Isaiah 45:19

45:19 I have not spoken in secret,

in some hidden place. ¹ 

I did not tell Jacob’s descendants,

‘Seek me in vain!’ ² 

I am the Lord,

the one who speaks honestly,

who makes reliable announcements. ³ 

Matthew 7:7

Ask, Seek, Knock

7:7 “Ask ⁴  and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door ⁵  will be opened for you.

John 16:24

16:24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive it, ⁶  so that your joy may be complete.

[45:19]  ¹ tn Heb “in a place of a land of darkness” (ASV similar); NASB “in some dark land.”

[45:19]  ² tn “In vain” translates תֹהוּ (tohu), used here as an adverbial accusative: “for nothing.”

[45:19]  ³ tn The translation above assumes that צֶדֶק (tsedeq) and מֵישָׁרִים (mesharim) are adverbial accusatives (see 33:15). If they are taken as direct objects, indicating the content of what is spoken, one might translate, “who proclaims deliverance, who announces justice.”

[7:7]  ⁴ sn The three present imperatives in this verse (Ask…seek…knock) are probably intended to call for a repeated or continual approach before God.

[7:7]  ⁵ tn Grk “it”; the referent (a door) is implied by the context and has been specified in the translation here and in v. 8 for clarity.

[16:24]  ⁶ tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.