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I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

When the apostle Paul urges Christians to pray for all people, it might be tempting to conclude that he only means those people who face trouble and challenges in this life. Certainly, he can’t mean that we should pray for those who live in royal palaces, people who seem to have everything in this world that their hearts desire. We should pray for those with wealth, power, and prestige? Why would they even need my prayers?

One could even argue that there are biblical reasons for drawing such a conclusion. After all, didn’t the psalmist pray for the downfall of mighty men who stood on top of the mountain and oppressed those under their feet? “Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out” (Psalm 10:15). Should we not instead be praying fervently for “the fatherless and the oppressed so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.” (Psalm 10:18)? Down with the powerful, right?

It should go without saying that Paul was not commanding Timothy or us to pray for the success of powerful people who are seeking to take advantage of others. That would run counter to God’s good and perfect will. But that does not mean we should exclude powerful people from our prayers altogether. Far from it! If anything, those who exercise power and authority in this world need our special prayers because their decisions often have a significant impact on the lives of others. God grant them hearts of wisdom, humility, justice, patience, and mercy.

To what end? Paul tells us: “that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” Please note Paul doesn’t suggest we pray for powerful people so that we can realize earthly success, power, and wealth ourselves. No, a Christian’s ultimate goal in this world is to live a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and holiness.

That’s a prayer worth praying!

Dear Jesus, help me to fix my heart on things above and to pray for those who exercise power in this world. Amen.

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.