“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
The full verse · Luke 11:13 · KJV
, , how to unto : how your the to them that ?
Asked by
Jesus: the Son of God and promised Messiah, teaching His disciples to pray (Luke 11:1-2)
Asked to
Disciples: "his disciples" (Luke 11:1), one of whom had asked, "Lord, teach us to pray"; Jesus closes His teaching on prayer with the Father who will "give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him" (Luke 11:13)
The Scene
Jesus closes His teaching on prayer, begun when a disciple asked, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1), after asking whether any father would give his son a stone, a serpent, or a scorpion (Luke 11:11-12).
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionThis is the conclusion Jesus has been building toward. He has asked about earthly fathers; now He reasons from them to God. If even sinful parents know how to give good things to their children, how much more will the perfect Father give? Barnes explains "being evil" on the parallel in Matthew 7:11: parents are "imperfect, often partial, and not unfrequently passionate; but God is free from all this." The question is meant to leave the disciples with confidence to ask.
The Response
What Scripture recordsThe answer is contained in the question: far more. Jesus does not wait for a reply. The promise stands as the end of His teaching on prayer, and Luke moves on to the next scene, where Jesus casts out a devil and the people wonder (Luke 11:14).
Historical Context
The world behind the wordsMatthew records nearly the same saying, but ends it "give good things to them that ask him" (Matthew 7:11). Luke names the gift specifically: "the Holy Spirit." Gill says Luke's wording intends "the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, in distinction from, and as preferable to the good things given by earthly parents, to their children."
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyThis question shows what kind of Father God is. Jesus taught His disciples to begin prayer with "Our Father" (Luke 11:2), and He ends the lesson by showing what that Father gives: not merely bread, but the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary explains why the Holy Spirit is named: we are to ask for Him "not only as necessary in order to our praying well, but as all spiritual blessings are included in that one." Henry adds that "our heavenly Father is more ready to bestow" these blessings "than an indulgent parent is to give food to a hungry child." The reluctant friend at midnight (Luke 11:7-8) is a contrast, not a portrait. God is more willing than any parent.
Look Closer
What does Jesus say the heavenly Father will give to those who ask?
Carry the question into prayer and conversation.
Father, You are more ready to give than I am to ask; what would change in my prayers if I truly asked You for Your Holy Spirit?
A prayer to carry into the day.
- Jesus says the Father is more generous than the best earthly parent. What makes that hard or easy for you to believe?
- When you pray, what do you usually ask for most? Share how this verse might reshape that list.
For you, a small group, a friend, or the dinner table.
You can ask God with confidence. If imperfect parents still know how to give good gifts, your heavenly Father is more willing still. That is the note Jesus ends on after teaching His disciples to pray.
Let this shape what you ask for. Jesus names the Holy Spirit as the Father's gift to those who ask. Ask for His help to know God, to pray, and to live what you hear, not only for the needs of the day.
This does not mean prayer is a way to get whatever you want. It means the Father's answer will always come from His goodness, and He offers the gift of the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.
Built from the biblical text and checked against trusted commentaries and lexicons. References & Sources
Keep questioning
“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?”
“If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?”
“For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?”
“Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?”