Can you explain the phrase “give us today our daily bread” in the Lord’s Prayer?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

In the Lord’s Prayer, the petition “Give us this day our daily bread” carries profound theological, ascetical, and sacramental depth. Rather than referring merely to physical food, Patristic tradition and theological reflection reveal three distinct yet unified levels of meaning in this supplication:

1. Bodily Nourishment and Total Dependence on God

At the fundamental literal level, "daily bread" refers to our basic physical necessities—food, drink, and the essential sustenance required to preserve bodily life.

• Humility and Simplicity: By asking only for bread rather than luxuries or delicacies, we are trained to seek contentment with what is necessary for our preservation, guarding the soul against greed, gluttony, and materialism.
• Daily Trust: By asking for it today (this day), Christ teaches us not to be overcome by anxiety for the distant future. As God provided manna to the Israelites in the wilderness day by day, we learn to cast all our anxieties upon the Father, living with faith in His constant, daily providence.

2. Spiritual Nourishment: The Word of God

Man is not merely a physical body; he is a living soul created in the image of God. Physical bread feeds only the corruptible body, but the soul requires divine nourishment.

As our Lord proclaimed in the wilderness:

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4).

Here, "daily bread" signifies the living Word of God, our spiritual sustenance through Holy Scripture, prayer, contemplation, and orthodox dogma. Without feasting daily on God’s truth, the spirit starves and becomes weak before demonic temptation.

3. Sacramental Fulfillment: The Holy Eucharist

The supreme fulfillment of this petition is sacramental and eschatological. The true, life-giving bread is the Incarnate Lord Himself, who declared:

"I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world" (John 6:51).

In the liturgical tradition, the Lord's Prayer is prayed immediately before Holy Communion (during the Fraction), pointing directly to the altar:

• The native Coptic word for bread is oik. In the liturgical text of the Lord's Prayer in the Bohairic dialect, we pray: Pen-oik eth-neyou meif nan emfo-ou, which translates to "Our bread that is coming, give it to us today."
• This reflects the ancient Alexandrian understanding of the Greek term epiousios (ἐπιούσιος)—the supersubstantial, heavenly bread of the coming Kingdom, which is made present to us now in the Holy Eucharist.

When we pray for our daily bread, we beseech the Father to make us worthy to partake of the true, undefiled, and life-giving Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which grants remission of sins and eternal life to those who receive Him.

Summary

When we pray this petition, we ask God for:

1. Our physical needs for each day, living without anxiety.
2. Spiritual nourishment through His holy and divine Word.
3. The Holy Mystery of the Eucharist, the Bread of Life that preserves our souls and bodies unto life everlasting.