THE TRANSLATION ARTIFACT OF THE SIXTH PETITION: RE-EVALUATING MATTHEW 6:13 IN LIGHT OF THE KOINĒ PERMISSIVE IDIOM

Abstract

The traditional translation of the sixth petition of the Lord’s Prayer (μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν) as "lead us not into temptation" introduces an artificial theological contradiction with James 1:13. This paper argues that the traditional rendering is a diachronic translation artifact rooted in the rigid formal equivalence of the Latin Vulgate’s ne nos inducas. By analyzing the underlying Semitic substrate and the Koinē Greek permissive causative idiom, this study demonstrates that eisenenkēs denotes permission rather than active divine agency. Drawing on recent French and Italian liturgical revisions, the paper proposes alternative English models that restore the petition's original protective and eschatological intent.