Discovery BoxMatthew 7:7-8
Context7:7 “Ask 1 and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door 2 will be opened for you. 7:8 For everyone who asks 3 receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Matthew 9:38
Context9:38 Therefore ask the Lord of the harvest 4 to send out 5 workers into his harvest.”
Matthew 21:22
Context21:22 And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe, 6 you will receive.”
Psalms 5:2
Context5:2 Pay attention to my cry for help,
my king and my God,
for I am praying to you!
Psalms 55:17
Context55:17 During the evening, morning, and noontime
I will lament and moan, 7
Proverbs 15:8
Context15:8 The Lord abhors 10 the sacrifices 11 of the wicked, 12
but the prayer 13 of the upright pleases him. 14
Isaiah 55:6-7
Context55:6 Seek the Lord while he makes himself available; 15
call to him while he is nearby!
55:7 The wicked need to abandon their lifestyle 16
and sinful people their plans. 17
They should return 18 to the Lord, and he will show mercy to them, 19
and to their God, for he will freely forgive them. 20
Jeremiah 29:12
Context29:12 When you call out to me and come to me in prayer, 21 I will hear your prayers. 22
Daniel 6:10
Context6:10 When Daniel realized 23 that a written decree had been issued, he entered his home, where the windows 24 in his upper room opened toward Jerusalem. 25 Three 26 times daily he was 27 kneeling 28 and offering prayers and thanks to his God just as he had been accustomed to do previously.
Daniel 9:4-19
Context9:4 I prayed to the LORD my God, confessing in this way:
“O Lord, 29 great and awesome God who is faithful to his covenant 30 with those who love him and keep his commandments, 9:5 we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards. 9:6 We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authority 31 to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors, 32 and to all the inhabitants 33 of the land as well.
9:7 “You are righteous, 34 O Lord, but we are humiliated this day 35 – the people 36 of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far away in all the countries in which you have scattered them, because they have behaved unfaithfully toward you. 9:8 O LORD, we have been humiliated 37 – our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors – because we have sinned against you. 9:9 Yet the Lord our God is compassionate and forgiving, 38 even though we have rebelled against him. 9:10 We have not obeyed 39 the LORD our God by living according to 40 his laws 41 that he set before us through his servants the prophets.
9:11 “All Israel has broken 42 your law and turned away by not obeying you. 43 Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened 44 in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you. 45 9:12 He has carried out his threats 46 against us and our rulers 47 who were over 48 us by bringing great calamity on us – what has happened to Jerusalem has never been equaled under all heaven! 9:13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacify 49 the LORD our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdom 50 from your reliable moral standards. 51 9:14 The LORD was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the LORD our God is just 52 in all he has done, 53 and we have not obeyed him. 54
9:15 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great power 55 and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day – we have sinned and behaved wickedly. 9:16 O Lord, according to all your justice, 56 please turn your raging anger 57 away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.
9:17 “So now, our God, accept 58 the prayer and requests of your servant, and show favor to 59 your devastated sanctuary for your own sake. 60 9:18 Listen attentively, 61 my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruins 62 and the city called by your name. 63 For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you, 64 but because your compassion is abundant. 9:19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, pay attention, and act! Don’t delay, for your own sake, O my God! For your city and your people are called by your name.” 65
Luke 18:1
Context18:1 Then 66 Jesus 67 told them a parable to show them they should always 68 pray and not lose heart. 69
John 16:24
Context16:24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive it, 70 so that your joy may be complete.
Ephesians 6:18
Context6:18 With every prayer and petition, pray 71 at all times in the Spirit, and to this end 72 be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the saints.
Colossians 4:2-3
Context4:2 Be devoted to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. 4:3 At the same time pray 73 for us too, that 74 God may open a door for the message 75 so that we may proclaim 76 the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 77
Colossians 4:1
Context4:1 Masters, treat your slaves with justice and fairness, because you know that you also have a master in heaven.
Colossians 1:17
Context1:17 He himself is before all things and all things are held together 78 in him.
James 5:15-16
Context5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick and the Lord will raise him up – and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 79 5:16 So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness. 80
[7:7] 1 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] 2 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.
[7:8] 3 sn The actions of asking, seeking, and knocking are repeated here from v. 7 with the encouragement that God does respond.
[9:38] 4 sn The phrase Lord of the harvest recognizes God’s sovereignty over the harvest process.
[9:38] 5 tn Grk “to thrust out.”
[21:22] 6 tn Grk “believing”; the participle here is conditional.
[55:17] 7 tn The first verb is clearly a cohortative form, expressing the psalmist’s resolve. The second verb, while formally ambiguous, should also be understood as cohortative here.
[55:17] 8 tn The prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive normally appears in narrational contexts to indicate past action, but here it continues the anticipatory (future) perspective of the preceding line. In Ps 77:6 one finds the same sequence of cohortative + prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive. In this case as well, both forms refer to future actions.
[15:8] 10 tn Heb “an abomination of the
[15:8] 11 tn Heb “sacrifice” (so many English versions).
[15:8] 12 sn The sacrifices of the wicked are hated by the
[15:8] 13 sn J. H. Greenstone notes that if God will accept the prayers of the upright, he will accept their sacrifices; for sacrifice is an outer ritual and easily performed even by the wicked, but prayer is a private and inward act and not usually fabricated by unbelievers (Proverbs, 162).
[15:8] 14 tn Heb “[is] his pleasure.” The 3rd person masculine singular suffix functions as a subjective genitive: “he is pleased.” God is pleased with the prayers of the upright.
[55:6] 15 tn Heb “while he allows himself to be found.” The Niphal form has a tolerative force here.
[55:7] 16 tn Heb “Let the wicked one abandon his way.” The singular is collective.
[55:7] 17 tn Heb “and the man of evil his thoughts.” The singular is collective.
[55:7] 18 tn Heb “let him return.” The singular is collective, meaning “let them.”
[55:7] 19 tn The imperfect with vav (ו) conjunctive after the jussive indicates purpose/result.
[55:7] 20 sn The appeal and promise of vv. 6-7 echoes the language of Deut 4:25-31; 30:1-10; and 1 Kgs 8:46-53, all of which anticipate the exile and speak of the prerequisites for restoration.
[29:12] 21 tn Heb “come and pray to me.” This is an example of verbal hendiadys where two verb formally joined by “and” convey a main concept with the second verb functioning as an adverbial qualifier.
[29:12] 22 tn Or “You will call out to me and come to me in prayer and I will hear your prayers.” The verbs are vav consecutive perfects and can be taken either as unconditional futures or as contingent futures. See GKC 337 §112.kk and 494 §159.g and compare the usage in Gen 44:22 for the use of the vav consecutive perfects in contingent futures. The conditional clause in the middle of 29:13 and the deuteronomic theology reflected in both Deut 30:1-5 and 1 Kgs 8:46-48 suggest that the verbs are continent futures here. For the same demand for wholehearted seeking in these contexts which presuppose exile see especially Deut 30:2, 1 Kgs 8:48.
[6:10] 24 sn In later rabbinic thought this verse was sometimes cited as a proof text for the notion that one should pray only in a house with windows. See b. Berakhot 34b.
[6:10] 25 map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[6:10] 26 sn This is apparently the only specific mention in the OT of prayer being regularly offered three times a day. The practice was probably not unique to Daniel, however.
[6:10] 27 tc Read with several medieval Hebrew
[6:10] 28 tn Aram “kneeling on his knees” (so NASB).
[9:4] 29 tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here and in vv. 7, 9, 15, 16, and 19 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[9:4] 30 tn Heb “who keeps the covenant and the loyal love.” The expression is a hendiadys.
[9:6] 31 tn Heb “in your name.” Another option is to translate, “as your representatives.”
[9:6] 32 tn Heb “our fathers” (also in vv. 8, 16). The Hebrew term translated “father” can refer to more distant relationships such as grandfathers or ancestors.
[9:7] 34 tn Heb “to you (belongs) righteousness.”
[9:7] 35 tn Heb “and to us (belongs) shame of face like this day.”
[9:8] 37 tn Heb “to us (belongs) shame of face.”
[9:9] 38 tn Heb “to the Lord our God (belong) compassion and forgiveness.”
[9:10] 39 tn Heb “paid attention to the voice of,” which is an idiomatic expression for obedience (cf. NASB “nor have we obeyed the voice of”).
[9:10] 40 tn Heb “to walk in.”
[9:10] 41 tc The LXX and Vulgate have the singular.
[9:11] 42 tn Or “transgressed.” The Hebrew verb has the primary sense of crossing a boundary, in this case, God’s law.
[9:11] 43 tn Heb “by not paying attention to your voice.”
[9:11] 44 tn Heb “the curse and the oath which is written.” The term “curse” refers here to the judgments threatened in the Mosaic law (see Deut 28) for rebellion. The expression “the curse and the oath” is probably a hendiadys (cf. Num 5:21; Neh 10:29) referring to the fact that the covenant with its threatened judgments was ratified by solemn oath and made legally binding upon the covenant community.
[9:12] 46 tn Heb “he has fulfilled his word(s) which he spoke.”
[9:12] 47 tn Heb “our judges.”
[9:12] 48 tn Heb “who judged.”
[9:13] 49 tn Heb “we have not pacified the face of.”
[9:13] 50 tn Or “by gaining insight.”
[9:13] 51 tn Heb “by your truth.” The Hebrew term does not refer here to abstract truth, however, but to the reliable moral guidance found in the covenant law. See vv 10-11.
[9:14] 53 tn Heb “in all his deeds which he has done.”
[9:14] 54 tn Heb “we have not listened to his voice.”
[9:15] 55 tn Heb “with a powerful hand.”
[9:16] 56 tn Or “righteousness.”
[9:16] 57 tn Heb “your anger and your rage.” The synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of God’s anger. This is best expressed in English by making one of the terms adjectival (cf. NLT “your furious anger”; CEV “terribly angry”).
[9:17] 58 tn Heb “hear.” Here the verb refers to hearing favorably, accepting the prayer and responding positively.
[9:17] 59 tn Heb “let your face shine.” This idiom pictures God smiling in favor. See Pss 31:16; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19.
[9:17] 60 tn Heb “for the sake of my Lord.” Theodotion has “for your sake.” Cf. v. 19.
[9:18] 61 tn Heb “turn your ear.”
[9:18] 62 tn Heb “desolations.” The term refers here to the ruined condition of Judah’s towns.
[9:18] 63 tn Heb “over which your name is called.” Cf. v. 19. This expression implies that God is the owner of his city, Jerusalem. Note the use of the idiom in 2 Sam 12:28; Isa 4:1; Amos 9:12.
[9:18] 64 tn Heb “praying our supplications before you.”
[9:19] 65 tn Heb “for your name is called over your city and your people.” See the note on this expression in v 18.
[18:1] 66 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
[18:1] 67 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[18:1] 68 tn Or “should pray at all times” (L&N 67.88).
[18:1] 69 sn This is one of the few parables that comes with an explanation at the start: …they should always pray and not lose heart. It is part of Luke’s goal in encouraging Theophilus (1:4).
[16:24] 70 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.
[6:18] 71 tn Both “pray” and “be alert” are participles in the Greek text (“praying…being alert”). Both are probably instrumental, loosely connected with all of the preceding instructions. As such, they are not additional commands to do but instead are the means through which the prior instructions are accomplished.
[6:18] 72 tn Grk “and toward it.”
[4:3] 73 tn Though προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi) is an adverbial participle related to the previous imperative, προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite), it is here translated as an independent clause due to requirements of contemporary English style.
[4:3] 74 tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been rendered as substantival here, indicating the content of the prayer rather than the purpose for it. These two ideas are very similar and difficult to differentiate in this passage, but the conjunction ἵνα following a verb of praying is generally regarded as giving the content of the prayer.
[4:3] 75 tn Grk “that God may open for us a door of the word to speak the mystery of Christ.” The construction in Greek is somewhat awkward in this clause. The translation attempts to simplify this structure somewhat and yet communicate exactly what Paul is asking for.
[4:3] 76 tn Or “so that we may speak.”
[1:17] 78 tn BDAG 973 s.v. συνίστημι B.3 suggests “continue, endure, exist, hold together” here.
[5:15] 79 tn Grk “it will be forgiven him.”
[5:16] 80 tn Or “the fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful”; Grk “is very powerful in its working.”
