Having taught from God’s law, Jesus goes on to address three aspects of basic Jewish piety that were central to Second Temple Judaism (Matthew 6:1–18).1 He will explain how kingdom citizens ought to pursue righteous living for the sake of pleasing God and not winning the attention of people.2 The three chosen acts of piety (alms giving, prayer, and fasting) are representative of all acts of piety.3
Reflecting on the Sermon on the Mount as a whole, Jesus’ teaching on prayer stands right at the centre. It can be considered as the focus of the sermon as a whole, since it contains the central theme of total dependence on God.4
The Lord’s Prayer itself is thoroughly Jewish in terms of its content, form, and language. There are hints of a parallel with the Kaddish, an early liturgical prayer that was used in the Jewish synagogue.5 In terms of division, it is structured as follows:6
The person to whom prayer is addressed, God our Father (Matthew 6:9b)
The priorities by which prayer is to be formed, God’s agenda (Matthew 6:9–10)
The problems for which disciples can pray, provision and safekeeping (Matthew 6:11–13)
The principle that governs prayer (Matthew 6:14–15).
5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.