're vulnerable.
The petition links divine forgiveness to human forgiveness: aphes hēmin tas hamartias hēmōn -- 'forgive us our sins.' Luke uses hamartias (sins) rather than Matthew's opheilēmata (debts), making the moral dimension explicit.
The reciprocal nature of forgiveness was central to Jesus' teaching. The final petition against peirasmon (testing/temptation) may echo the eschatological trial expected before God's kingdom.
Jesus concludes the model prayer with petitions for forgiveness and protection from spiritual danger.
The prayer ends with honest vulnerability: we need forgiveness, we must forgive others, and we need God's help against temptation. Jesus builds a complete spiritual framework in just a few lines.
2So Jesus told them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.
3Give us each day our daily bread.
4And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”
5Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose one of you goes to his friend at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
6because a friend of mine has come to me on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him.’
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