Matthew 7:7 Meaning of Ask and It Will Be given to You

Matthew 7:7
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

Explanation and Commentary of Matthew 7:7

Jesus explains that our Father in heaven loves to answer our prayers and give us that which we seek. He tells his disciples that just like a good father gives good things to his children, so will your Father when we sincerely ask, seek, and knock.

James 4:2-3 says that we don’t have because we do not ask, or if we do ask, it is with wrong motives. It can be tricky to understand. Jesus seems to put no qualifiers on this verse. Taken alone, it seems to say you only have to want something, and then ask your Father in heaven, and it will be done. There are times where that is true, but Jesus also teaches about motives, about faith, about the will of God, and about praying in Jesus’ name.

In this passage, his goal seems to be to build their faith, one of the key ingredients to answered prayer, and he bases it off of the character and nature of his Father in heaven. Jesus himself could not pray a prayer that God would answer against his own will (Mk 14:32-50). But the application is clear, we will experience more of God’s blessings if we trust him more and ask him more. He is a good Father who loves to give gifts to his children.

Breaking Down the Key Parts of Matthew 7:7

#1 “Ask and it will be given to you;”
You do have because you do not ask (Ja 4:2). We are not to be afraid to approach God. He is our Father. He loves us. If he can possibly give us the thing for which we ask, he will.

#2 “seek and you will find;”
Perhaps instead of seeing seeking as synonymous with asking, consider that to seek him is to desire to know his will. Seeking answers to the questions of our hearts about who God is, and who we are in light of that. Jesus has said to seek the Kingdom of God and to seek his righteousness. These will lead to more effective prayer as the relationship with the Father becomes more intimate.

#3 “knock and the door will be opened to you.”
Christ calls us to knock on the door. Perhaps the lesson is persistence. Knock and keep knocking until the one inside is roused. Then he will open to you and invite you in. Inside with God is the most precious place to be. The invitation is to enter into the Kingdom of heaven where you can ask God for anything and he will provide it.

Expert Overview of Matthew Ch. 1-13

Biblical Translations of Matthew 7:7

NIV
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

NLT
“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”

ESV
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

KJV
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”

NKJV
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”