Clarke’s commentary on Mt 6.7 “Do not heap up empty phrases”

Suidas explains this word well: “πολυλογια, much speaking, from one Battus, who made very prolix hymns, in which the same idea frequently recurred.” “A frequent repetition of awful and striking words may often be the result of earnestness and fervour. See Dan. 9:3–20; but great length of prayer, which will of course involve much sameness and idle repetition, naturally creates fatigue and carelessness in the worshipper, and seems to suppose ignorance or inattention in the Deity; a fault against which our Lord more particularly wishes to secure them.” See verse 8. This judicious note is from the late Mr. Gilbert Wakefield, who illustrates it with the following quotation from the Heautontimorumenos of Terence:—

    Ohe! jam decine Deos, uxor, gratulando OBTUNDERE,
    Tuam esse inventam gnatam: nisi illos ex TUO INGENIO judicas,
    Ut nil credas INTELLIGERE, nisi idem DICTUM SIT CENTIES.

“Pray thee, wife, cease from STUNNING the gods with thanksgivings, because thy child is in safety; unless thou judgest of them from thyself, that they cannot UNDERSTAND a thing, unless they are told of it a HUNDRED TIMES.” Heaut. ver. 880.

Prayer requires more of the heart than of the tongue. The eloquence of prayer consists in the fervency of desire, and the simplicity of faith. The abundance of fine thoughts, studied and vehement motions, and the order and politeness of the expressions, are things which compose a mere human harangue, not an humble and Christian prayer. Our trust and confidence ought to proceed from that which God is able to do in us, and not from that which we can say to him. It is abominable, says the HEDAYAH, that a person offering up prayers to God, should say, “I beseech thee, by the glory of thy heavens!” or, “by the splendour of thy throne!” for a style of this nature would lead to suspect that the Almighty derived glory from the heavens; whereas the heavens are created, but God with all his attributes is eternal and inimitable. HEDAYAH, vol. iv. p. 121.

This is the sentiment of a Mohammedan; and yet for this vain repetition the Mohammedans are peculiarly remarkable; they often use such words as the following:—

ىا الله يا الله يا الله يا الله يا رب يا رب يا رب يا رب يا حي وقيوم يا بدبع السموات ولارص يا ذا الجلال و الاكرام—وغيره

O God, O God, O God, O God!—O Lord, O Lord, O Lord, O Lord!—O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal!—O Creator of the heavens and the earth!—O thou who art endowed with majesty and authority! O wonderful, &c. I have extracted the above from a form of prayer used by Tippo Sahib, which I met with in a book of devotion in which there were several prayers written with his own hand, and signed with his own name.

Clarke, A. (2014). The Holy Bible with a Commentary and Critical Notes (New Edition, Vol. 5, pp. 84–85). Bellingham, WA: Faithlife Corporation.