Matthew 6:13 is a closing request in the Lord’s Prayer, in which the person praying asks God to keep them from being drawn into temptation and to rescue them from the evil one. Jesus taught this prayer to his disciples during the Sermon on the Mount, so the words are addressed directly to ordinary followers who wanted to know how to pray.
Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.’
Matthew 6:13 (WEB)
What Matthew 6:13 Means
The verse begins with “Bring us not into temptation.” The Greek word here can mean a test or a trial as well as the pull toward sin, so the request is that God would not lead us into situations where we are overwhelmed. It is a prayer of dependence, admitting that we are weak in the face of testing and need God’s protection.
The second request, “deliver us from the evil one,” asks God to rescue us from the one the New Testament calls the devil or the enemy of God’s people. The phrase can also be read as “from evil,” and both readings fit the wider teaching of Scripture. Either way, the prayer places our safety in God’s hands rather than in our own strength.
The closing words, “For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever,” are a declaration of praise. Some of the oldest manuscripts do not include this doxology, which is why many modern Bibles set it apart. The verse does not promise that every temptation will vanish or that trials will never come. It promises that God is able to keep us and that his rule is final.
The Context of Matthew 6:13
The Gospel of Matthew was written to a community that was largely Jewish, and it presents Jesus as the teacher who fulfills and interprets the Law and the Prophets. Chapters five through seven form the Sermon on the Mount, a sustained teaching on what life in God’s kingdom looks like. The Lord’s Prayer sits in the middle of that sermon as a model for how disciples should approach God.
The verses just before and after Matthew 6:13 shape its meaning. Verse twelve asks God to forgive our debts as we forgive others, and verses fourteen and fifteen explain that forgiveness is tied to forgiving others. Read this way, the request not to be led into temptation is part of a larger picture of humble, forgiving, dependent living. The prayer for rescue comes from people who know they need both mercy and protection.
Key Phrases in Matthew 6:13
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
(WEB)
Paul reminds the Corinthian believers that no temptation is beyond what people can bear and that God provides a way out. This pairs well with Matthew 6:13, because it shows that the prayer to be kept from temptation is answered through God’s faithfulness in the moment of testing.
James 1:13
Let no man say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God can’t be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.
(WEB)
James clarifies that God does not tempt anyone with evil, which guards the meaning of the Lord’s Prayer against misreading. Read alongside Matthew 6:13, it helps us understand that the request is for protection and deliverance rather than a claim that God is the source of temptation.
A Short Prayer From Matthew 6:13
Father, I come to you knowing how easily I am pulled away from what is good. Keep me from the situations that I cannot handle on my own, and guide my steps when the path ahead is unclear. Rescue me from the evil one and from the schemes that try to turn my heart away from you. I trust that your kingdom, your power, and your glory are greater than anything I face today. Amen.
