On Prayer

A Prayer of Jesus I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will.

JESUS ON PRAYER
INSTRUCTIONS AND EXAMPLE

Parallel Passages from the Synoptic Gospels
A. Instructions

M Mark 1
35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed.
L

Matthew 5
43 You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
M Luke 6
27 But I say to you that hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

Matthew 6
5 And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
7 And in prayingdo not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
M L

Matthew 6
   9 Pray then like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day 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 evil.
M Luke 11
1 He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples."
2 And he said to them, When you pray, say: "Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread;
4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.

M Mark 9
28 And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?"
29 And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer."
L

Matthew 6
14 For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you;
15 but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Mark 11
25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against any one; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
L

Matthew 9
37 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;
38 pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."
M Luke 10
1 After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to come.
2 And he said to them, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
3 Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.

M M Luke 18
1 And he told them a parable, to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.
2 He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor regarded man;
3 and there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, 'Vindicate me against my adversary.'
4 For a while he refused; but afterward he said to himself, 'Though I neither fear God nor regard man,
5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will vindicate her, or she will wear me out by her continual coming.'"
6 And the Lord said, "Hear what the unrighteous judge says.
7 And will not God vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them?
8 I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others:
10 "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank thee that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.'
13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Matthew 21
21 And Jesus answered them, "Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and never doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' it will be done.
22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith."
Mark 11
23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.
24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
L

M Mark 12
38 And in his teaching he said, "Beware of the scribes, who like to go about in long robes, and to have salutations in the market places
39 and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts,
40 who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation."
Luke 20
46 "Beware of the scribes, who like to go about in long robes, and love salutations in the market places and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts,
47 who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation."

Matthew 24
19 And alas for those who are with child and for those who give suck in those days!
20 Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath.
21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.
Mark 13
17 And alas for those who are with child and for those who give suck in those days!
18 Pray that it may not happen in winter.
19 For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will be.
L

M M Luke 21
36 But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of man."

Luke 22

31 "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat,
32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren."

Matthew 26
40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, "So, could you not watch with me one hour?
41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Mark 14
37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour?
38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Luke 22
39 And he came out, and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him.
40 And when he came to the place he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."
41 And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed,
45 And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow,
46 and he said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation."

John
The Fourth Gospel contains no specific instructions on prayer. Jesus does there set an example of prayer for his disciples, as we will see below.

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Parallel Passages from the Synoptic Gospels
B-1. Example

M Mark 1
35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed.
L

M M Luke 3
21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened,

Luke 5

16 But he withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.

Luke 6

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray; and all night he continued in prayer to God.

Luke 9

18 Now it happened that as he was praying alone the disciples were with him; and he asked them, "Who do the people say that I am?"

Luke 9

28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray.
29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white.

Matthew 14
22 Then he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.
23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,
24 but the boat by this time was many furlongs distant from the land, beaten by the waves; for the wind was against them.
Mark 6
45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Beth-sa'ida, while he dismissed the crowd.
46 And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
47 And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land.
L

Matthew 26
36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsem'ane, and he said to his disciples, "Sit here, while I go yonder and pray."
37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zeb'edee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.
38 Then he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me."
39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt."
40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, "So, could you not watch with me one hour?
41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, "My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, thy will be done."
43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.
44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words.
45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
46 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand."
Mark 14
32 And they went to a place which was called Gethsem'ane; and he said to his disciples, "Sit here, while I pray."
33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled.
34 And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch."
35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.
36 And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what thou wilt."
37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour?
38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words.
40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to answer him.
41 And he came the third time, and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come; the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand."
Luke 22
39 And he came out, and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him.
40 And when he came to the place he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."
41 And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed,
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42 "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."
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45 And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow,
46 and he said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation."

The Fourth Gospel
B-2. Example
John 14

15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
16 And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever,
17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be in you.

John 16

25 I have said this to you in figures; the hour is coming when I shall no longer speak to you in figures but tell you plainly of the Father.
26 In that day you will ask in my name; and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you;
27 for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from the Father.

John 17

1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify thy Son that the Son may glorify thee,
2 since thou hast given him power over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom thou hast given him.
3 And this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.
4 I glorified thee on earth, having accomplished the work which thou gavest me to do;
5 and now, Father, glorify thou me in thy own presence with the glory which I had with thee before the world was made.
6 "I have manifested thy name to the men whom thou gavest me out of the world; thine they were, and thou gavest them to me, and they have kept thy word.
7 Now they know that everything that thou hast given me is from thee;
8 for I have given them the words which thou gavest me, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from thee; and they have believed that thou didst send me.
9 I am praying for them; I am not praying for the world but for those whom thou hast given me, for they are thine;
10 all mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them.
11 And now I am no more in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.
12 While I was with them, I kept them in thy name, which thou hast given me; I have guarded them, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled.
13 But now I am coming to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
14 I have given them thy word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15 I do not pray that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the evil one.
16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them in the truth; thy word is truth.
18 As thou didst send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.
19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth.
20 "I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word,
21 that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,
23 I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me.
24 Father, I desire that they also, whom thou hast given me, may be with me where I am, to behold my glory which thou hast given me in thy love for me before the foundation of the world.
25 O righteous Father, the world has not known thee, but I have known thee; and these know that thou hast sent me.
26 I made known to them thy name, and I will make it known, that the love with which thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."

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