The praise of man by his fellow-men is naturally of more doubtful value. On the one hand it is liable to be unreal, shallow, flattering, and to lead to a false self-satisfaction ; our Lord avoided the shallow praise of the crowds, and of individuals who did not weigh the meaning of their words (Lk 18'"); He warned His followers against the desire for such praise (Mt 6', Lk 6'-®) ; He traced the rejection of the truth by the Pharisees to the fact that they sought honour from each other, and did not seek the honour that comes from the only God (Jn S-"-", cf. 12") : St. Paul refused to seek glory from men (1 Tli 2"), and was ever on his guard against pleasing men (Gal 1"*).
On the other hand, St. Paul appeals to the con- sideration of any praise of men as a proper incentive to Christians (ei rts liraivos, Ph 4^*) : the proper func- tion of human government is the praise of well-doera (Ro 13", 1 P21-'): St. Paul praises whole Churches for their virtues (1 Co IV and passim) : he lavishes the highest praises on each of his fellow-workers (1 Co 4" and passim): their praise runs through all the Churches (2 Co 8"*) : his aim is, and that of all Christians should be, to provide things honest in the sight of men as well as of God (2 Co 8-', Ro 12"). Praise of men is treated as a danger when it stands in antithesis to the praise of God ; but when it re- flects the jiraise of God in the mirror of the Chris- tian's conscience, it is a welcome incentive to good,
W. Lock.
PRAYER. — An attempt will be made to treat the subject historically, keeping separate the evidence supplied by difl'erent portions of the Bible as to human practice and Divine teaching on the .subject of Prayer. With regard to the OT, it will be assumed, for the purjiose of the article, that the books which it contains, whatever their resjiective dates may be, are on the whole trust- worthy guides as to the religious beliefs and practices of the periods which they describe.*
* It can scarcely be denied, however, that a writer like tht Chronicler is apt to antedate the beliefs and practices of hit own ajje.
PRAYER
PRAYER
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I. In the Old Te.stamkxt.— i. Prc/n/un/.—lt will lirst be necessary to limit the sviliject of inquiry. Prayer (i^??) may he understood widely, PC as to inohule every form of address from man to (lod, whate\-er its character. Hannah's song (1 S 2) is a thanksp:iving, yet it is introduced by the words ' Hannah praj-ea and .said,' and the pra3'er of Hab 3 is a psalm. But address by way of petition must form tlie main subject of tliis article, though it is impossilile to isolate this division of jirayer, see, e.g.. Is 63'-64'-, where prai.se, thanks- giving, pleading, confession, and supplication are blended.
Certain axioms with regard to prayer are taken for granted, viz. (1) God hears prayer; (2) God is moved by prajer ; (.3) prayer may "be not merely a request, but a pleading, or even an expo.stulation. It may here be added that OT prayer is little occupied with what becomes the main subject of prayer in NT, viz. spiritual and moral needs. This remark, however, applies only partially to the Psalms.
The terms for ' prayer' must next be considered. The verbs are : 1. cz/^ (tlij (Gn 4-^, where see Dill- mann's note), or simply n"!;j ; this is the oldest and simplest phrase. It is perpetuated in NT (iiriKa- \u(j6ai rb dfo/jia, Ac 2-' 9'^ a/.). The correlative word is njy ' answer ' (sometimes wrongly, c.fj. Hos 2-'-^, tr. 'hear'), Gn 35' and Psalms, /)«.?«{»(. It signifies an answer either by external or spiritual helj>, or by inward assurance. 2. '?^?nn primarilj- of intercessory prayer, Gn 20', Job 42'°, but also of prayer generally, 1 S 1-'' and elsewhere. From this verb comes the common name for prayer in its widest sense, n^jB, noticeil above. 3. I'ij, lit. 'to fall upon,' so ' to approach' in order to sup- plicate. See Is 53'-, where the 'approaching' is on behalf of others, and cf. ivTvyxa.f^n' in NT. i. Sxy ' to ask ' (a) for some grace or deliverance, (/3) for information or guidance. The correlative is again n;;' 1 S 28". 5. "" 'is-nx n^ Ex 32", an anthro- pomorphic phrase ('make the face sweet or pleas- ant'), never literally tr. in AV, but rendered ' beseech,' etc. 6. pi'i ' cry,' used of those who pray for the redressing of a wrong.
Another detached point may be taken before entering on 'he historical treatment, viz. —
Postures in Prayer. — (1) Standing. This was the commonest attitude, e.g. Abraham, Gn 18-'- ; Hannali, 1 S 1™. It continues in NT times (but cf. below on Acts) ; and in Jewish usage the Shemoneh E.irch had the name of AmicUth (stand- ing), because the congregation stood during their recital.
(2) Kneeling, Ps 95» ; Solomon, 1 K 8" ; Daniel, Dn 6'° ; see, further, art. K\i;el. • (3) Prostriilion, i.e. kneeling with face bent to the ground in case of urgency, Nu 16'", 1 K 18''* (and in NT Mt 20'").
(4) Sitting, 2 S 7", a doubtful instance (but see H. P. Smith, ad loe.). In addilion to these postures of the body the attitude of the hands should be noticed. These were : (1) lifted, Ps 63^ (cf. I Ti 2"), and (2) sjiread out, i.e. with open up- turned palms symbolical of the act of receiving from God, Ex O-*, Is l'\