Forms and Purpose of Prayer in the New Testament
Prayer is often practiced as requests of God to provide or do something in
accordance with our will, even if we purport to submit our will to His. Examples are for
safety, health, or a job. An attentive study of the texts (and contexts) of the verses
concerning prayer and supplications finds that every occurrence in the epistles
concerns itself with just one of two things: the furtherance of the gospel or for spiritual
maturity (especially through knowledge).
Though I’m specifically concerned with prayer after the revelation of the mystery
to Paul—that is, after it became plainly known that Christ’s kingdom was spiritual—
nevertheless, I’ve included all occurrences in the new testament. Thus one could argue
that Peter’s prayer for raising Tabitha in Acts 9:40 isn’t obviously related to either the
furtherance of the gospel or for spiritual maturity, but it is similar to Paul’s request of
Christ in 2Co 12 and to the prayers for Peter in Acts 12, both arguably made with an
eye to the furtherance of the gospel. A better argument against my hypothesis is
Cornelius in Acts 10:2; we don’t know specifically what Cornelius’s motive was for
“continually beseeching” God. The reader, of course, will need to decide for himself.
προσευχομαι – to pray
Mat 5:44
6:5ff
6:9
14:23
19:13
24:20
26:36
26:39
26:41f
26:44
Mar 1:35
6:46
11:24f
12:40
13:18
14:32
14:35
14:38f
9:11
Luk 1:10
9:40
3:21
10:9
5:16
10:30
6:12
11:5
6:28
12:12
9:18
13:3
9:28f
14:23
11:1f
16:25
18:1
20:36
18:10f
21:5
20:47
22:17
22:40f
28:8
22:44
Rom 8:26
22:46
1Co 11:4f
Act 1:24
11:13
6:6
14:13ff
8:15
Eph 6:18
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Forms and Purpose of Prayer in the New Testament
Phi 1:9
Col 4:2
1:19
Col 1:3
4:12
4:6
1:9
1Th 1:2
1Ti 2:1
4:3
1Ti 2:1
5:5
5:5
2Ti 1:3
1Th 5:17
5:25
2Th 1:11
3:1
1Ti 2:8
Heb 13:18
Jam 5:13f
5:17f
Php 1:4
1:22
Jam 5:17
Heb 5:7
Jam 5:16
1Pe 3:12
1Pe 3:7
4:7
Rev 5:8
8:3f
Jud 1:20
ευχη, ης, η – vow, prayer
Act 18:18
21:23
Jam 5:15
δεομαι – to ask, pray, beg
προσευχη, ης, η – prayer
Mat 21:13
Mat 9:38
αιτεω + Father,God;1 – to ask
Luk 5:12
Father or God
21:22
8:28, 38
Mar 9:29
9:38, 40
11:17
10:2
Luk 6:12
21:36
19:46
22:32
22:45
Act 4:31
Act 1:14
2:42
8:22, 24, 34
10:2
3:1
Rom 1:10
6:4
2 Co. 5:20
10:4
1Th 3:10
10:31
δεησις, εως, η – supplication,
16:13
prayer, entreaty
Rom 1:10
12:12
15:30
1Co 7:5
Eph 1:16
6:18
Phi 4:6
7:11
18:19
Luk 11:13
Joh 4:10
11:22
14:13
15:16
16:23
16:26
Act 13:21
Jam 1:5f
12:5
16:16
Mat 6:8
Luk 1:13
4:2f
1Jo 3:22
5:14ff
2:37
5:33
Rom 10:1
2Co 1:11
9:14
Eph 6:18
Php 1:4
εντυχανω – to intercede, plead
Act 25.24
Rom 8.27
8.34
11.2
Heb 7.25
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