ESV Prayer Bible

by Crossway Bibles, Peter Voth (Illustrator)

Overview

The ESV Prayer Bible was created to help you reflect on God’s Word through prayer. With 400+ historical prayers linked to key passages throughout the biblical text, this volume demonstrates the connection between the words God has spoken to us in the Bible and the words we speak back to him in prayer. Featuring the prayers of the early church fathers, Puritans, Protestant Reformers, and more, along with an introductory essay by Donald Whitney and prayer-related book introductions, this edition helps readers pursue a deeper communion with God as they combine their personal Bible reading with prayer.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433568381
Publisher:	Crossway
Publication date:	04/17/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	1920
Sales rank:	267,041
File size:	8 MB

About the Author

Peter Voth is a freelance graphic designer and illustrator from Germany. He works primarily internationally for numerous clients in the Christian and secular field. His work and style is mainly inspired by historical art, the Victorian era and traditional illustration techniques such as line engraving. He lives near Aachen and is married to Lore.

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Genesis

(return to table of contents)

Introduction • Genesis 1 • Genesis 2 • Genesis 3 • Genesis 4 • Genesis 5 • Genesis 6 • Genesis 7 • Genesis 8 • Genesis 9 • Genesis 10 • Genesis 11 • Genesis 12 • Genesis 13 • Genesis 14 • Genesis 15 • Genesis 16 • Genesis 17 • Genesis 18 • Genesis 19 • Genesis 20 • Genesis 21 • Genesis 22 • Genesis 23 • Genesis 24 • Genesis 25 • Genesis 26 • Genesis 27 • Genesis 28 • Genesis 29 • Genesis 30 • Genesis 31 • Genesis 32 • Genesis 33 • Genesis 34 • Genesis 35 • Genesis 36 • Genesis 37 • Genesis 38 • Genesis 39 • Genesis 40 • Genesis 41 • Genesis 42 • Genesis 43 • Genesis 44 • Genesis 45 • Genesis 46 • Genesis 47 • Genesis 48 • Genesis 49 • Genesis 50

Genesis sets the stage for the entire Bible and for all of human history. As we read Genesis, we are brought to pray to the One who created and sustains all things, One endless in might and unrivaled in glory. We also pray knowing that we are those who, unlike any other creatures, are made in God's own image and thus are created for fellowship with him. Genesis also recounts the fall of mankind into sin and ruin, but as we consider the story told in Genesis, we are reassured that we are praying to one who has entered into covenant relationship with his people and will honor the promises made to them — not only to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also to believers today, who are the heirs of the promises to the patriarchs.

The Creation of the World

GENESIS 1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. 6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

9 And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights — the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night — and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

20 And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds — livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." 29 And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

1:28–31 — Seeing then that you alone are the creator and maker of all things, and have prepared herbs, seeds, fruits, fish, and flesh to be meat for man; seeing also that without your blessing all these your creatures prosper not, nor yet come unto a fortunate end, but grow out of kind, wither away, perish, die, and come to naught; we most humbly ask you to bless us and all the fruits of the earth, with all other your creatures which you have made for man's use and profit.

Thomas Becon

The Seventh Day, God Rests

GENESIS 2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

The Creation of Man and Woman

4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.

5 When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up — for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, 6 and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground — 7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 8 And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10 A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. 14 And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

18 Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." 19 Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said,

"This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

The Fall

GENESIS 3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" 2 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" 4 But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

3:1–7 — Alas, dear Christ, the Dragon is here again. Alas, he is here: terror has seized me, and fear. Alas that I ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Alas that his envy led me to envy too. I did not become like God; I was cast out of paradise. Temper, sword, awhile, the heat of your flames And let me go again about the garden, Entering with Christ, a thief from another tree.

Gregory of Nazianzus

8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?" 10 And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself." 11 He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" 12 The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

14 The Lord God said to the serpent,

"Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."

16 To the woman he said,

"I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you."

17 And to Adam he said,

"Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

20 The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21 And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

3:21 — Lord Jesus, who are the second and new Adam, clothe me with yourself; that I put away all evil desires and lusts, and crucify and slay in me the dominion of the flesh. Be unto me a strong garment against the icy coldness of this world; that I may be preserved and warmed by you. Without you, all things droop, decay, and die; but in you we live safe, strong, and mighty. As now I cover my body with these garments, so, O Lord, cover and clothe me with yourself, especially my soul; for you are the garment of my salvation and the cloak of my righteousness. And unto you be glory and honor and praise.

Wilhelm Loehe

22 Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever —" 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Cain and Abel

GENESIS 4 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, "I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord." 2 And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it."

8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" 10 And the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth." 13 Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me." 15 Then the Lord said to him, "Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold." And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. 16 Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

4:1–16 — Preserve us, O God of peace, from all strife, contention, from hastiness and from all jealousy, which Satan often endeavors to sow into the heart, to destroy the peace and happiness of families; enable us to bear with each other's faults, and like children, be ever ready to forgive and forget.

Johann Habermann

17 Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad fathered Mehujael, and Mehujael fathered Methushael, and Methushael fathered Lamech. 19 And Lamech took two wives. The name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. 20 Adah bore Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 His brother's name was Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe. 22 Zillah also bore Tubal-cain; he was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

23 Lamech said to his wives:

"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. 24 If Cain's revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech's is seventy-sevenfold."

25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, "God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him." 26 To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the Lord.

(Continues…)

---

Excerpted from "ESV Prayer Bible"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Crossway.
Excerpted by permission of Good News Publishers.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---

Table of Contents

Sign Up for Our Newsletter,
Title Page,
Copyright Information,
Introduction to the ESV Prayer Bible,
User's Guide,
Preface to the English Standard Version,
Explanation of ESV Features,
The Old Testament,
The New Testament,
The Old Testament,
Genesis,
Exodus,
Leviticus,
Numbers,
Deuteronomy,
Joshua,
Judges,
Ruth,
1 Samuel,
2 Samuel,
1 Kings,
2 Kings,
1 Chronicles,
2 Chronicles,
Ezra,
Nehemiah,
Esther,
Job,
Psalms,
Proverbs,
Ecclesiastes,
Song of Solomon,
Isaiah,
Jeremiah,
Lamentations,
Ezekiel,
Daniel,
Hosea,
Joel,
Amos,
Obadiah,
Jonah,
Micah,
Nahum,
Habakkuk,
Zephaniah,
Haggai,
Zechariah,
Malachi,
The New Testament,
Matthew,
Mark,
Luke,
John,
Acts,
Romans,
1 Corinthians,
2 Corinthians,
Galatians,
Ephesians,
Philippians,
Colossians,
1 Thessalonians,
2 Thessalonians,
1 Timothy,
2 Timothy,
Titus,
Philemon,
Hebrews,
James,
1 Peter,
2 Peter,
1 John,
2 John,
3 John,
Jude,
Revelation,
Table of Weights and Measures,
Author Index,
Prayer Index,
Comprehensive Index of Prayer in the Bible,
Concordance,
Reading Plan,

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Hearing God’s voice (in the Scriptures) and having his ear (in prayer) belong together. He is God; we are not. He takes the initiative and speaks first, revealing himself in his Word. But then, wonder upon wonder, he stops and stoops and wants to hear from us. We call it prayer. Our having God’s ear is as sure as our having his Son. And the heart of it is not getting things from God but getting God himself. How fitting to press God’s Word and our prayers together in this Bible. I will cherish this labor of love for years to come.”
—David Mathis, Senior Teacher and Executive Editor, desiringGod.org; Pastor, Cities Church, Saint Paul, Minnesota; author, Habits of Grace

“I was immediately thrilled when I saw the ESV Prayer Bible. At every turn, we are given tools and direction to inspire and encourage our prayer lives. Nothing is more important in prayer than learning to pray Scripture. It is the foundation of a praying life.”
—Paul E. Miller, author, A Praying Life and J-Curve: Dying and Rising with Jesus in Everyday Life

“Some of the best advice I received in my early Christian walk was to read the Bible prayerfully; that is, to stop and pray anytime a biblical text led me to praise and thank God, convicted me of the need to confess a sin, or encouraged me to offer a petition. Peppered with honest, personal, relevant, and Scripture-saturated prayers from Christians throughout the ages and from among the nations, the ESV Prayer Bible will help you cling to and cry out to the Lord who inspired his holy word.”
—Douglas Sean O'Donnell, Senior Vice President of Bible Publishing, Crossway; author, Matthew and The Song of Solomon (Preaching the Word)

“I will limit my commendation of the ESV Prayer Bible to an aspect that should not be allowed to go unnoticed, namely, that it is a triumph of scholarship. The excerpted prayers by famous Christians through the ages are the product of exemplary research. The items at the end of the book represent an ‘over and above’ effort: an author index consisting of brief biographies of the authors included and lists of Bible passages where their prayers appear; a unit of complete bibliographic information about the publications from which each excerpt was taken; a comprehensive index of all the prayers in the Bible; a brief Bible concordance; and a complete plan for reading through the Bible in a year. The edition merits the label ‘instant classic.’”
—Leland Ryken, Emeritus Professor of English, Wheaton College

“The two greatest influences on my prayer life have been the Holy Scriptures and the written prayers of God’s people who have gone before us. The ESV Prayer Bible has brought the two together in a way I believe will be a great help to Christians who want to grow in the discipline of prayer and see how prayer should be rooted in Scripture itself.”
—Joe Thorn, author, Experiencing the Trinity and The Heart of the Church; Lead Pastor, Redeemer Fellowship, St. Charles, Illinois