FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM - The Lord's Prayer - Part 8
Porque Tuyo Es El Reino - La Oración de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo - Parte 8
by
Mary Hunt Webb
Posted Saturday, April 30, 2016
Sunrises often fill us with wonder. [Photographer: Aka Moraqu. Photo courtesy of Stockvault.net.]
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
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.
When I began writing articles years ago, I had difficulty composing suitable endings to the pieces that I wrote. Often, I just stopped at the end without tying my thoughts together in a suitable conclusion. I struggled with ending my work in a polished manner until I secured a position in a community college. One of my students was a young woman that had difficulty speaking but was able to organize her thoughts well on paper. Her compositions were good, but the best part was always her endings. She had such a gift for writing conclusions that I decided to study the way she wrote them. In doing so, my own writing improved. Since then, I have become acutely aware of the need to bring thoughts together in a tidy conclusion rather than just stopping abruptly.
Therefore, when I read the Lord's Prayer in some translations of the Bible I find it disconcerting when the editors have omitted the last half of Matthew 6:13, and have ended it with "…deliver us from evil". In the King James Version, the last portion of verse 13 is called a doxology or hymn of praise to God. It says, "…for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen." When some versions omit those words, they do so because some biblical scholars think that the doxology was added on at a later date. They feel that Jesus never spoke those words. However, when I read the Lord's Prayer without that concluding acknowledgment of God's authority, I feel that it lacks the unifying tie that unites all that was prayed up to that point.
Jesus never missed an opportunity to praise His Heavenly Father. With that in mind, it seems unlikely that He would have failed to teach His disciples to acknowledge the power of the One that had sent Him (Jesus) to them. Those words of praise comprise an ancient form of adoration and acknowledgment
Until modern times, the most common form of government was that of a monarchy or empire under the leadership of a king, emperor, queen or empress. When Jesus was on earth, the Roman Empire had subdued many countries into submission by means of barbaric force. Some Roman Emperors demanded to be worshiped as though they were deities. Each Emperor acted as though the Roman Empire would last forever.
There have been many such nations and powers throughout history that were thought to be so powerful that they would never end. In addition to the Roman Empire, there was Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Egypt, Greece, the Ottoman Empire, Nazi Germany, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. None of them lasted.
Earthly empires and kingdoms are of short duration. [Photographer: Geoffrey Whiteway. Photo courtesy of Stockvault.net.]
Thus, the Lord's Prayer looks beyond all earthly forms of government to affirm that only God's kingdom endures. That is what the end of the Lord's Prayer avows when it declares, "For yours is the kingdom". It doesn't say, "For yours is a kingdom." In saying, "For yours is the kingdom", it is stating that God's kingdom is the one that continues through the ages so that God is the ultimate ruler of everything.
After the Lord's Prayer says, "For yours is the kingdom," it goes on to say, "and the power…" Kings, emperors, presidents, dictators, and other rulers possess authority and power in order to maintain and support their domains. Part of that authority involves the responsibility to see to it that their constituents are healthy, have enough to eat, and live in adequate housing. However, throughout history, we have observed earthly rulers that did not fulfill their responsibility to their citizens. Instead, they misused their power by abusing their subjects.
Our God does not do that because He loves us. John 3:16 tells us that, "…God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (New International Version)
That means that God cares about us so much that He sent Jesus to earth so that, through our acceptance of Jesus as God's Son, we could spend eternity in God's kingdom, Heaven.
Because God did that, He deserves praise. That is why the Lord's Prayer finishes by saying, "For thine (yours) is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever". "Glory" involves thanks and honor as well as praise. We thank Him for what He has already done before we were born, for what He has done and is doing during our life spans, and for what we expect to Him to do because we know He loves us and will continue to care for us.
In the same way that God's kingdom has outlasted empires and governments of the past, it will continue to do so throughout eternity. That is the affirmation at the end of the declaration, "For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory for ever." It means "continuation without end."
The final word in the Lord's Prayer is "Amen". It originated in the Hebrew language as a word of support and affirmation. "Amen" means, "So be it". In some congregations, a member may say this word aloud during a church service. It indicates that the person uttering it is in agreement with what the pastor or speaker is saying.
We hope that we have helped you attach meaning to the words of the Lord's Prayer. That's important because Jesus warned about uttering empty words in Matthew 6:7 when He said, "And when you pray, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard because of their many words." (Amplified Bible) It is our prayer that this eight-part study of the Lord's Prayer has given you insight into this famous prayer. It has been a blessing to us to share this beautiful prayer with you.
Amen.
BIBLE VERSES FOR THIS POSTING
Matthew 6:13 — …For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (King James Version)
Mateo 6:13 — …porque tuyo es el reino, y el poder, y la gloria, por todos los siglos. Amén. (Reina-Valera 1960)
John 3:16 — For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (New International Version)
Juan 3:16 — Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo, que ha dado a su Hijo unigénito, para que todo aquel que en él cree, no se pierda, mas tenga vida eterna. (Reina-Valera 1960)
Matthew 6:7 — And when you pray, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. (Amplified Bible)
Mateo 6:7 — Y orando, no uséis vanas repeticiones, como los gentiles, que piensan que por su palabrería serán oídos. (Reina-Valera 1960)
Take time to pray. [Photographer: Jerry Philip Pothen. Photo courtesy of Stockvault.net.]
