Luke 11:2

11:2 So he said to them, “When you pray, ¹  say:

Father, ²  may your name be honored; ³ 

may your kingdom come. ⁴ 

Isaiah 63:16

63:16 For you are our father,

though Abraham does not know us

and Israel does not recognize us.

You, Lord, are our father;

you have been called our protector from ancient times. ⁵ 

Jeremiah 3:19

3:19 “I thought to myself, ⁶ 

‘Oh what a joy it would be for me to treat you like a son! ⁷ 

What a joy it would be for me to give ⁸  you a pleasant land,

the most beautiful piece of property there is in all the world!’ ⁹ 

I thought you would call me, ‘Father’ ¹⁰ 

and would never cease being loyal to me. ¹¹ 

Jeremiah 31:20

31:20 Indeed, the people of Israel are my dear children.

They are the children I take delight in. ¹² 

For even though I must often rebuke them,

I still remember them with fondness.

So I am deeply moved with pity for them ¹³ 

and will surely have compassion on them.

I, the Lord, affirm it! ¹⁴ 

Matthew 6:9

6:9 So pray this way: ¹⁵ 

Our Father ¹⁶  in heaven, may your name be honored, ¹⁷ 

Matthew 6:14

6:14 “For if you forgive others ¹⁸  their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

Matthew 7:11

7:11 If you then, although you are evil, ¹⁹  know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts ²⁰  to those who ask him!

¹ sn When you pray. What follows, although traditionally known as the Lord’s prayer, is really the disciples’ prayer. It represents how they are to approach God, by acknowledging his uniqueness and their need for his provision and protection.

² tc Most mss, including later majority (A C D W Θ Ψ 070 ˹³ 33^vid Ï it), add ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς (Jhmwn Jo en toi" oujranoi", “our [Father] in heaven”) here. This makes the prayer begin like the version in Matt 6:9. The shorter version is read by Ì⁷⁵ א B (L: + ἡμῶν) 1 700 pc as well as some versions and fathers. Given this more weighty external evidence, combined with the scribal tendency to harmonize Gospel parallels, the shorter reading is preferred.

³ tn Grk “hallowed be your name.”

⁴ tc Most mss (א A C D W Θ Ψ 070 ˹³ 33^vid Ï it) read at the end of the verse “may your will be done on earth as [it is] in heaven,” making this version parallel to Matt 6:10. The shorter reading is found, however, in weighty mss (Ì⁷⁵ B L pc), and cannot be easily explained as arising from the longer reading.

⁵ tn Heb “our protector [or “redeemer”] from antiquity [is] your name.”

⁶ tn Heb “I, myself, said.” See note on “I thought that she might come back to me” in 3:7.

⁷ tn Heb “How I would place you among the sons.” Israel appears to be addressed here contextually as the Lord’s wife (see the next verse). The pronouns of address in the first two lines are second feminine singular as are the readings of the two verbs preferred by the Masoretes (the Qere readings) in the third and fourth lines. The verbs that are written in the text in the third and fourth lines (the Kethib readings) are second masculine plural as is the verb describing Israel’s treachery in the next verse.

⁸ tn The words “What a joy it would be for me to” are not in the Hebrew text but are implied in the parallel structure.

⁹ tn Heb “the most beautiful heritage among the nations.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “my father.”

¹¹ tn Heb “turn back from [following] after me.”

¹² tn Heb “Is Ephraim a dear son to me or a child of delight?” For the substitution of Israel for Ephraim and the plural pronouns for the singular see the note on v. 18. According to BDB 210 s.v. הֲ 1.c the question is rhetorical having the force of an impassioned affirmation. See 1 Sam 2:27; Job 41:9 (41:1 HT) for parallel usage.

¹³ tn Heb “my stomach churns for him.” The parallelism shows that this refers to pity or compassion.

¹⁴ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

¹⁵ sn Pray this way. What follows, although traditionally known as the Lord’s prayer, is really the disciples’ prayer. It represents how they are to approach God, by acknowledging his uniqueness and their need for his provision and protection.

¹⁶ sn God is addressed in terms of intimacy (Father). The original Semitic term here was probably Abba. The term is a little unusual in a personal prayer, especially as it lacks qualification. It is not the exact equivalent of “daddy” (as is sometimes popularly suggested), but it does suggest a close, familial relationship.

¹⁷ tn Grk “hallowed be your name.”

¹⁸ tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense: “people, others.”

¹⁹ tn The participle ὄντες (ontes) has been translated concessively.

²⁰ sn The provision of the good gifts is probably a reference to the wisdom and guidance supplied in response to repeated requests. The teaching as a whole stresses not that we get everything we want, but that God gives the good that we need.