The Missing Words: Understanding the Doxology of the Lord's Prayer

Have you ever found yourself in an awkward moment during communal prayer? Perhaps you were visiting a friend's church, and as the congregation began reciting the Lord's Prayer together, you confidently joined in. But then, just as you thought everyone would say "Amen," the voices around you continued: "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever." You fumbled, unsure whether to mouth along or stand in respectful silence. Or maybe the opposite happened—you enthusiastically proclaimed those familiar words only to find yourself the sole voice in a suddenly quiet room.

This common experience touches on one of the most intriguing variations in Christian worship: the presence or absence of what scholars call the "doxology" at the end of the Lord's Prayer. These words—"For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever"—are as familiar as morning coffee to some Christians and notably absent from the prayer life of others. Yet this difference isn't about theological disagreement or denominational stubbornness. Instead, it reveals a fascinating story about scripture, tradition, and the development of Christian worship across two millennia.

 

The Biblical Foundation

When we turn to the Gospels, we find the Lord's Prayer in two places: Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4. Luke's version is notably shorter, ending simply with "lead us not into temptation." Matthew's account, which has become the more commonly used version, concludes with "but deliver us from evil" (Matthew 6:13).

In the earliest and most reliable Greek manuscripts of Matthew's Gospel—including the Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus from the fourth century—the prayer ends there, without the doxology.

However, later manuscripts, particularly those from the Byzantine tradition, include the familiar concluding words. The earliest appearance of this longer ending in Greek manuscripts dates to about the fifth century. The Didache, a first-century Christian teaching document, instructs believers to pray the Lord's Prayer three times daily and includes a slightly different doxology: "for Thine is the power and the glory forever" (Didache 8:2)—notably missing "the kingdom" found in later versions.

This textual situation presents us with what biblical scholars call a "variant reading." The evidence strongly suggests that the doxology was not part of Matthew's original text but was added by later scribes, likely reflecting the prayer's liturgical use in their communities. As Bruce Metzger, one of the twentieth century's foremost textual critics, noted: "The absence of any ascription in early and important representatives of the Alexandrian, Western, and pre-Caesarean text types, as well as early patristic commentaries on the Lord's Prayer, indicates that an ascription, usually in a threefold form, was probably added in transmission." (Metzger, A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, 1994, p. 13).

 

Historical Development

The story of how these words became attached to the Lord's Prayer illuminates the dynamic relationship between scripture and liturgy in the early church. In Jewish prayer tradition, it was customary to conclude prayers with a doxology—a short hymn of praise to God. Early Christians would have found it natural to conclude the prayer Jesus taught them with similar words of praise.

St. John Chrysostom, preaching in Antioch and later Constantinople in the late fourth century, provides one of our earliest clear witnesses to liturgical use of the doxology. In his homilies on Matthew, he expounds upon the Lord's Prayer including the doxological conclusion, treating it as the natural ending of the prayer (Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew, 19.10). This suggests that by his time, at least in the Eastern churches, the doxology had become a standard part of worship.

The Western church, however, developed differently. St. Augustine, writing around the same time as Chrysostom but in North Africa, provides detailed commentary on the Lord's Prayer without any mention of the doxology (Augustine, Sermon 56-59 on the Lord's Prayer). Pope Gregory the Great, writing around 600 AD, explicitly notes that the Roman church recited the Lord's Prayer immediately after the canon of the Mass, ending with "deliver us from evil" (Gregory, Epistle IX.12). The key point is that both practices existed, each with its own liturgical logic.

 

The Protestant Reformation and Beyond

The Protestant Reformation brought renewed attention to biblical texts. When William Tyndale produced his groundbreaking English translation of the New Testament in 1526, he included the doxology in brackets, indicating his awareness that these words were textually dubious.

Yet the King James Version of 1611, drawing primarily on later Greek manuscripts (the Textus Receptus), included the doxology as part of Matthew 6:13. For English-speaking Protestants, this sealed the doxology's place in their spiritual imagination.

Martin Luther interestingly instructs Christians to pray the Lord's Prayer without the doxology in personal devotion but indicates it may be added in public worship. This nuanced approach—distinguishing between the prayer's biblical form and its liturgical use—would prove influential in Lutheran churches.

 

Contemporary Practice

Today's liturgical landscape reflects this complex history. Most Protestant churches routinely include the doxology when reciting the Lord's Prayer. For many, these words provide a fitting climax to the prayer, transforming petition into praise.

The Roman Catholic Church's practice is often misunderstood. In the current Roman Missal, the priest prays the Lord's Prayer through "deliver us from evil," then adds an elaboration called the embolism: "Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days..." The congregation then responds with the doxology: "For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and forever." This practice, formalized after the Second Vatican Council, ensures that Catholics do pray these words at every Mass, though separated from the body of the Lord's Prayer by the priest's prayer.

Eastern Orthodox churches generally include the doxology, often in a more extensive, explicitly Trinitarian form: "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."

 

Theological Reflection

What should we make of this variation? First, we recognize that the presence or absence of the doxology doesn't affect the prayer's essential meaning or power. The words Jesus gave us remain transformative. As N.T. Wright observes: "The prayer remains the same prayer, the one Jesus gave his followers, whether or not we add the ascription of praise." (Wright, The Lord and His Prayer, 1996, p. 89).

Second, the doxology itself, regardless of its textual history, expresses profound biblical truth. The words echo David's prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:11: "Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty..." When we proclaim God's kingdom, power, and glory, we align ourselves with scripture's consistent testimony about God's nature and sovereignty.

The variation in practice also reminds us that Christian tradition is not monolithic but rather resembles a river with multiple currents. These currents sometimes diverge and reconverge, carrying the same life-giving water in slightly different ways.

Conclusion: The Prayer of Unity

The story of the Lord's Prayer doxology is a powerful reminder that while the Scriptures provide the bedrock of our faith, liturgy gives that faith its wings. The "missing words" are not a sign of error, but a testament to the organic, developing life of the Church across time and cultures.

Whether you end your recitation with the simple, urgent plea "deliver us from evil" (reflecting the earliest manuscripts) or with the soaring, triumphant declaration "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever" (reflecting centuries of worship tradition), you are participating in a communal prayer that unites you with Christians past and present.

The doxology offers a final, crucial theological movement: it shifts the focus from our needy petitions back to God's transcendent power. It reminds us that we ask for daily bread and deliverance from evil not because we are strong, but because He is sovereign. By proclaiming God's ultimate authority, we frame all our human needs and struggles within the context of His eternal victory. The difference in words is small; the unity in the heart's posture—humble petition grounded in glorious praise—is absolute. In the end, the Lord's Prayer remains the perfect expression of dependence, discipleship, and doxology.