This article belongs to the “Studying the Lord’s Prayer with Brad Young” series. For an overview of the entire series, click here.
This is more than a mere formula of praise. How can the name of God be “hallowed”? Actually, the sense of the word might better be expressed in English by “sanctify.” The whole phrase could be translated, “May your name be sanctified.”
Sanctity of God
The sanctity of God is a well-known biblical theme (e.g., Isa. 6:3) and seems to be related to God’s justice. Compare Ezekiel 38:23:
I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
יתקדש (yit·ka·DESH, “be hallowed” or “be sanctified”), the Hebrew word Jesus probably used in the prayer he taught his disciples, is parallel to והתקדשתי (ve·hit·ka·dish·TI, “I will show…my holiness”) in Ezekiel 38:23. This verse from Ezekiel formed the basis for a number of ancient Jewish prayers. One of these is that of Rabbi Ezekiel which appears in Ta’anit 64b in the Jerusalem Talmud. When the much-needed rains came, he would bless the LORD: “May your name be magnified, sanctified and exalted, our King, for every drop that you send us.”
Paid Content
Premium Members and Friends of JP must be logged in to access this content: Login
If you do not have a paid subscription, please consider registering as a Premium Member starting at $10/month (paid monthly) or only $5/month (paid annually): Register
One Time Purchase Rather Than Membership
Rather than purchasing a membership subscription, you may purchase access to this single page for $1.99 USD. To purchase access we strongly encourage users to first register for a free account with JP (Register), which will make the process of accessing your purchase much simpler. Once you have registered you may login and purchase access to this page at this link:
