Bible Verses used in the topical study on Prayer
Luke 11:1 reads, “(Jesus) was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’”
“When you pray, say: Father, may your name be revered as holy. May your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial” (Luke 11:2-4, NRSVUE).
The man brought his son to Jesus’ disciples, yet they could not cast out the evil spirit. The father begs Jesus “if you are able to do anything, please help.” Jesus looks at the man and asks “IF?” and then tells the father, “All things can be done for the one who believes.” The man then cries out to Jesus, “I believe; help my unbelief!” Later when the disciples were alone with Jesus they asked, “Why could we not cast it out?” Jesus said to them, “This kind can come out only through prayer.” (Mark 9:23-24, 28-29; NRSVUE)
Matthew 18:19 reads, “… truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.”
Matthew 21:22 reads, “Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.”
John 15:7 reads, “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
Luke 18:1 reads, “Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart.”
Mark 1:35 reads, “In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.”
Luke 3:21 reads, “Now when all the people were baptized and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened…”
Luke 5:16 reads, “Meanwhile, he (Jesus) would slip away to deserted places and pray.”
Luke 6:12 reads, “Now during those days he (Jesus) went out to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.”
Luke 9:28 reads, “Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray.”
Psalm 37:7 reads, “Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for (God)”
Psalm 46:10 reads, “Be still, and know that I am God!” (That is my favorite verse for meditation/prayer)
Zechariah 2:13 reads, “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.”
James 4:3 reads, “You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures” (NSRVUE).
1 Chronicles 16:4 reads, “(King David) appointed certain of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the Lord, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the Lord, the God of Israel.”
1 Chronicles 16:34 reads, “O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
2 Chronicles 5:13 reads, “It was the duty of the trumpeters and singers together to make themselves heard in unison in praise and thanksgiving to the Lord…”
Psalm 7:17 reads, “I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness and sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.”
Psalm 24:10 reads, “Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory.”
Psalm 84:8 reads, “O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer…”
Psalm 89:8 reads, “O Lord God of hosts, who is as mighty as you, O Lord? Your faithfulness surrounds you.”
Philippians 4:6 reads, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Revelation 4:8 reads, “Day and night without ceasing they sing, ‘Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.’”
Revelation 11:17 reads, “We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty, who are and who were, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.”
2 Chronicles 30:8 reads, “Do not now be stiff-necked as your ancestors were, but yield yourselves to the Lord and come to his sanctuary, which he has sanctified forever, and serve the Lord your God…”
Job 11:13 reads, “If you direct your heart rightly, you will stretch out your hands toward him.”
Job 22:21 reads, “Agree with God, and be at peace; in this way good will come to you.”
Psalm 4:3 reads, “…know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him.”
Lamentations 3:41 reads, “Let us lift up our hearts as well as our hands to God in heaven.”
James 4:7 reads, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Luke 10:17 reads, “The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!’”
Peter healed a lame beggar by the power of Jesus’ name. Acts 3:6 reads, “Peter said, ‘I have no silver or gold, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.’”
Paul drove a demon out of a woman in Jesus’ name. Acts 16:18 reads, “Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, ‘I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.’ And it came out that very hour.”
Acts 19:13, 15-16 reads, “Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.’ … But the evil spirit said to them in reply, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?’ Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded.”
2 Corinthians 6:18 reads, “I will be your father, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
Romans 8:15 reads, “…you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’”
Ephesians 1:13-14 reads, “In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.”
Colossians 1:11-12 reads, “May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, so that you may have all endurance and patience, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.”
1 Peter 1:3-4 reads, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…”
Psalm 7:17 reads, “I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness and sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.”
Psalm 9:1 reads, “I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.”
Psalm 18:46 reads, “The Lord lives! Blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation…”
Psalm 21:13 reads, “Be exalted, O Lord, in your strength! We will sing and praise your power.”
Psalm 30:1 reads, “I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up and did not let my foes rejoice over me.”
Psalm 34:3 reads, “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.”
Psalm 40:16 reads, “…may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation say continually, ‘Great is the Lord!’”
Psalm 63:3 reads, “Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.”
Psalm 69:30 reads, “I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.”
“…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” (Romans 3:23).
Psalm 51:1-4 reads, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment.”
Isaiah 30:15 reads, “For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
Jeremiah 15:19 reads, “Therefore thus says the Lord: If you turn back, I will take you back, and you shall stand before me.”
Ezekiel 18:32 reads, “I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. Turn, then, and live.”
Matthew 4:17 reads, “Jesus began to proclaim, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’”
Luke 5:32 reads, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”
Luke 15:7, 10 reads, “I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance… Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Romans 8:1 reads, “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 1:8 reads, “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world.”
1 Corinthians 1:4 reads, “I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus…”
2 Corinthians 4:15 reads, “Indeed, everything is for your sake, so that grace, when it has extended to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.”
Ephesians 1:15-16 reads, “I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers…”
Philippians 1:3 reads, “I thank my God for every remembrance of you…”
Colossians 1:3 reads, “In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…”
1 Thessalonians 1:2 reads, “We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly…”
1 Timothy 2:1 reads, “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone…”
1 Timothy 4:4 reads, “…everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving…”
Philemon 1:4 reads, “I thank my God always when I mention you in my prayers…”
Ephesians 5:20 reads, “…(give) thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…”
1 Corinthians 15:57 reads, “…thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Colossians 2:6-7 reads, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”
Ephesians 1:16-19 reads, “I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may perceive what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.”
Ephesians 3:16-19 reads, “I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Colossians 1:9-12 reads, “For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, so that you may have all endurance and patience, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.”
Matthew 7:7 reads, “Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.”
John 4:10 reads, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”
Romans 8:26 reads, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with groanings too deep for words.”
James 15:16 reads, “Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.”
Romans 12:4-5 reads, “For as in one body we have many members and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.”
Matthew 5:43-45 reads, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven…”
Read Psalms 1 & 2
Psalm 2:4 reads, “He who sits in the heavens laughs…”
Psalm 2:11 reads, “Serve the Lord with fear…”
2 Timothy 4:3 reads, “For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound teaching, but, having their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires.”
Psalm 3:1 reads, “O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me…”
Romans 8:26 reads, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with groanings too deep for words.”
Matthew 6:7 has Jesus saying, “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words.”
“Look up to the bare heights and see! Where have you not been lain with? By the waysides you sat waiting for lovers, like a nomad in the wilderness. You have polluted the land with your prostitutions and wickedness.Therefore the showers have been withheld, and the spring rain has not come, yet you have the forehead of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed. Have you not just now called to me, “My Father, you are the friend of my youth — will he be angry forever, will he be indignant to the end?” This is how you have spoken, but you have done all the evil that you could.”
Matthew 18:2-4 reads, “He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.’”
Matthew 19:13-15 reads, “Then children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them, but Jesus said, ‘Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.’ And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.”
Psalm 8:2 reads, “You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength” (NLT).
Psalm 103:13 reads, “As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.”
Psalm 3:1-2 reads, “O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying to me, ‘There is no help for you in God.” (here is that musical notation “Selah”)”
Psalm 3:3-4: “But you, O Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, and the one who lifts up my head. I cry aloud to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy hill.” (Selah)
Psalm 3:5-6 reads, “I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the Lord sustains me. I am not afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.”
Psalms 3:7 reads, “Rise up, O Lord! Deliver me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.”
Psalm 3:8 reads, “Deliverance belongs to the Lord; may your blessing be on your people! (Selah)” [Selah is an unknown musical annotation]
Mark 14:36 reads, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me, yet not what I want but what you want.”
Jeremiah 11:15-16 reads, “What right has my beloved in my house, when she has done vile deeds? Can vows and sacrificial flesh avert your doom? Can you then exult? The Lord once called you, ‘A green olive tree, fair with goodly fruit,’ but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed.”
Matthew 6:7-8 (The Message) reads, “The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need.”
Listen to some examples of psalms from specific (titles) incidents in King David’s life:
Psalm 3: When David fled from Absolon his son.
Psalm 7: King David sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.
Psalm 18: A song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered David from
the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
Psalm 34: When David feigned madness before Abimelech, so that he drove
him out, and he went away.
Psalm 51: when the prophet Nathan came to David, after he had gone in to
(have sex with) Bathsheba.
Psalm 52: when Doeg the Edomite came to Saul and said to him, “David has
come to the house of Ahimelech (hiding).”
Psalm 54: when the Ziphites went and told Saul, “David is in hiding among
us.”
Psalm 56: when the Philistines seized David in Gath.
Psalm 57: when he fled from Saul, in the cave.
Psalm 59: when Saul ordered David’s house to be watched in order to kill
him.
Psalm 60: when David struggled with Aram-naharaim and with Aram-zobah,
and when Joab on his return killed twelve thousand Edomites in
the Valley of Salt.
Psalm 63: when David was in the Wilderness of Judah.
Psalm 142: When David was in the cave. A Prayer.
At the end of Psalm 41:13 we read, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.”
Psalm 72:20 reads, “The prayers of David son of Jesse are ended.”
Psalm 89:52 reads, “Blessed be the Lord forever. Amen and Amen.”
Psalm 106:48 reads, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the Lord!”