The Literal Version of the Bible
“through all prayer and petition, praying at all times in the Spirit, and watching to this same thing with all perseverance and petition concerning all the saints.” [LITV]Ephesians 6:18
Other words to pay particular attention to are:
Be alert / watching
Remember we are looking at prayer in the context of spiritual warfare. In war we have to be alert and watching. We must always be aware of the circumstances we find ourselves in and we need to pray for wisdom to discern the spiritual significance of what is going on behind the scenes of what we see. We do indeed need to watchful and discerning. In times on the front lines it is essential that we keep in touch with the commander and receive our orders from Him. We need also to be aware of all of Satan’s temptations which are tailor-made to our weaknesses and corruptions. The more we understand the enemy’s ways and tactics the more likely we are to recognize our patterns of behaviour as well.
With all perseverance and petition
Following on from my comment above, Paul makes us aware that due to our human weaknesses we must persevere on matters of spiritual warfare. In order to defeat certain types of attack we must be dligent in our willingness to do what it takes to win the battle. Jesus told the disciples when they were faced with the boy tormented by demons after coming down from the Mount of Transfiguration that they had to pray and fast to get victory over that kind of demon spirit. We have certainly experienced that kind of need for perseverance before. There are times that in order to win over a certain situation we must be prepared to persevere and petition God, fast and pray. How serious are you about winning this spiritual battle over your life? There are no quick fixes when it comes to spiritual warfare. It is going to take some time to dismantle a stronghold that has been built up over years of habit. So be prepared for a fight, a battle.
Concerning all the saints / for all saints
This concerns all the “Saints”. There are none so perfect as not to need the intercession of our fellow Christians. Pray for one another in this battle. Don’t condemn people but draw alongside them and hold up their hands in the battle. We are all in this together. Our protection depends on one another. Remember the discussion on the armour for the back. There were times when the Roman soldier wore no armour for the back in order to achieve maximum mobility. Instead in order to do they relied on the fact that their mate had their back. Do you have someone else’s back? Are you concerned enough to cover the back of a fellow believer?
There is one very interesting element which is hard to work out how it fits the whole sense of the passage. “To that end”.
- In the various versions it is translated as follows:
- to that end
- to this same thing
- for this reason
- for the same reason
- and watching to this same thing
- watching to this very thing
- in the same way
- and with this in view,
- watching for this purpose
- and in regard to this same,
You spend some time working out how it all fits. What does this element relate to and how does it fit the whole sense? We will close this section by looking at how it all fits tomorrow. So often we ignore the hard bits and don’t take the time to work out how it all makes sense, nor do we ask Him who inspired it all.
Be alert; your church needs more lerts.
Ian Vail
Prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity.
J. Hudson Taylor
All I know is that when I pray, coincidences happen; and when I don’t pray, they don’t happen.
Dan Hayes
Your strength is only as powerful as your commitment to others. Together we are strong!
Ian Vail