And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.
Parallel translations
- WEB And if we know that he listens to us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him.
- KJV And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
- BSB And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.
- NKJV And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
- NASB And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Since we know God hears such prayers, we know we already have what we have asked of him. Confident prayer rests on God's certain attentiveness.
Overview
John assures believers that God's hearing guarantees his answering of prayers offered according to his will. The certainty moves from God listening to the believer possessing the granted request, even before it is visibly received. This builds trust that prayer is never futile when it seeks what God wills.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Luke 11:9–10“I tell you, keep asking, and it will be given you. Keep seeking, and you will find. Keep knocking, and it will be opened to you.
- Mark 11:24Therefore I tell you, all things whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received them, and you shall have them.
- Prov 15:29Yahweh is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.
- 1 Jn 5:18–20We know that whoever is born of God doesn’t sin, but he who was born of God keeps himself, and the evil one doesn’t touch him.
- Jer 15:12–13Can one break iron, even iron from the north, and brass?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Jesus is the Word of life made manifest, the propitiation for our sins, the Son in whom is eternal life — 'that you may know that you have eternal life.'
How 1 John 5:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.