Matthew 7:7
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
Study Note
Study Note
The threefold command-promise — ask/receive, seek/find, knock/opened — frames persistent prayer as the proper mode of accessing divine provision. The verbs in the Greek are present imperatives, indicating ongoing, habitual action rather than a single request. The parallel structure emphasizes graduated intensity: asking is verbal, seeking is active, knocking implies standing at a specific door with an address. Within the Sermon on the Mount's context, the passage follows the Lord's Prayer (6:9-13) and is framed by the father-child analogy (verses 9-11), grounding bold prayer in confidence about God's parental character.
Other Translations
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
`Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you;
Make a request, and it will be answered; what you are searching for you will get; give the sign, and the door will be open to you:
Cross References
Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and …
Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing …
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, …
And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we …
For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:
Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou …