Dusty Phrases

Hi! Welcome to “Dusty Phrases.” You will find below an ancient phrase in one language or another, along with its English translation. You may also find the power to inspire your friends or provoke dread among your enemies.

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Latin:

Sed libera nos a malo

Greek:

ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ

English:

But deliver us from evil.

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The Latin version of this phrase would have been easily recognized across the Western Christian world, for well over a thousand years. In that way, even though it was part of a dead language, it was unifying in both a current and historical sense. Only in the last hundred plus years, with the decline in the study of Latin, has this Latin phrase passed somewhat into obscurity. However, the translation (in various currently living languages) remains well-known today. You (Christian or not) are likely to recognize it as part of The Lord’s Prayer.

In the Eastern Church, though the Latin would have also been well-known, you would also likely have been familiar with the Greek version of this prayer, as that was the language into which the New Testament was primarily written.

via wiki:

The Lord’s Prayer, also known by its incipit Our Father (Greek: Πάτερ ἡμῶν, Latin: Pater Noster), is a central Christian prayer that Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, and a shorter form in the Gospel of Luke when “one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples'”. Regarding the presence of the two versions, some have suggested that both were original, the Matthean version spoken by Jesus early in his ministry in Galilee, and the Lucan version one year later, “very likely in Judea“.

Didache (at chapter VIII) reports a version which is closely similar to that of Matthew and also to the modern prayer. It ends with the Minor Doxology.

Texts

Here shown in the New International Version (NIV):

Matthew 6:9-13	Luke 11:2-4
Our Father in heaven,	Father, [Some manuscripts Our Father in heaven]
hallowed be your name,	hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,	your kingdom come.
your will be done,on earth as it is in heaven.	[Some manuscripts come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.]
Give us today our daily bread.	Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,as we also have forgiven our debtors.	Forgive us our sins,for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. [Greek everyone who is indebted to us]
And lead us not into temptation, [The Greek for temptation can also mean testing.]but deliver us from the evil one. [Or from evil]	And lead us not into temptation. [Some manuscripts temptation, but deliver us from the evil one]
[some late manuscripts one, / for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]

Initial words on the topic from the Catechism of the Catholic Church teach that it “is truly the summary of the whole gospel”. The prayer is used by most Christian denominations in their worship and with few exceptions, the liturgical form is the version from the gospel of Matthew. Although theological differences and various modes of worship divide Christians, according to Fuller Theological Seminary professor Clayton Schmit, “there is a sense of solidarity in knowing that Christians around the globe are praying together … and these words always unite us.”

The first three of the seven petitions in Matthew address God; the other four are related to human needs and concerns. Matthew’s account alone includes the “Your will be done” and the “Rescue us from the evil one” (or “Deliver us from evil”) petitions. Both original Greek texts contain the adjective epiousion; while controversial, “daily” has been the most common English-language translation of this word. Protestants usually conclude the prayer with a doxology (in some versions, “For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever, Amen”), a later addition appearing in some manuscripts of Matthew.

Relationship between the Matthaean and Lucan texts

In biblical criticism, the absence of the Lord’s Prayer in the Gospel of Mark, together with its occurrence in Matthew and Luke, has caused scholars who accept the two-source hypothesis (against other document hypotheses) to conclude that it is probably a logion original to the Q source. The common source of the two existing versions, whether Q or an oral or another written tradition, was elaborated differently in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.

Marianus Pale Hera considers it unlikely that either of the two used the other as its source and that it is possible that they “preserve two versions of the Lord’s Prayer used in two different communities: the Matthean in a Jewish Christian community and the Lucan in the Gentile Christian community”.

If either evangelist built on the other, Joachim Jeremias attributes priority to Matthew on the grounds that “in the early period, before wordings were fixed, liturgical texts were elaborated, expanded and enriched”. On the other hand, Michael Goulder, Thomas J. Mosbo and Ken Olson see the shorter Lucan version as a reworking of the Matthaean text, removing unnecessary verbiage and repetition.

The Matthaean version has completely ousted the Lucan in general Christian usage. The following considerations are based on the Matthaean version.

Greek texts

Liturgical text	Codex Vaticanus text	Didache text
πάτερ ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς	πατερ ημων ο εν τοις ουρανοις	πατερ ημων ο εν τω ουρανω
ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου	αγιασθητω το ονομα σου	αγιασθητω το ονομα σου
ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου	ελθετω η βασιλεια σου	ελθετω η βασιλεια σου
γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς	γενηθητω το θελημα σου ως εν ουρανω και επι γης	γενηθητω το θελημα σου ως εν ουρανω και επι γης
τὸν ἄρτον ἡμῶν τὸν ἐπιούσιον δὸς ἡμῖν σήμερον	τον αρτον ημων τον επιουσιον δος ημιν σημερον	τον αρτον ημων τον επιουσιον δος ημιν σημερον
καὶ ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ὀφειλήματα ἡμῶν ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφίεμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν	και αφες ημιν τα οφειληματα ημων ως και ημεις αφηκαμεν τοις οφειλεταις ημων	και αφες ημιν την οφειλην ημων ως και ημεις αφιεμεν τοις οφειλεταις ημων
καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ	και μη εισενεγκης ημας εις πειρασμον αλλα ρυσαι ημας απο του πονηρου	και μη εισενεγκης ημας εις πειρασμον αλλα ρυσαι ημας απο του πονηρου

The majority percentage of the verbs are aorist imperatives. In the first part of the prayer there are third person passive imperatives, while in the last one there are second person active imperatives.

Original Greek text and Syriac and Latin translations

Standard edition of Greek text 1. πάτερ ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς (páter hēmôn ho en toîs ouranoîs)2. ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου (hagiasthḗtō tò ónomá sou)3. ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου (elthétō hē basileía sou)4. γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς (genēthḗtō tò thélēmá sou hōs en ouranô(i) kaì epì gês)5. τὸν ἄρτον ἡμῶν τὸν ἐπιούσιον δὸς ἡμῖν σήμερον (tòn árton hēmôn tòn epioúsion dòs hēmîn sḗmeron)6. καὶ ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ὀφειλήματα ἡμῶν ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφήκαμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν (kaì áphes hēmîn tà opheilḗmata hēmôn hōs kaì hēmeîs aphḗkamen toîs opheilétais hēmôn)7. καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ (kaì mḕ eisenénkēis hēmâs eis peirasmón allà rhŷsai hēmâs apò toû ponēroû)

Standard edition of Syriac text of Peshitta1. ܐܒ݂ܘܢ ܕ̇ܒ݂ܫܡܝܐ‎(ʾăḇūn d-ḇa-šmayyā)2. ܢܬ݂ܩܕ݁ܫ ܫܡܟ݂‎(neṯqaddaš šmāḵ)3. ܬ݁ܐܬ݂ܐ ܡܠܟ݁ܘܬ݂ܟ݂‎(têṯē malkūṯāḵ)4. ܢܗܘܐ ܨܒ݂ܝܢܟ݂ ܐܝܟ݁ܢܐ ܕ݂ܒ݂ܫܡܝܐ ܐܦ݂ ܒ݁ܐܪܥܐ‎(nēhwē ṣeḇyānāḵ ʾaykannā ḏ-ḇa-šmayyā ʾāp̄ b-ʾarʿā)5. ܗܒ݂ ܠܢ ܠܚܡܐ ܕ݂ܣܘܢܩܢܢ ܝܘܡܢܐ‎(haḇ lan laḥmā ḏ-sūnqānan yawmānā)6. ܘܫܒ݂ܘܩ ܠܢ ܚܘ̈ܒ݁ܝܢ ܐܝܟܢܐ ܕ݂ܐܦ݂ ܚܢܢ ܫܒ݂ܩܢ ܠܚܝ̈ܒ݂ܝܢ‎(wa-šḇoq lan ḥawbayn ʾaykannā ḏ-ʾāp̄ ḥnan šḇaqn l-ḥayyāḇayn)7. ܘܠܐ ܬ݂ܥܠܢ ܠܢܣܝܘܢܐ ܐܠܐ ܦ݂ܨܢ ܡܢ ܒ݁ܝܫܐ‎(w-lā ṯaʿlan l-nesyōnā ʾellā p̄aṣṣān men bīšā)

Vulgata Clementina (1692) 1. pater noster qui es in cælis2. sanctificetur nomen tuum3. adveniat regnum tuum4. fiat voluntas tua sicut in cælo et in terra5. panem nostrum supersubstantialem da nobis hodie6. et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris7. et ne nos inducas in tentationem sed libera nos a malo

Liturgical texts: Greek, Syriac, Latin

Patriarchal Edition 1904 Πάτερ ἡμῶν ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου, ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου, γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. τὸν ἄρτον ἡμῶν τὸν ἐπιούσιον δὸς ἡμῖν σήμερον καὶ ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ὀφειλήματα ἡμῶν, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφίεμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν. καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν, ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ.

Syriac liturgicalܐܒ݂ܘܢ ܕ݁ܒ݂ܫܡܝܐ‎(our father who art in heaven)ܢܬ݂ܩܕ݁ܫ ܫܡܟ݂‎(hallowed be thy name)ܬ݁ܐܬ݂ܐ ܡܠܟ݁ܘܬ݂ܟ݂‎(thy kingdom come)ܢܗܘܐ ܨܒ݂ܝܢܟ݂ ܐܝܟ݁ܢܐ ܕ݂ܒ݂ܫܡܝܐ ܐܦ݂ ܒ݁ܐܪܥܐ‎(thy will be done as it is in heaven also on earth)ܗܒ݂ ܠܢ ܠܚܡܐ ܕ݂ܣܘܢܩܢܢ ܝܘܡܢܐ‎(give us the bread of our need this day) ܘܫܒ݂ܘܩ ܠܢ ܚܘ̈ܒ݁ܝܢ ܘܚܛܗ̈ܝܢ ܐܝܟ݁ܢܐ ܕ݂ܐܦ݂ ܚܢܢ ܫܒ݂ܩܢ ܠܚܝ̈ܒ݂ܝܢ‎(and forgive us our debts and our sins as we have forgiven our debtors)ܘܠܐ ܬ݂ܥܠܢ ܠܢܣܝܘܢܐ ܐܠܐ ܦ݂ܨܢ ܡܢ ܒ݁ܝܫܐ‎(and bring us not into temptation but deliver us from evil)ܡܛܠ ܕ݁ܕ݂ܝܠܟ݂ ܗ̄ܝ ܡܠܟ݁ܘܬ݂ܐ ܚܝܠܐ ܬ݂ܫܒ݁ܘܚܬ݁ܐ ܠܥܠܡ ܥܠܡܝܢ ܐܡܝܢ‎(for thine is the kingdom the power the glory for an age of ages amen)

Roman Missal Pater noster qui es in cælis:sanctificétur nomen tuum;advéniat regnum tuum;fiat volúntas tua, sicut in cælo, et in terra.Panem nostrum cotidiánum da nobis hódie;et dimítte nobis débita nostra,sicut et nos dimíttimus debitóribus nostris;et ne nos indúcas in tentatiónem;sed líbera nos a malo.

English versions

There are several different English translations of the Lord’s Prayer from Greek or Latin, beginning around AD 650 with the Northumbrian translation. Of those in current liturgical use, the three best-known are:

• The translation in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) of the Church of England
• The slightly modernized “traditional ecumenical” form used in the Catholic and (often with doxology) in many Protestant Churches
• The 1988 translation of the ecumenical English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC)

All these versions are based on the text in Matthew, rather than Luke, of the prayer given by Jesus.

BCP (1662)Our Father, which art in heaven,Hallowed be thy Name;Thy kingdom come;Thy will be donein earth, as it is in heaven:Give us this day our daily bread;And forgive us our trespasses,as we forgive them that trespass against us;And lead us not into temptation,But deliver us from evil;For thine is the kingdom,the power, and the glory,For ever and ever.Amen.

Traditional Ecumenical VersionOur Father, who art in heaven,hallowed be thy name;thy kingdom come,thy will be doneon earth as it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread,and forgive us our trespasses,as we forgive those who trespass against us;and lead us not into temptation,but deliver us from evil.Most Protestants conclude with the doxology:For thine is the kingdom,and the power, and the glory,for ever and ever. Amen. (or …forever. Amen.)At Mass in the Catholic Church the embolism is followed by:For the kingdom,the power and the glory are yours,now and for ever.

1988 ELLC Our Father in heaven,hallowed be your name,your kingdom come,your will be done,on earth as in heaven.Give us today our daily bread.Forgive us our sinsas we forgive those who sin against us.Save us from the time of trialand deliver us from evil.For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yoursnow and for ever. Amen.

The concluding doxology (“For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever”) is representative of the practice of concluding prayers with a short, hymn-like verse that exalts the glory of God. Older English translations of the Bible, based on late Byzantine Greek manuscripts, included it, but it is absent in the oldest manuscripts and is not considered to be part of the original text of Matthew 6:9–13. The translators of the 1611 King James Bible assumed that a Greek manuscript they possessed was ancient and therefore adopted the text into the Lord’s Prayer of Matthew’s Gospel. The use of the doxology in English dates from at least 1549 with the First Prayer Book of Edward VI which was influenced by William Tyndale‘s New Testament translation in 1526.

In the Byzantine Rite, whenever a priest is officiating, after the Lord’s Prayer he intones this augmented form of the doxology, “For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory: of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.”, and in either instance, reciter(s) of the prayer reply “Amen”.

The Catholic Latin liturgical rites have never attached the doxology to the end of the Lord’s Prayer. The doxology does appear in the Roman Rite Mass as revised in 1969. After the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer, the priest says a prayer known as the embolism. In the official International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL) English translation, the embolism reads: “Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.” This elaborates on the final petition, “Deliver us from evil.” The people then respond to this with the doxology: “For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever.”

Analysis

Saint Augustine of Hippo gives the following analysis of the Lord’s Prayer, which elaborates on Jesus’ words just before it in Matthew’s Gospel: “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then in this way” (Mt. 6:8–9):

We need to use words (when we pray) so that we may remind ourselves to consider carefully what we are asking, not so that we may think we can instruct the Lord or prevail on him. When we say: “Hallowed be your name”, we are reminding ourselves to desire that his name, which in fact is always holy, should also be considered holy among men. …But this is a help for men, not for God. …And as for our saying: “Your kingdom come,” it will surely come whether we will it or not. But we are stirring up our desires for the kingdom so that it can come to us and we can deserve to reign there. …When we say: “Deliver us from evil,” we are reminding ourselves to reflect on the fact that we do not yet enjoy the state of blessedness in which we shall suffer no evil. …It was very appropriate that all these truths should be entrusted to us to remember in these very words. Whatever be the other words we may prefer to say (words which the one praying chooses so that his disposition may become clearer to himself or which he simply adopts so that his disposition may be intensified), we say nothing that is not contained in the Lord’s Prayer, provided of course we are praying in a correct and proper way.

This excerpt from Augustine is included in the Office of Readings in the Catholic Liturgy of the Hours.

Many have written biblical commentaries on the Lord’s Prayer. Contained below are a variety of selections from some of those commentaries.

Seventh Petition

But deliver us from evil:

Translations and scholars are divided over whether the final word here refers to “evil” in general or “the evil one” (the devil) in particular. In the original Greek, as well as in the Latin translation, the word could be either of neuter (evil in general) or masculine (the evil one) gender. Matthew’s version of the prayer appears in the Sermon on the Mount, in earlier parts of which the term is used to refer to general evil. Later parts of Matthew refer to the devil when discussing similar issues. However, the devil is never referred to as the evil one in any known Aramaic sources. While John Calvin accepted the vagueness of the term’s meaning, he considered that there is little real difference between the two interpretations, and that therefore the question is of no real consequence. Similar phrases are found in John 17:15 and Thessalonians 3:3.