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The word translated `vain repetitions' (battologeo) is thought to be derived from the
idea of stammering and hence repetition. It is evidently to be explained by `much
speaking' (polulogia) and is in direct contradiction to the words of Eccles. 5: 2:
"Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before
God, for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth, therefore let thy words be few."
The reason given here for the few words is, "God is in heaven", which fact is
remembered in the Lord's Prayer--"Our Father, Who art in heaven".
The prayer, according to Matthew, was given as a model upon which prayer for the
time then present should be based. The prayer, according to Luke on the other hand, with
its introduction, "When ye pray say", suggests that here the Lord was giving the disciples
in question the actual words to use in prayer. It must not be assumed that the disciples
who desired this teaching on prayer were necessarily present at the giving of the Sermon
on the Mount. The Lord had more disciples than the twelve whom we generally associate
with the word disciple, so this was not repetition as far as they were concerned.
Before leaving the subject of `much speaking', it should be observed that the Lord did
not condemn `much praying', in fact by his own example He commended it. Also the
Apostle Paul with his exhortation to "Pray without ceasing" encouraged the practice of
prayer. It is `much speaking' even `vain repetition' that is to be avoided, and it is sad to
observe that the very prayer which was given as a model of this, has become by its
mechanical repetition in some churches just the opposite. It has become `vain repetition'.
The prayer part of the Sermon on the Mount.
What are the implications of the prayer as forming part of the Sermon on the Mount?
If we believe, with Bloomfield, that the sermon contains "the great outlines of Christian
practice", then we can have no hesitation in believing that the prayer is for us today. If
however we look more closely at the sermon we observe that it was given to a people
subject to "persecution for righteousness' sake" (5: 10), in danger of "Gehenna" (5: 22
"hell fire"), who must pay "to the uttermost farthing" (5: 26), who were waiting for a
"coming kingdom" (6: 10) and were in need of "daily bread" (6: 11). If they did not
exercise forgiveness neither would they be forgiven (6: 15), they were still to fast (6: 17)
and they were not to be concerned about food and clothing (6: 25). The `coming
kingdom' for which they were to pray was "the kingdom of the heavens", which at that
time was at hand (4: 17), and the whole sermon must be understood in the light of this
nearness, and hence the prayer also as forming part of it. The period immediately before
the coming of this kingdom (with the return of the King) is known as the Great
Tribulation, a period during which the prayer with its references to `bread', `temptation'
and `the evil' is most appropriate. This will become clearer as the various clauses are
considered.
One of the most important point to notice about its place in Scriptures is that it is
given in Matthew prior to the revelation of 16: 21: