Leviticus 16:20-34

20 When he has finished atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 Then Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and sending it away into the wilderness by means of someone designated for the task. 22 The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a barren region; and the goat shall be set free in the wilderness.

23 Then Aaron shall enter the tent of meeting, and shall take off the linen vestments that he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there. 24 He shall bathe his body in water in a holy place, and put on his vestments; then he shall come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, making atonement for himself and for the people. 25 The fat of the sin offering he shall turn into smoke on the altar. 26 The one who sets the goat free for Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward may come into the camp. 27 The bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be taken outside the camp; their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be consumed in fire. 28 The one who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward may come into the camp.

29 This shall be a statute to you forever: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall deny yourselves, and shall do no work, neither the citizen nor the alien who resides among you. 30 For on this day atonement shall be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean before the LORD. 31 It is a sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall deny yourselves; it is a statute forever. 32 The priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father's place shall make atonement, wearing the linen vestments, the holy vestments. 33 He shall make atonement for the sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the people of Israel once in the year for all their sins. And Moses did as the LORD had commanded him. (Leviticus 16:20-34, NRSV)

The following comments are based on those of April 22, 2008 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two), when comments were repeated from May 16, 2006 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two).

Yesterday’s reading (Lev. 16:1-19) included preparations and atonement for the priest “and for his house” (vv. 6, 11), for the people (v. 15), for the sanctuary and the tent of meeting (v. 16), and for the altar (v. 19). Much of this is interpreted as purification ritual by Baruch J. Schwartz.

Regular atonement for unintentional sin and the routine eradication of impurity eliminate as much of both types of defilement as possible. Yet, since not all unintentional wrongs are discovered and not everyone is diligent about atonement, a certain amount of defilement remains. In particular, deliberate crimes, which contaminate the inner sanctum where the divine Presence itself is said to dwell, are not expurgated by the regular atonement rituals. This ch. thus provides the instructions for purging the inner sanctum along with the rest of the Tabernacle once a year, so that defilement does not accumulate. It logically follows the laws of purification (chs. 12-15), as they conclude with the statement that only by preventing the spread of impurity can the Israelites ensure God’s continual presence among them (15:11).. (The Jewish Study Bible, 2004,on Lev. 16:1-34)

But Schwartz does note the atonement for personal sins as well. He notes that verses 11-14 present “Aaron’s first entry into the inner sanctum, to expiate for his own transgressions and impurities” (ibid., on vv. 11-14).

In today’s reading, the instructions for the Day of Atonement continue. “When he [i.e., Aaron/the High Priest] has finished atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat” (Exod. 16:20). The other goat was slaughtered as “the sin offering that is for the people” (v. 15). For this goat, “then Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and sending it away into the wilderness by means of someone designated for the task” (v. 21). According to David P. Wright, “Both hands [means] this gesture transfers sins to the head of the scapegoat (cf. 24:14; Num 27:18, 23, where apparently two hands are used for transfer)” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., augmented, 2007, on Exod. 16:21). He adds,’

This scapegoat ritual is somewhat redundant with the earlier purification rituals, but the purity of the sanctuary was so significant that redundancy was sensible. Though the goat to Azazel is part of a purgation offering complex (cf. Lev. 16:5), it is not sacrificed or killed according to the biblical text, though further development of this ritual in early rabbinic literature assured that the scapegoat would die, so it could not return with the sins. (ibid.)

Rabbi J. H. Hertz comments on the word “iniquities” in verse 21. “The Heb. Nvf [‘āwōn] lit. means ‘crookedness’ and denotes a wilful departure from the law of God. Unlike the ordinary sacrifices, which were limited in their expiatory power to involuntary transgressions, the Day of Atonement and its sacrifices purged away wilful iniquities as well as errors and involuntary sins” (Pentateuch & Haftorahs, 2^nd ed., 24^th printing, 1981, on Lev. 16:21). “The goat,” says the LORD’s instructions, “shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a barren region; and the goat shall be set free in the wilderness” (v. 22). The comment of Schwartz appears, if not to echo the Rabbi’s comment, at least to agree and elaborate. Of “all their iniquities,” he says, “rather, ‘all the intentional sins and deliberate transgressions of the Israelites among all their sins.’ The impurities (see. v. 16) have disappeared, eradicated by the blood of the ‘chata’t’ [sin] offerings. Deliberate sins, however, are indestructible; they can only be sent away, in the hope that they may never return. the idea is that intentional acts of wrongdoing, once committed, can never really be undone” (op. cit., on v. 22).

“Then,” continues the LORD’s instruction, “Aaron shall enter the tent of meeting (dfeOm lh,xo8, ’ōhel mô‘ēd), and shall take off the linen vestments that he put on when he went into the holy place (wd,q0o7ha, haqqōdeš), and shall leave them there” (v. 23). “Leave them there,” says Jacob Milgrom, is “because they contracted the extreme sanctity of the adytum” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on Exod. 16:23). We note that the Holy of Holies is called here “the holy place,” and Holy Place, as it is called elsewhere, is here called “the tent of meeting.” “According to the Talmud,” says Rabbi Hertz, “this verse refers to what happened after the sacrifice of the burnt-offerings described in v. 24 f” (op. cit., on v. 23). The latter verses say, “He shall bathe his body in water in a holy place (wOdq! MOq8mAB4, b ^emāqôm qādôš), and put on his vestments; then he shall come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, making atonement for himself and for the people. The fat of the sin offering he shall turn into smoke on the altar” (vv. 24-25). The Rabbi says, “in a holy place” refers to “a special chamber in the Court for the purpose” (ibid., on v. 24). “His vestments,” says Milgrom, are “the ornate ones he always wore while officiating at the altar (8:6-9)” (op. cit., on v. 24).

What we might call a “clean-up operation” continues. “The fat of the sin offering,” continues the LORD’s instruction, “he shall turn into smoke on the altar” (v. 25). “The one who sets the goat free for Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward may come into the camp” (v. 26). According to Rabbi Hertz, “Since the ‘scapegoat’ bore upon itself the sins of the community, the man who had been in contact with it necessarily became defiled” (op. cit., on v. 26). “The bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be taken outside the camp; their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be consumed in fire” (v. 27, cf. vv. 11-14, 15). This too will require further purification. “The one who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward may come into the camp” (v. 28). Milgrom says, “The handlers of the slain and live purification offerings are contaminated, but not the high priest, who is immune to impurity while officiating” (op. cit. on vv. 26-28).

As the LORD’s instructions continue, the Day of Atonement is made a permanent part of the religious calendar. “This shall be a statute to you forever: In the seventh month [i.e., Tishri = Sept.-Oct.], on the tenth day of the month, you shall deny yourselves, and shall do no work, neither the citizen nor the alien who resides among you” (v. 29). “It shall be” (JPS, for NRSV “this shall be”), says Rabbi Hertz, “refers to what follows. Atonement is not automatically secured as a result of the ceremonies allotted to the High Priest. The people, too, had their part to perform in obtaining forgiveness” (op. cit., on v. 29). He also comments on the words, “afflict your souls” (JPS, for NRSV “deny yourselves”):

This Heb. phrase well indicated the spiritual aim of fasting. As the principal source of sin is the gratification of bodily appetites, the Fast is to demonstrate to the sinner that man can conquer all physical cravings, that the spirit can always master the body. The abstention from all food and from gratification of other bodily desires, however, must be accompanied by deep remorse at having fallen short of what it was in our power to be and to do as members of the House of Israel. Without such contrite confession, accompanied by the solemn resolve to abandon the way of evil, fasting in itself is not the fulfillment of the Divine command and purpose of the Day of Atonement. hdqcv hlpt hbvwt-- Repentance, Prayer and Beneficence–these can change the whole current of a man’s life and destiny, and lead to perfect atonement. ‘Let the wicked forsake his way, and the man of iniquity his thoughts; and let him return unto the LORD and He will have compassion upon him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon’ (Isaiah LV, 7). (op. cit., on Lev. 16:29).

“For on this day,” continues the LORD’s instruction, “atonement shall be made” (rPekay4, y ^ekappēr) for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean before the LORD” (v. 30). Of the words, “shall atonement be made for you,” the Rabbi says,

As the preceding and following verses describe the duties of the people on the Day, the subject of Mkylf rpky [y ^ekappēr ‘ ^alêkem] cannot be the High Priest; otherwise, he would have been specially mentioned. Rabbi Akiba held the subject to be God. ‘Happy Israel–he exclaimed–before Whom do ye purify yourselves, and Who is it that purifieth you? Your Father Who is in Heaven; as it is said (Ezek. xxxvi, 25) “I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean”.’ Note that the initiative in atonement is with the sinner. He cleanses himself on the Day of Atonement by fearless self-examination, open confession, and the resolve not to repeat the transgressions of the past year. When our Heavenly Father sees the abasement of the penitent sinner, He–and not the High Priest or any other Mediator–sprinkles, as it were, the clean waters of pardon and forgiveness upon him. ‘The whole philosophy of monotheism is contained in this rallying-cry of Rabbi Akiba’ (Hermann Cohen). (ibid., on v. 30).

“It [i.e., the Day of Atonement] is a sabbath of complete rest to you,” says the LORD, “and you shall deny yourselves; it is a statute forever” (v. 31). Of “sabbath of solemn rest” (JPS, for NRSV “sabbath of complete rest”), the Rabbi says, “The repetition is to impress the fact that cessation from labour and fasting must continue even when there are no longer priestly ceremonies (Wessely)” (ibid., on v. 31). A summary follows, anticipating the times when Aaron himself is no longer the High Priest, but those who succeed him. “The priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father's place shall make atonement, wearing the linen vestments, the holy vestments. He shall make atonement for the sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly” (vv. 32-33). “This,” says the LORD, shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the people of Israel once in the year for all their sins” (v. 34a). According to Schwartz, “The rituals are to be performed on a specific date, annually, in perpetuity, by Aaron’s successors in the high priesthood, accompanied by a community-wide fast and cessation of labor, observed by citizen and alien alike (see 23:26-32)” (op. cit., on vv. 29-34a).

The closing statement is understood differently in some versions. The Authorized (King James) Version says, “And he [i.e. Aaron] did (Wfay0av1, wayya‘aś )as the LORD commanded Moses (hw@&mo-tx,, ’eth-Mōšeh, ‘Moses’ as direct object, not subject) as the LORD commanded Moses” (v. 34b AV/KJV = JPS), compare “And it was done, as the LORD commanded Moses” (v. 34b TNIV). But the NRSV says, “And Moses did as the LORD had commanded him” (v. 34b NRSV = NJPS 1985, 1999). The verb translated “did” is plural, “they did,” in the Syriac version (cf BHS, apparatus on v. 34). Making Moses the subject, “and Moses did” (NRSV, NJPS), is apparently a matter of interpretation, not based on variant readings in the manuscripts.

The activities of the Day of Atonement are reviewed in the New Testament's Epistle/Letter to the Hebrews, chapter 9, verses 1-10, in the context of reference to the Levitical sacrificial system in general. It is noted that “the priests go continually into the first tent to carry out their ritual duties” (Heb. 9:6), but that “only the high priest goes into the second, and he but once a year, and not without taking the blood that he offers for himself and for the sins committed unintentionally by the people” (v. 7). This is compared in following verses to the sacrifice of Christ, who "appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself" (Heb. 9:26), "For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified" (Heb. 10:14). Whereas we Christians share much in common with our Jewish brothers and sisters in our understanding of repentance, prayer and beneficence–“For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life” (Eph. 2:10)–we differ of course in understanding our salvation as through Christ Jesus or Lord.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

5:1 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, "There is peace and security," then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! 4 But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; 5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. 6 So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; 7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated here from November 29, 2009 (the First Sunday of Advent, Year Two), when comments were repeated with editing and supplement from December 8, 2008 (Monday in the week of the first Sunday of Advent, Year One), and also on April 22, 2008 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two), comments were repeated with editing and supplement from December 2, 2007 (the First Sunday of Advent, Year Two), when comments were repeated from December 11, 2006 (Monday in the week of the Second Sunday of Advent, Year One), when comments were combined with some adaptation from Monday, December 6, 2004 (Monday of the week of the Second Sunday of Advent, Year One), from November 27, 2005 (the first Sunday of Advent, Year Two), and from May 16, 2006 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two).

In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul addresses the concern of some Thessalonian believers about the delay of the Lord’s coming. In today’s reading he gets rather specific. “Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters,” he says, “you do not need to have anything written to you” (1 Thess. 5:1). It appears that Paul is reviewing something of a time line regarding the Lord’s expected coming and the end of times. “Fo you yourselves know very well,” he says, “that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night” (v. 2), he says, meaning that the Lord will return at an unknown or unexpected time. According to Philip F. Esler, the phrase, “the day of the Lord,” was “well established in Israelite tradition. . . . a time of joy for some and terror for others” (The Oxford Bible Commentary, 2001, p. 1210 on 1 Thess. 5:2):

Thus Isaiah had written that on ‘that day’ a great trumpet would sound and the scattered ones in Assyria and Egypt would come to worship the Lord on Jerusalem’s holy mountain (Isa. 27:13). Zephaniah, on the other hand, had presented a bleaker picture: a day that would be a day of wrath, of anguish and torment, of destruction and devastation, when the Lord would bring dire distress upon the people (Zeph. 1:14-18). Paul must have imparted some of this material to his ex-idolatrous converts, no doubt painting a happy future for them and an unhappy one for sinful out-groups.

“When they say, ‘There is peace and security’,” says Paul, “then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape!” (v. 3). Abraham Smith says that the words, “as labor pains . . . a pregnant woman, [signify] the suddenness of the day of the Lord (cf. Mic. 4:9)” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., augmented, 2007, on 1 Thess. 5:3). But Paul assures the Thessalonians, “But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief, for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness” (vv. 4-5). “As here,” says Smith, “children of light is also used in the Qumran literature (1QS 1.9-10; 3.13) to distinguish the righteous from the nonrighteous (‘children of the Darkness’)” (ibid., on v. 5).

So, amid all this darkness and gloom (cf. today’s reading from Amos, and the persecutions anticipated in Jesus’ eschatological speech, below), there is hope and promise for God's faithful people. The Thessalonian believers are to be watchful, and “not fall asleep as others do, but . . . keep awake and be sober” (v. 6), not to fall asleep, of course, in a spiritual sense, “for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night” (v. 7). Of the words, “Let us not fall asleep,” says Edgar M. Krentz, “See Mt. 25:13; Mk. 13:34-37; this exhortation to moral alertness is clarified by keep awake and be sober” (HarperCollins Study Bible, rev. ed., 2006, on 1 Thess. 5:6). The Thessalonian believers are to be alert and expectant, ready for the coming of the Lord. “But since we belong to the day,” says Paul, “let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation” (v. 8). “Imagery of armor (breastplate, helmet),” says Krentz, “underscores the need to struggle; see also Rom. 13:12; 2 Cor. 6:7; 10:4; Eph. 6:13-17; Phil. 1:27-30. On hope,” he adds, “see 1:3” (ibid., on v. 8).

God’s plan for us is “not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him” (1 Thess. 5:9, 10). Today’s reading from Luke includes the promise, “By your endurance you will gain your souls” (Lk. 21:19). The passage in 1 Thessalonians concludes with this: “Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing” (1 Thess. 5:11). And so, we should encourage one another as Paul directs. We are called to be faithful and lift up our heads to see God's promised blessings.

Matthew 6:7-15

7 "When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

9 "Pray then in this way:

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 this day our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And do not bring us to the time of trial,

but rescue us from the evil one.

14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; 15 but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:7-15, NRSV)

The following comments are repeated here from September 25, 2009 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 21, Year One), when they were repeated with editing and supplement from April 22, 2008 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two), comments were repeated from September 28, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 21, Year One), when comments were repeated from May 16, 2006 (Tuesday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year Two).

Jesus’ instructions about personal piety continuing today’s reading with the Lord’s Prayer (passed over yesterday), sometimes called the Our Father (from the opening words). In this context, these instructions relate to Jesus' advice about praying in secret (Mt. 6:6), about not using empty phrases (v. 7), and about forgiving others in order to be forgiven (vv. 14-15). Luke 11:1-4 describes an occasion when Jesus taught this prayer in response to the disciples' request, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Lk. 11:1). The teachings on piety in Matthew, chapter 6, appear to reflect Matthew’s habit of collecting and arranging his material topically. Dr. Bruce. M. Metzger, as a guest lecturer for chapel at the Friends Bible College (now Barclay College) in Haviland, Kansas, said that Luke’s Gospel presents the Lord’s Prayer in the historical occasion, recognizing the topical arrangement of the Sermon on the Mount. (I’m quoting the substance of what Dr. Metzger said on that occasion, not his exact wording.)

Three versions of the prayer have come down to us, Matthew’s, Luke’s and that of the Didache, or “The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles.” To compare the wording of these three versions and see some early Christian comments on the prayer, see the separate file, The Lord’s Prayer.

Yesterday’s reading included the admonition, “And whenever you prayer, do not be like the hypocrites” (Mt. 6:5a, cf. vv. 5-6), but as noted yesterday, Matthew’s warning is perhaps as much about hypocrites within the Christian community as about their non-Christian Jewish neighbors. The advice then was about praying in secret (v. 6). Then Jesus turns to instruction about how to pray, which he sets in contrast to the “empty phrases” heaped up by “the Gentiles”: “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words” (Mt. 6:7). Jesus explains: “ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (v. 8).

So, within Jesus’ instructions about piety we find the Lord’s Prayer. “Pray then in this way,” says Jesus: Our Father in heaven, hallowed (aJgiasqhvtw, hagiasthētō ) be your name” (v. 9). In Greek, the prayer begins, Pavter hJmw:n oJ ejn toi:V oujranoi:V (Pater hēmōn ho en tois ouranois, literally, ‘Our Father, the one in the heavens’). The Greek word for “heavens,” which in some places is singular, is plural here, as often in the New Testament, reflecting the fact that in Hebrew, the word for “heaven,” or “heavens” occurs only in the plural form My9maw! (šāmayim). But in the biblical context, it is properly translated in the singular “heaven.” In the familiar Authorized (King James) Version, the literal phrase, “the one in the heavens,” is properly translated in older English as “who art in heaven,” since the Greek construction is often best represented by a relative pronoun clause in English. But the simplified “Our Father in heaven” (NRSV, cf. TNIV).

In Matthew, the prayer consists of seven petitions, which also are found in the Didache’s version of the prayer. Luke’s version has four petitions, omitting “Your will be done . . .” and the two about not bringing us “to the time of trial” and rescuing us “from the evil one.” Of Matthew’s petitions, three are about God’s honor, kingdom and will, and four are about our own needs: daily bread, forgiveness, and protection from “the time of trial/temptation” and “evil/the evil one.”

After the introductory address to God the Father, the first petition, as given above, is “hallowed (aJgiasqhvtw, hagiasthētō ) be your name” (v. 9c). The verb is a third person imperative form–possible in Greek–with the meaning, “Let your name be hallowed,” that is, “sanctified.” The verb aJgiavzw (hagiazō ) means generally, “to make holy,” or “treat as holy.” Various meanings are presented “(1) set aside something or make it suitable for ritual purposes, consecrate, dedicate of things . . . (2) include a person in the inner circle of what is holy, in both cultic and moral associations of the word, consecrate, dedicate, sanctify . . . so of Christians, who are consecrated by baptism . . . (3) to treat as holy, reverence . . . [with references 1 Pet. 3:15; Mt. 6:9; Lk. 11:2; Rev. 22:11] (4) to eliminate that which is incompatible with holiness, purify” (Bauer-Danker-Arndt-Gingrich [BDAG], A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3^rd ed., 2000, s.v. aJgiavzw, hagiazō ). Clearly, meaning number 3 applies in the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “Let your name be reverenced, treated as holy.” By implication, one prays that all of his or her life be lived as in the presence of God (which, of course, it is).

The second petition of the prayer says, “Your kingdom (basileiva, basileia) come (ejlqevtw, elthetō )” (v. 10a), again with a third person imperative form, “Let your kingdom come.” One may well assume that Jesus means here all that is implied by his teaching on “the kingdom of heaven/the kingdom of God,” for example, in Matthew 4:17 and Mark 1:15, and echoes of this, for example, in Paul’s epistles (e.g., Rom. 14:17; 1 Cor. 4:20; 6:10). If we truly let the kingdom (rule) of God prevail on earth, we would have the solution to many of the atrocities and evils of human society. This would require the cooperation of faithful people, led by the Spirit of God, and empowered beyond the limits of human resources.

The third petition is related. “Your will (qevlhma, thelēma) be done, on earth as it is in heaven ( ejn oujranw:/, en ouranō(i), ‘heaven’ singular, but with the same meaning as the plural form in v. 9)” (v. 10b, c). God’s “will” (qevlhma, thelēma) is the word that represents the result of what the related verb qevlw (thelō ), “to wish” or “will” means. The noun means “what one wishes to happen, objective sense, what is willed” (Bauer-Danker-Arndt-Gingrich [BDAG], A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3^rd ed., 2000, s.v. qevlhma, thelēma). If we really believe that God has our best interests at heart, would we not also believe that what he wants for us would be best for us, and would we not want that, what God wills for us? If we really desire and seek God's will for our lives, we may find that what he wants for us is really best for us, what we too would have wanted if we could clearly see as he sees.

The next petition surely has our own welfare in mind. “Give (dovV, dos, aorist imperative) us this day our daily ( ejpiouvsion, epiousion) bread” (v. 11). In Luke’s version, this petition says, “Give (divdou, didou, present tense imperative) us each day (to; kaq= hJmevran, to kath’ hēmeran) our daily bread” (Lk. 11:3). The distributive sense of the preposition kaq= (kath’), short for katav (kata) before a vowel (cf. BDAG, s.v. katav, kata, meaning no. (2) (c) ) emphasizes the day-by-day aspect of phrase “our daily bread,” as “the day-by-day bread.” Where Matthew has an aorist imperative, “give us this day,” with emphasis on today’s bread (though one assumes we could pray for “today’s bread” on the next and coming days as well, Luke’s present tense imperative refers to repeated action, “give us day-by-day our daily bread.” His different emphasis surely does not falsify what Jesus said, but adapts it to the ongoing needs of those in his Christian community. Some have interpreted the word for “daily” ( ejpiouvsion, epiousion) in a future sense, as though the request is, “give us today our bread for tomorrow” (cf. the quotation from the Gospel according to the Hebrews [Ebionites?], as cited by Jerome in his commentary on Matthew, one of the “early comment” entries in the table in the separate file, The Lord’s Prayer. Some take this meaning in an eschatological sense in which praying for “our bread for tomorrow” would be in effect a prayer for the coming of the Lord and the end-time consummation of the age. But that goes beyond the likely meaning of the prayer as presented by Jesus.

The fifth petition is a prayer for forgiveness. In Matthew the petition says, “And forgive (a[feV, aphes, aorist imperative) us our debts (ojfeilhvmata, opheilēmata) as we also have forgiven (ajfhvkamen, aphēkamen, aorist [past] tense) our debtors ( ojfeilevtai, opheiletai)” (Mt. 6:12). Luke’s version says, “And forgive (a[feV, aphes, aorist imperative) us our sins (aJmartivai, hamartiai), for we ourselves forgive (ajfivomen, aphiomen, present tense) everyone indebted (panti; ojfeivlonti, panti opheilonti) to us (Lk. 11:4a, b). In some Christian traditions, for example, the Presbyterian and Reformed traditions, in praying the Lord’s Prayer, they say, “Forgive us our debts,” as in the text of the prayer in Matthew. In other Christian traditions, people say, “Forgive us our trespasses.” This wording apparently goes back to early Anglican prayer books, and the word trespasses reflects the word “trespasses” (paraptwvmata, paraptōmata) in Jesus’ explanation following the prayer, “For if you forgive others their trespasses (paraptwvmata, paraptōmata), your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (paraptwvmata, paraptōmata)” (Mt. 6:14-15).

The sixth petition, in Matthew’s version of the prayer, says “And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one (ajpo; tou: ponhrou:, apo tou ponērou) (Mt. 6:13 NRSV); compare the lines from the Didache, “and lead us not into trial, but deliver us from the Evil One” (Didache viii, 2). Some undoubtedly, are used to praying, “but deliver us from evil” (Mt. 6:13 AV/KJV). The difference between “the evil one” (NRSV) and “evil” represents two possible meanings of the same Greek expression. The definite article with the neuter form of the adjective “evil” (ponhrovV, ponēros) can represent the abstract noun “evil,” as in “deliver us from evil,” but the same spelling of the words can be understood as the masculine gender, accusative case form translated “the evil one,” meaning Satan.

As noted in the Lord’s Prayer file, some manuscripts include the doxology, "For the kingdom and the power and the glory are yours forever. Amen" (cf. NRSV text note c, on Mt. 6:13; cf. 1 Chron. 29:11-13).

C. G. Montefiore was cited yesterday, “There is no novelty for Jewish readers in the excellent remarks about almsgiving. They are characteristically Rabbinic”(The Synoptic Gospels, vol. II, 1968, p. 95 on Mt. 6:1-4). In a similar vein, he finds the Lord’s Prayer to be something a good Jew would pray, which should not be surprising. “The Prayer has many Rabbinic analogues and parallels. . . . There is nothing in the Prayer which seems in the least unfamiliar to Jews” (ibid., p. 99).

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net