What do we pray for in the first petition?
In the first petition (which is, Hallowed be thy name,)1 acknowledging the utter inability and indisposition that is in ourselves and all men to honor God aright,2 pray, that God would by his grace enable and incline us and others to know, to acknowledge, and highly to esteem him,3 his titles,4 attributes,5 ordinances, word,6 works, and whatsoever he is pleased to make himself known by;7 and to glorify him in thought, word,8 and deed:9 that he would prevent and remove atheism,10 ignorance,11 idolatry,12 profaneness,13 and: whatsoever is dishonorable to him;14 and, by his overruling providence, direct and dispose of all things to his own glory.15
Scripture proofs
The Westminster Assembly's proof texts (KJV). The bracketed numbers in the answer above mark the clause each set of references supports; expand a row to read the verses.
1 Matt. 6:9
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
2 2 Cor. 3:5; Ps. 51:15
Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;
O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
3 Ps. 67:2–3
Ps. 67:2 That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.
Ps. 67:3 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
4 Ps. 83:18
That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.
5 Ps. 86:10–13, 15
Ps. 86:10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.
Ps. 86:11 Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
Ps. 86:12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
Ps. 86:13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
Ps. 86:15 But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
6 2 Thess. 3:1; Ps. 138:1–3; Ps. 147:19–20; 2 Cor. 2:14–15
Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
Ps. 138:1 I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
Ps. 138:2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.
Ps. 138:3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.
Ps. 147:19 He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel.
Ps. 147:20 He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD.
2 Cor. 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2 Cor. 2:15 For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
7 Ps. 145; Ps. 8
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8 Ps. 19:14; Ps. 103:1
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
9 Phil. 1:9, 11
Phil. 1:9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment;
Phil. 1:11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
10 Ps. 67:1–4
Ps. 67:1 God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.
Ps. 67:2 That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.
Ps. 67:3 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
Ps. 67:4 O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.
11 Eph. 1:17–18
Eph. 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Eph. 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
12 Ps. 97:7
Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.
13 Ps. 74:18, 22–23
Ps. 74:18 Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached, O LORD, and that the foolish people have blasphemed thy name.
Ps. 74:22 Arise, O God, plead thine own cause: remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily.
Ps. 74:23 Forget not the voice of thine enemies: the tumult of those that rise up against thee increaseth continually.
14 2 Kings 19:15–16
2 Kings 19:15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.
2 Kings 19:16 LORD, bow down thine ear, and hear: open, LORD, thine eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God.
15 2 Chron. 20:6, 10–12; Ps. 83; Ps. 140:4, 8
2 Chron. 20:6 And said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?
2 Chron. 20:10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not;
2 Chron. 20:11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
2 Chron. 20:12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.
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Ps. 140:4 Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.
Ps. 140:8 Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah.
This doctrine across the Standards
Where the Confession and the Westminster Shorter Catechism treat the same matter, so the question can be studied alongside its parallel statements.
In the Westminster Confession
XXI.3 Prayer with thanksgiving, being one special part of religious worship, is by God required of all men; and …
Prayer with thanksgiving, being one special part of religious worship, is by God required of all men; and that it may be accepted, it is to be made in the name of the Son, by the help of his Spirit, according to his will, with understanding, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, and perseverance; and, if vocal, in a known tongue.
→ XXI.3 · Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath DayXXI.4 Prayer is to be made for things lawful, and for all sorts of men living, or that shall …
Prayer is to be made for things lawful, and for all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter; but not for the dead, nor for those of whom it may be known that they have sinned the sin unto death.
→ XXI.4 · Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath DayIn the Westminster Shorter Catechism
Q.98 What is prayer?
Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgement of his mercies.
→ Open Q.98Q.99 What rule hath God given for our direction in prayer?
The whole Word of God is of use to direct us in prayer; but the special rule of direction is that form of prayer which Christ taught his disciples, commonly called The Lord's Prayer.
→ Open Q.99Q.100 What doth the preface of the Lord's Prayer teach us?
The preface of the Lord's Prayer, which is, Our Father which art in heaven, teacheth us to draw near to God with all holy reverence and confidence, as children to a father, able and ready to help us; and that we should pray with and for others.
→ Open Q.100Q.101 What do we pray for in the first petition?
In the first petition, which is, Hallowed be thy name, we pray, that God would enable us, and others, to glorify him in all that whereby he maketh himself known; and that he would dispose all things to his own glory.
→ Open Q.101Q.102 What do we pray for in the second petition?
In the second petition, which is, Thy kingdom come, we pray, that Satan's kingdom may be destroyed; and that the kingdom of grace may be advanced, ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it; and that the kingdom of glory may be hastened.
→ Open Q.102Q.103 What do we pray for in the third petition?
In the third petition, which is, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven, we pray, that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to his will in all things, as the angels do in heaven.
→ Open Q.103Q.104 What do we pray for in the fourth petition?
In the fourth petition, which is, Give us this day our daily bread, we pray that of God's free gift we may receive a competent portion of the good things of this life, and enjoy his blessing with them.
→ Open Q.104Q.105 What do we pray for in the fifth petition?
In the fifth petition, which is, And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, we pray that God, for Christ's sake, would freely pardon all our sins; which we are the rather encouraged to ask, because by his grace we are enabled from the heart to forgive others.
→ Open Q.105Q.106 What do we pray for in the sixth petition?
In the sixth petition, which is, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, we pray, that God would either keep us from being tempted to sin, or support and deliver us when we are tempted.
→ Open Q.106Q.107 What doth the conclusion of the Lord's Prayer teach us?
The conclusion of the Lord's Prayer, which is, For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever, Amen. teacheth us to take our encouragement in prayer from God only, and in our prayers to praise him, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to him; and, in testimony of our desire, and assurance to be heard, we say, Amen.
→ Open Q.107