Praying the Bible

by Donald S Whitney

  Mueller’s Example

  How did George Mueller pray? He said that for the first ten years of what he called his “life of faith”—referring not to when he was unknown but to ten years of trust in God and remarkable answers to prayer—he often struggled to get into the spirit of prayer, in other words, to really feel like praying. Until, that is, he made one slight alteration in his method. Here’s how he described the change:

  The difference, then, between my former practice and my present one is this: formerly, when I rose, I began to pray as soon as possible, and generally spent all my time till breakfast in prayer, or almost all the time. At all events I almost invariably began with prayer. . . . But what was the result? I often spent a quarter of an hour, or half an hour, or even an hour on my knees before being conscious to myself of having derived comfort, encouragement, humbling of soul, etc.; and often, after having suffered much from wandering of mind for the first ten minutes, or quarter of an hour, or even half an hour, I only then really began to pray.

  I scarcely ever suffer now in this way. For my heart being nourished by the truth, being brought into experimental [today we would say “experiential”] fellowship with God, I speak to my Father and to my Friend (vile though I am, and unworthy of it) about the things that He has brought before me in His precious Word. It often now astonishes me that I did not sooner see this point.16

  So Mueller would sometimes flounder for half an hour to an hour trying to pray, fighting to focus his thoughts and to kindle feelings for prayer in his heart. Only after that long, determined struggle would he finally enter into a sense of communion with God. But once he began the practice of conversing with God about what he found in the Word of God, he “scarcely ever” suffered with those problems in prayer again.

  Praying through a passage of Scripture as he went “walking about in the fields”17 was the uncomplicated method that transformed the daily experience of one of the most famous men of prayer in history. And it can transform your prayer life just as easily.

  Charles Spurgeon (1834–1892), the British Baptist often called “the prince of preachers,” said in regard to feelings in prayer: “We should pray when we are in a praying mood, for it would be sinful to neglect so fair an opportunity. We should pray when we are not in a proper mood, for it would be dangerous to remain in so unhealthy a condition.”18 And he’s right. We should pray when we feel like praying and pray when we don’t feel like praying. But the reality, as I’ve argued throughout this book, is that most of the time when we go to prayer, we don’t feel like praying.

  If, say, you get up at 7:00 a.m. and go to pray, most days you probably don’t feel like praying. Why? Because you’re sleepy! You haven’t been thinking about God and the things of God for the last several hours; you’ve been dead to the world. If you’re at all the way I am in the morning, you don’t wake up with your heart instantly on fire for God and the things of God. Personally, I tend to run into door frames when I get up. If even George Mueller didn’t feel like praying when he got out of bed, don’t be surprised if you don’t.

  The good news is that we are not subject to those feelings. God said to Jeremiah, “Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord?” (Jer. 23:29). If you go to pray and your heart is cold as ice spiritually, you can take the fire of God’s Word and plunge it into your frosty heart by praying through a passage of Scripture. Then very soon, just as during that prayer exercise a short while ago, the Word of God warms your heart to the things of God, and you begin to feel like praying.

  And I can testify to the fact that having prayed this way almost every day for more than thirty years,19 there is nothing in my devotional life that more quickly and consistently kindles my consistently cold heart like praying the Bible.

  Jesus on the Cross

  But far more important than the testimony of George Mueller or anyone else is the example of Jesus himself praying the Psalms. On the cross Jesus said only seven brief things. The Roman soldiers had beaten him until ribbons of skin were flayed from his bloody back. He had barely been able to stagger to the place of crucifixion. He hung from the cross severely dehydrated. And with his entire body weight sagging on the three spikes that held him to the wood, he had to push up on the spike in his feet in order to get enough breath into his diaphragm so he could speak. But to do so was so agonizing that he could speak only briefly before sinking back down. If the Romans wanted to hasten the death of those they crucified, they would break the prisoners’ legs so they couldn’t push up and would die of asphyxiation. In fact, this is what they did to the two thieves at Jesus’s side (see John 19:31–33).

  Understandably, then, everything Jesus spoke from the cross was very brief. But the longest thing he said was, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46), which is the first verse of Psalm 22, the longest and most explicit prophecy in the Old Testament about the crucifixion. Psalm 22 contains more details about the physical aspects of crucifixion than all four Gospels combined.20

  For example, in Psalm 22:14a the psalmist says, “I am poured out like water,” just as the apostle John reported of Jesus in John 19:34–35. In 14b we read, “all my bones are out of joint,” describing how the victims, after their limbs were twisted somewhat in order to nail them to the beams, often had their bones jarred out of joint as their heavy cross was dropped into the ground. And the words of verse 15b, “my tongue sticks to my jaws,” were fulfilled in the cry of Jesus, “I thirst” (John 19:28).

  In addition, what we read in Psalm 22:7—“All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads”—is fulfilled in Matthew 27:39 when “those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads.” Verse 8 introduces the voice of scoffers who say, “He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him,” which is the same scorn Jesus received in Matthew 27:43 from those who said, “He trusts in God; let God deliver him now.” In Psalm 22:16 David describes the opposition of his enemies by saying, “For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me,” which accurately portrays those who were snipping and sniping at the Son of David around the foot of his cross.

  Further, Psalm 22:17 quotes the psalmist as saying, “I can count all my bones,” which would have been true of Jesus, since the Romans crucified people unclothed. The next verse says, “They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots,” which is exactly what the Roman soldiers did with the clothes of Jesus in Matthew 27:35.

  So after Jesus heaves himself upward on the spike in his feet and cries out Godward with the first verse of Psalm 22, I am convinced that as he sank back down, he continued to pray through Psalm 22.21 To some degree that is speculation, but we know that he prayed the first verse. We also know why he vocalized so little as he hung there. And since he was literally fulfilling Psalm 22 at that very moment, I believe it’s more than reasonable to assume that after he prayed verse 1 aloud, Jesus sagged on the cross and silently continued to pray the rest of Psalm 22.

  Then at the end, Jesus gathered the last ounce of his strength, strained upward a final time, and cried, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46), praying the words of Psalm 31:5.

  Jesus prayed the Psalms. The final act of his earthly life was to pray the words of a psalm.

  Christians in the Book of Acts

  Then, in Acts 4, after Peter and John have been arrested and threatened by the Jewish authorities for preaching Christ, verse 23 says:

  When they were released, they went to their friends [that is, the church] and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them . . .”

  In some translations the last half of verse 24 is punctuated to indicate that it is a quotation, for many scholars believe that these words were taken from Psalm 146:6.

  In any case, notice how verse 25 continues: “. . . who through the mouth of our father David, your
servant, said by the Holy Spirit, ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?’” The second half of that verse and all of the next are from Psalm 2 (vv. 1–2). In other words, the early church prayed the Psalms. And this is the place where we are told, “When they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness” (v. 31).

  These new Christians in Jerusalem, who had become believers on or soon after the day of Pentecost, prayed the Psalms. George Mueller, one of the most prayerful and faith-filled men in Christian history, prayed the Psalms. The Lord Jesus Christ himself prayed the Psalms. Why not you?

  Appendix 1

  “Psalms of the Day” Chart

  When the day of the month is . . . The Psalms of the Day are . . .

  1

  1; 31; 61; 91; 121

  2

  2; 32; 62; 92; 122

  3

  3; 33; 63; 93; 123

  4

  4; 34; 64; 94; 124

  5

  5; 35; 65; 95; 125

  6

  6; 36; 66; 96; 126

  7

  7; 37; 67; 97; 127

  8

  8; 38; 68; 98; 128

  9

  9; 39; 69; 99; 129

  10

  10; 40; 70; 100; 130

  11

  11; 41; 71; 101; 131

  12

  12; 42; 72; 102; 132

  13

  13; 43; 73; 103; 133

  14

  14; 44; 74; 104; 134

  15

  15; 45; 75; 105; 135

  16

  16; 46; 76; 106; 136

  17

  17; 47; 77; 107; 137

  18

  18; 48; 78; 108; 138

  19

  19; 49; 79; 109; 139

  20

  20; 50; 80; 110; 140

  21

  21; 51; 81; 111; 141

  22

  22; 52; 82; 112; 142

  23

  23; 53; 83; 113; 143

  24

  24; 54; 84; 114; 144

  25

  25; 55; 85; 115; 145

  26

  26; 56; 86; 116; 146

  27

  27; 57; 87; 117; 147

  28

  28; 58; 88; 118; 148

  29

  29; 59; 89; 119; 149

  30

  30; 60; 90; 120; 150

  31

  119

  Appendix 2

  Praying the Bible with a Group

  Let the words and agenda of the Bible reverberate into your individual and corporate prayer life.

  Jonathan Leeman

  A group of Christians as well as individual believers can pray the Bible. The group can consist of a family, a class or Bible study, or even those at a church-wide prayer meeting. But whatever the purpose of the group or its size, don’t try to lead a group to pray through a passage of Scripture until after the members have at least one experience in praying the Bible individually. Once they have an idea of what it’s like to pray through a section of Scripture on their own, it’s a lot easier for them to do so with others.

  A Good Way

  One good way to pray through a portion of the Bible with others is simply to assign a verse to every member of your group. The first person prays through the first verse, the second person prays as prompted by the second verse, the third person prays from the third verse, and so on. This works well until the verse that falls to someone in the group is one like, “Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!” (Ps. 137:9) or some other text that they do not understand or about which they can think of nothing to say. So this method can succeed, or it can backfire and embarrass people.

  A Better Way

  A better way is this: choose a psalm and read it aloud to your group or have everyone in your group read it silently. Ask each person to listen or look for one sentence or verse in particular that catches their attention. After the reading, ask all who will do so to pray audibly when they are ready and to begin their prayer by reading the line that attracted their attention. So every person starts by reading aloud the verse they have chosen; then they pray. That verse becomes the diving board into their prayer. This method works well as long as people pray close to their verse. If they began to drift from the verse, it often begins to sound like the same old things about the same old things.

  The Best Way

  Here’s what I’ve found to be the best way: read the psalm and then call out, one at a time as needed, the verses or phrases from the psalm that you find most conducive to prayer. You simply pick verses easy to understand and which most anyone could pray from and pass over those verses that might be too difficult for some in your group.

  So, for example, if you choose Psalm 37, you call out verses such as, “Trust in the LORD, and do good” (v. 3), and allow time for people to pick up on that and pray. When the group grows quiet, and it appears that no one else will pray, you read another verse aloud, perhaps skipping to one far down the page or in this case reading the next verse: “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (v. 4). Then, when it’s needed, you introduce another verse or phrase from which almost anyone could pray, skipping over lines such as, “I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree” (v. 35), because many would struggle with how to pray in response to those words.

  Benefits

  The primary benefit of praying this way with a group, just as with an individual, is that the prayers are fresh and more biblical. Apart from this method, if prayer requests are taken, and, say, prayer is asked for Josh, who lost his job, and for Jessica, who is scheduled for surgery, then the prayer for Josh is often routine, and the prayer for Jessica is basically the same one prayed last week for the person who was having surgery then. Moreover, regardless of the size of the group, only two people might pray, one for Josh and one for Jessica. This time, however, because you are praying through Psalm 37, someone prays that Josh would “trust in the Lord” as he looks for a job. Another prays that Josh would “do good” for the sake of the kingdom as he is waiting. Someone else prays that Jessica would “trust in the Lord” in the face of an uncertain outcome from the surgery. A fourth person prays that the church would “do good” in terms of ministering to both Josh and Jessica during this difficult time. When the next verse is given, people pray in various ways for both Josh and Jessica to receive the grace to delight themselves in the Lord in the midst of these challenging circumstances.

  Not only do the prayers tend to be more scripturally sound, but also it seems that more people participate when a group prays through a passage of Scripture, as each successive verse sparks new things for people to pray. In addition, those who pray tend to use fewer filler words and also to pray more specifically for the request. Instead of the generic “Please bless this” and “Be with them” prayers, people pray things the Bible commands about particular people and situations.

  Notes

  1. Rom. 8:15, “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’”; Gal. 4:6, “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” And note that this heart cry is not merely something the Christian chooses to do but a new Godward look and longing caused by the Holy Spirit.

  2. Although this verse has absolutely nothing to do with taking naps, shortly I will defend from Scripture the validity of praying virtually anything that comes to mind while reading the Scripture and distinguish this from interpreting Scripture, which must always be done rightly.

  3. Andrew A. Bonar, Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M’Cheyne (1844; repr. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1978), 50, emphasis original.

  4. Joni Eareckson Tada, Speaking God’s Language: Using the Word of God in Y
our Prayers (Torrance, CA: Rose, 2012).

  5. Although there is a wide variety of opinion on the correct interpretation of this triad (e.g., what, exactly, is a “spiritual song”), there is little disagreement that the phrase includes the inspired songs in Scripture, such as the book of Psalms.

  6. Graeme Goldsworthy, Prayer and the Knowledge of God: What the Whole Bible Teaches (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2004), 143.

  7. Athanasius, St. Athanasius on the Psalms: A Letter to a Friend, (London: Mowbray, 1949), http://cs-people.bu.edu/butta1/personal/marcelli.htm (accessed November 2, 2014).

  8. If we were to use Romans 8 or 1 Corinthians 13 or a similarly well-known chapter of the New Testament as our example, it might not be as instructive as looking at 1 Thessalonians 2 or another less familiar chapter. Most of the chapters in the New Testament letters are probably not as well known to us as famous ones such as Romans 8 and 1 Corinthians 13. So to use an example such as 1 Thessalonians 2 is more like the kind of chapter you would ordinarily encounter if you wanted to pray through one of the letters you were reading in the New Testament.

  9. D. A. Carson, Praying with Paul: A Call to Spiritual Reformation, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2014), 3.

  10. Although you are likely engaging in this exercise in private, I’ve led groups as large as a thousand through it collectively. If you enjoy the opportunity to teach this material to others, it is possible for each individual to pray through a psalm even though surrounded by many others. Simply request that there be no whispering or any other unnecessary distractions. In some situations it may be possible for those who prefer to do so to move to another part of the room or to relocate to a vacant room or a place immediately outside the building. If you have the opportunity for a more extended time for the exercise, you might actually encourage people to go outside, weather permitting. When I teach this material in my seminary classes, I provide twenty to twenty-five minutes for this exercise, suggesting that all who want to may find a place to sit outdoors or walk slowly across campus as they pray.