Translation commentary on Matthew 6:8

Do not be like them is rendered “Do not imitate them” by a number of translations (New English Bible, New American Bible, Bible en français courant). The intent of this command is not to discourage prayer, but to remind the worshiper that God cannot be coerced into action merely because one piles up words with this purpose in mind.

Thus Do not be like them is more often translated “Don’t pray like they do,” “Don’t be like them when you pray,” “Don’t use the kinds of prayers they do,” or “Don’t talk to God in that way.”

The last half of this verse (for your Father knows what you need before you ask him) is rendered similarly in most all translations.

For comments on Father, see 5.16; “God your Father” is possible.

What you need may be “the things that it is necessary to have,” “the things you should have but don’t have them now,” or “the things you need him to give you.”

The first occurrence in this Gospel of the verb translated ask is 5.42; though the verb may be used of prayer, its use is not confined to prayer. Ask him is elliptical, that is, it is a shortened form of “ask him for it” or “ask him to give it to you.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Matthew 6:8

6:8a

In Greek, 6:8 begins with the conjunction that is often translated in English as “therefore/so.” For example:

So do not be like them (New American Standard Bible)

This conjunction indicates that 6:8 is the conclusion to something that came before it. The part that comes before the conclusion has some implied information.

Here is one way to show the conclusion and what is implied:

7bthey think they will be heard because of their many words, ⌊but they are wrong⌋. 8aTherefore/So, do not be like them.

The Berean Standard Bible and most English versions do not translate this conjunction.

Do not be like them: The clause Do not be like them means “Do not pray like they pray.” Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

Do not pray the way that they pray
-or-
Do not do what they do
-or-
Do not imitate them

them: The pronoun them refers to the “pagans” of 6:7a. You may need to repeat the expression you used for “pagans” instead of the pronoun them. For example:

Do not be like those pagans/Gentiles
-or-
Do not pray like those non-Jews

6:8b

for: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for introduces the basis for the command in 6:8a. In some languages, it is not necessary to have a conjunction here. For example:

Your Father knows what you need before you ask. (Contemporary English Version)

In other languages, it is more natural to put the basis of the command before the command. For example:

8bYour Father knows what you need before you ask him. 8aTherefore, do not be like the pagans ⌊who pray using many words⌋.

your Father: The phrase your Father refers to God. Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

your Father ⌊God⌋
-or-
your ⌊heavenly⌋ Father
-or-
our(incl.) Father ⌊God⌋

This phrase also occurs 6:1c and 6:4b. See how you translated it there.

knows what you need: Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

knows the things that are important to you
-or-
knows the things that are necessary for you

before you ask Him: Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

before you ask him ⌊for those things⌋

-or-

before you ask him ⌊to give you those things⌋

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