What Is the Bible Verse 'Ask and You Shall Receive'?

TL;DR: The primary verse is Matthew 7:7, where Jesus says, 'Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.' Matthew 7:7 It's part of the Sermon on the Mount and is echoed in Luke 11:9 Luke 11:9 and Matthew 21:22. Matthew 21:22 The promise isn't unconditional — passages like 1 John 3:22 tie receiving to keeping God's commandments 1 John 3:22 and Mark 11:24 links it to believing faith. Mark 11:24

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." — Matthew 7:7

This verse sits at the heart of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, and it doesn't stand alone. The very next verse reinforces the promise: Matthew 7:8 'For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.' Together, Matthew 7:7–8 form one of the most direct assurances about prayer in all of Scripture. Matthew 7:7

Luke records a nearly identical statement in Luke 11:9, where Jesus repeats the same threefold pattern — ask, seek, knock — suggesting this was a teaching He returned to more than once. Luke 11:9 The consistency across the Gospels underscores how central this promise was to His ministry on prayer.

Protestant · Christianity

Protestant View of 'Ask and You Shall Receive'

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." — Matthew 7:7

Protestant theology generally reads Matthew 7:7 as a genuine, open invitation to bring every need before God in prayer. Matthew 7:7 It's not seen as a blank check, however — most Protestant interpreters pair it with Matthew 21:22, which conditions the promise on believing faith: 'And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.' Matthew 21:22

Mark 11:24 deepens that condition further, tying answered prayer to trusting that God has already granted the request: 'What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.' Mark 11:24 For Protestants, this means prayer isn't a formula — it's an act of relational trust in a God who's both willing and able to answer.

First John 3:22 adds a moral dimension that many Protestant traditions emphasize: 'And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.' 1 John 3:22 Obedience and relational alignment with God aren't earning mechanisms — they're the natural context in which confident, faith-filled prayer flourishes.

Key takeaways

The primary 'ask and you shall receive' verse is Matthew 7:7, part of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 7:7
Luke 11:9 records the same teaching in nearly identical words, showing Jesus returned to this promise repeatedly. Luke 11:9
Matthew 7:8 universalizes the promise — 'every one that asketh receiveth' — reinforcing that it's not exclusive. Matthew 7:8
Matthew 21:22 and Mark 11:24 both tie answered prayer to believing faith, not just the act of asking. Matthew 21:22 Mark 11:24
First John 3:22 links receiving from God to keeping His commandments and living to please Him. 1 John 3:22

FAQs

Where exactly is 'ask and you shall receive' in the Bible?

The primary reference is Matthew 7:7: 'Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.' Matthew 7:7 An almost identical statement appears in Luke 11:9. Luke 11:9 Both passages record Jesus teaching His disciples about the reliability of God's response to prayer.

Is the promise in Matthew 7:7 unconditional?

Not entirely. Matthew 21:22 conditions the promise on believing prayer: 'And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.' Matthew 21:22 Mark 11:24 similarly links answered prayer to faith. Mark 11:24 And 1 John 3:22 connects receiving from God to keeping His commandments and doing what pleases Him. 1 John 3:22 Faith and obedience frame the promise.

Does Luke record the same verse as Matthew 7:7?

Yes — Luke 11:9 records Jesus saying, 'Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you,' Luke 11:9 using virtually the same language as Matthew 7:7. Matthew 7:7 This parallel suggests Jesus taught this principle on multiple occasions to different audiences.

What does Matthew 7:8 add to the promise in Matthew 7:7?

Matthew 7:8 expands the promise universally: 'For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.' Matthew 7:8 Where verse 7 is a command to ask, verse 8 is a declaration of outcome — it broadens the assurance to 'every one,' emphasizing that the promise isn't limited to a select few. Matthew 7:7

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