30 Best Jesus Prayers in the Bible

The Bible provides us with a glimpse into the prayer life of Jesus, offering powerful examples of how to communicate with God. Jesus’ prayers are not only an essential part of His ministry but also provide guidance and comfort to believers. Below is a collection of the 30 best Jesus prayers in the Bible, each revealing His relationship with the Father and the depth of His love for humanity.

1. The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 11:2-4)

• Scripture: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
• Significance: The Lord’s Prayer is perhaps the most well-known prayer of Jesus, offering a model for how to pray. It emphasizes worship, submission to God’s will, dependence on God for daily needs, forgiveness, and guidance.

2. Jesus Prays for His Disciples (John 17:6-19)

• Scripture: “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours…”
• Significance: In this prayer, Jesus intercedes specifically for His disciples, asking the Father to protect them, sanctify them, and keep them unified in the truth.

3. Jesus Prays for All Believers (John 17:20-26)

• Scripture: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message…”
• Significance: Jesus expands His prayer to include all future believers, asking for unity, love, and the experience of divine glory.

4. Jesus Prays in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46)

• Scripture: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
• Significance: This prayer reveals Jesus’ deep agony before His crucifixion, yet also His submission to the Father’s will, highlighting His humanity and obedience.

5. Jesus Prays for Peter’s Faith (Luke 22:31-32)

• Scripture: “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail…”
• Significance: Jesus intercedes specifically for Peter, knowing he would face a severe test, showing His concern for individual believers.

6. Jesus Gives Thanks for Food (John 6:11)

• Scripture: “Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted…”
• Significance: Before feeding the 5,000, Jesus gives thanks, modeling gratitude and reliance on God’s provision.

7. Jesus Prays Before Raising Lazarus (John 11:41-42)

• Scripture: “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here…”
• Significance: Jesus expresses confidence in His relationship with the Father, and this prayer serves as a public testimony to God’s power.

8. Jesus’ Prayer on the Cross: “Father, Forgive Them” (Luke 23:34)

• Scripture: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
• Significance: In the midst of His suffering, Jesus demonstrates ultimate forgiveness and compassion, praying for those who crucified Him.

9. Jesus’ Prayer on the Cross: “My God, My God” (Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34)

• Scripture: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
• Significance: This prayer reflects the weight of the world’s sin Jesus bore and His deep anguish in feeling separated from the Father.

10. Jesus’ Prayer on the Cross: “Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit” (Luke 23:46)

• Scripture: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
• Significance: Jesus’ final words before His death, a prayer of trust and surrender to the Father.

11. Jesus’ Prayer of Thanksgiving (Matthew 11:25-26, Luke 10:21)

• Scripture: “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children…”
• Significance: Jesus rejoices in the Father’s wisdom and the way He reveals truth to the humble.

12. Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer (John 17:1-26)

• Scripture: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you…”
• Significance: This entire chapter is a profound prayer where Jesus prays for Himself, His disciples, and all believers, highlighting the themes of glory, unity, and eternal life.

13. Jesus Prays for His Persecutors (Luke 23:34)

• Scripture: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
• Significance: This prayer, uttered during His crucifixion, reflects Jesus’ heart of forgiveness even towards those who were harming Him.

14. Jesus Prays for God’s Will (Matthew 26:39)

• Scripture: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
• Significance: In Gethsemane, Jesus prays with great honesty, expressing His desire but ultimately submitting to God’s will.

15. Jesus Prays Before Choosing His Disciples (Luke 6:12-13)

• Scripture: “One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.”
• Significance: Before selecting the twelve apostles, Jesus spends an entire night in prayer, emphasizing the importance of seeking God’s guidance in major decisions.

16. Jesus Blesses the Little Children (Matthew 19:13-15, Mark 10:13-16, Luke 18:15-17)

• Scripture: “Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them.”
• Significance: Jesus takes time to pray for the children, demonstrating His love and care for the innocent and humble.

17. Jesus Prays for His Mission (John 12:27-28)

• Scripture: “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”
• Significance: Jesus acknowledges the difficulty of His mission but remains committed, seeking the Father’s glory above all.

18. Jesus Prays for God’s Name to be Glorified (John 17:1)

• Scripture: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.”
• Significance: In this prayer, Jesus seeks the glorification of God through the fulfillment of His mission, demonstrating His obedience and dedication.

19. Jesus Prays in Solitude (Mark 1:35)

• Scripture: “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”
• Significance: Jesus often withdrew to solitary places to pray, showing the importance of personal time with God.

20. Jesus’ Prayer for God’s Will to Be Done (Matthew 26:42)

• Scripture: “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
• Significance: This prayer reflects Jesus’ resolve to do the Father’s will, even when it involved immense suffering.

21. Jesus Prays in the Garden (Matthew 26:44)

• Scripture: “So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.”
• Significance: Jesus’ persistence in prayer, even in moments of deep distress, serves as a model for perseverance in seeking God’s will.

22. Jesus Prays After Healing (Luke 5:15-16)

• Scripture: “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.”
• Significance: After performing miracles, Jesus would often retreat to pray, demonstrating His reliance on the Father’s strength and guidance.

23. Jesus Prays at His Baptism (Luke 3:21-22)

Significance: Jesus’ prayer at His baptism is marked by the affirmation of His identity as God’s Son and the beginning of His public ministry. It highlights the connection between prayer and God’s anointing.

• Scripture: “When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’”
• Significance: Jesus’ prayer at His baptism is marked by the affirmation of His identity as God’s Son and the beginning of His public ministry. It highlights the connection between prayer and God’s anointing.

24. Jesus Prays Before Feeding the 5,000 (Matthew 15:36)

• Scripture: “Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.”
• Significance: Before performing this miracle, Jesus prays, giving thanks to the Father, demonstrating His reliance on God’s provision and His gratitude.

25. Jesus Prays Before His Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-29)

• Scripture: “About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John, and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.”
• Significance: Jesus’ prayer here is transformative, not only in His appearance but in revealing His divine nature to His closest disciples. It underscores the power of prayer in connecting with God’s glory.

26. Jesus Blesses the Bread and Cup (Matthew 26:26-27)

• Scripture: “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you.’”
• Significance: During the Last Supper, Jesus prays over the bread and wine, instituting the practice of communion. His prayer signifies the deep meaning behind the symbols of His body and blood.

27. Jesus Prays for God’s Name to Be Glorified (John 17:1-5)

• Scripture: “After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.’”
• Significance: Jesus begins His high priestly prayer by asking for God’s glory to be revealed through His upcoming death and resurrection, emphasizing His mission to give eternal life to those who believe.

28. Jesus Prays for Strength (Luke 22:43)

• Scripture: “An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.”
• Significance: During His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, after praying earnestly, an angel appears to strengthen Jesus, showing that God provides the strength we need during our trials when we seek Him in prayer.

29. Jesus Prays for Healing (Mark 7:34-35)

• Scripture: “He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, ‘Ephphatha!’ (which means ‘Be opened!’). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak plainly.”
• Significance: Jesus prays for a man who was deaf and mute, showing that healing and restoration are part of God’s work, often carried out through prayer.

30. Jesus Prays for the Hour to Come (John 12:27-28)

• Scripture: “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”
• Significance: Jesus acknowledges the difficulty of what lies ahead but remains focused on the glorification of God’s name. This prayer reveals Jesus’ resolve and His willingness to face the cross for the sake of humanity’s salvation.

Conclusion

These 30 prayers of Jesus reflect the depth of His relationship with the Father and offer us a model for our own prayer lives. They show Jesus’ unwavering submission to God’s will, His compassion for others, and His desire for God’s name to be glorified. As we meditate on these prayers, we are reminded of the power of prayer to transform lives, bring healing, and deepen our connection with God.

Jesus’ prayer life teaches us that prayer is not just about asking for things but about aligning ourselves with God’s purposes, seeking His guidance, and glorifying His name in all circumstances. Whether in moments of joy or sorrow, Jesus prayed with an open heart, trusting that the Father’s plan was perfect. Let these prayers inspire us to approach God with the same faith and devotion, knowing that He hears and answers us.