“And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.”
My Notes
What Does Matthew 21:22 Mean?
Jesus makes a sweeping promise about prayer during his final days in Jerusalem: all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. The scope is unlimited — all things. The condition is singular — believing.
This follows the cursing of the fig tree, which withered at Jesus' word. The disciples are astonished, and Jesus uses the moment to teach about the power of faith-filled prayer.
The word "believing" (pisteuontes) is a present participle — active, ongoing belief, not a one-time mental assent. This is the kind of faith that persists, that expects, that does not waver between asking and receiving.
As with all promises about prayer, this operates within the broader framework of God's will and character. Jesus himself prayed in Gethsemane and did not receive what he asked for. The promise is not a blank check but a description of what genuine, aligned, persistent faith can accomplish.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What would you pray for if you truly believed you would receive it?
- 2.How do you hold this promise alongside prayers that seem unanswered?
- 3.What is the difference between believing and wishing?
- 4.How does Jesus' own prayer in Gethsemane inform how you understand this promise?
Devotional
All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing. That is either the most exciting promise in the Bible or the most confusing, depending on your experience with unanswered prayer.
Jesus is not giving you a magic formula. He is describing the relationship between genuine faith and prayer. When you truly believe — not just hope, not just wish, but trust with the kind of confidence that expects God to act — prayer moves things.
The believing is the hard part. Not the asking. You can ask for anything. But to ask while genuinely believing you will receive it — that requires a faith most of us struggle to sustain.
The promise does not erase mystery. Jesus believed perfectly and still sweat blood in Gethsemane. But it does invite you into a kind of prayer that most people never experience — the kind that comes with expectation, with boldness, with the settled conviction that the God you are talking to actually responds.
What would you ask for if you really believed you would receive it?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And all things whatsoever,.... Not only miracles, but any other thing which may be for the honour of God, the interest…
This paragraph contains the account of the barren fig-tree, and of the cleansing of the temple. See also Mar 11:12-19;…
The Cursing of the Fig-Tree
Mar 11:12-14; Mar 11:20-24. St Mark places this incident before the "Cleansing of the…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture