Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking^(A)

^7 (B)“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

² You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and ^[a]war. ^[b]Yet you do not have because you do not ask. ^3 (A)You ask and do not receive, ^(B)because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.

Confidence and Compassion in Prayer

¹⁴ Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that ^(A)if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

^6 (A)Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with ^(B)thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

^18 (A)praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, ^(B)being watchful to this end with all perseverance and ^(C)supplication for all the saints—

²³ “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. ^(A)Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. ²⁴ Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, ^(B)that your joy may be ^(C)full.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men ^(A)always ought to pray and not lose heart, ² saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor ^[a]regard man. ³ Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ^[b]‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ ⁴ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, ^5 (B)yet because this widow troubles me I will ^[c]avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”

⁶ Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. ⁷ And ^(C)shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?