In Matthew 6:11 we don’t know with certainty what the word translated “daily” means. This leads to much debate and two good interpretations: one literal and one metaphorical. Both understandings have merit. Both use good methodology. Both teach something that is taught elsewhere in Scripture, and in that sense, both of them are true. In this life, we may never be certain which one Jesus meant, but we can affirm the truths both of them teach.
Lords Prayer
32 Matthew 6:7-10 The Lord’s Prayer: Thy Kingdom Come
In giving us the Lord’s prayer, Jesus is not giving us a ritual to perform or a spiritual discipline to ensure our prayers are answered. Jesus is challenging us to consider what is our hearts are set on.
Word Study: daily, epiousios
The word translated “daily” in the Lord’s prayer (ἐπιούσιος) appears only in the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6:11 and Luke 11:3. Since this word is used nowhere else, we can’t be sure what it means. Both modern and ancient scholars have proposed several different suggestions for its meaning.
