The Lord's Prayer

11 Now Jesus[a] was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, (A)as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, (B)“When you pray, say:

(C)“Father, (D)hallowed be (E)your name.
(F)Your kingdom come.
(G)Give us (H)each day our daily bread,[b]
and (I)forgive us our sins,
    for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And (J)lead us not into temptation.”

And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything (K)because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence[c] he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, (L)ask, and (M)it will be given to you; (N)seek, and you will find; (O)knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for[d] a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, (P)who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father (Q)give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 11:1 Greek he
  2. Luke 11:3 Or our bread for tomorrow
  3. Luke 11:8 Or persistence
  4. Luke 11:11 Some manuscripts insert bread, will give him a stone; or if he asks for

Teaching about Prayer

11 Once Jesus was in a certain place praying. As he finished, one of his disciples came to him and said, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

Jesus said, “This is how you should pray:[a]

“Father, may your name be kept holy.
    May your Kingdom come soon.
Give us each day the food we need,[b]
and forgive us our sins,
    as we forgive those who sin against us.
And don’t let us yield to temptation.[c]

Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.[d]

“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

11 “You fathers—if your children ask[e] for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? 12 Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! 13 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”

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Footnotes

  1. 11:2 Some manuscripts add additional phrases from the Lord’s Prayer as it reads in Matt 6:9-13.
  2. 11:3 Or Give us each day our food for the day; or Give us each day our food for tomorrow.
  3. 11:4 Or And keep us from being tested.
  4. 11:8 Or in order to avoid shame, or so his reputation won’t be damaged.
  5. 11:11 Some manuscripts add for bread, do you give them a stone? Or [if they ask].