(D) Thy Will Be Done, On Earth as it is in Heaven

[Thy Will Be Done] This is a parallel to the earlier verse, Thy Kingdom Come. Sometimes interpreters treat them interchangeably. This is correct. Both means the same thing. That God be glorified through his kingdom and the working out of his will. The coming of the kingdom is his will. In an amazing translation from the Aramaic, Saadi Neil Douglas-Klotz translates into English this verse as,

Create your reign of unity now
Your one desire then acts with ours,
As in all light,
So in all forms.

This prayer is a yearning of desiring to conform one's will with God. It spells willingness on the part of the person offering prayers. It pronounces a readiness of heart to accept whatever comes along the way. It speaks a language of openness the all things of God, forsaking everything else save for God alone. Like two hearts beating as one, two persons in a warm embrace, two hands in a firm hand grasp of unity all differences and all disputes are laid aside for the sake of that one will - God's will. When all the earth, and all the heavens and all the earth, kneel before the Lord in submission and obedience, there will be peace as the waters cover the sea. God's will be done, is an affirmation that whether past, present or future, the Lord's purposes will always prevail. Our delight is not in meeting our own needs but in gazing at the fulfilling of God's will both on earth as well as in heaven.

γενηθήτω τὸ θέλημά σου

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[On Earth as it is in Heaven] God's authority, domain, jurisdiction extends throughout the heavens and all the earth. This is a prayer that acknowledges God the Creator has sovereignty over all creation, over time and space. Some say that we must not become so heavenly-minded that we have no earthly good. Others say we should not be too earthly-focused that we have no heavenly use. This prayer brings both extremes together under the Lordship of Christ. Whether we are heavenly-minded or earthly-focused, all comes under the authority of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Too often, we humans have given one another the ultimatum in terms of Either this or that, choose either/or heaven or earth. Some early Christian pilgrims get so disillusioned with the world, that they constantly sing "This world is not my home, I'm just passing through". The existentialists will choose instead to focus on the present reality rather than an invisible future. This prayer brings all of these perspectives together and render them incomplete statements of faith. If our God is sovereign over all, it does not matter whether we are on earth or in heaven. We do not need to wait for the future in order to praise and worship God. We do not need to fret that this present world is so full of imperfections that we refuse to rally our symphony of praise. We can do it now. We will do it in future. For worship of God is not bound by time. In our prayer for God's will to be done, we have proclaimed, that now and forever, God's will is continuing and will be perfectly done both now and in the future.

ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς•