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Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Luke 11:1-13

Prayer is one of the great laws of natural religion. That man is a brute, is a monster, that never prays, that never gives glory to his Maker, nor feels his favour, nor owns his dependence upon him. One great design therefore of Christianity is to assist us in prayer, to enforce the duty upon us, to instruct us in it, and encourage us to expect advantage by it. Now here, I. We find Christ himself praying in a certain place, probably where he used to pray, Luke 11:1. As God, he was prayed to;... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Luke 11:5-13

11:5-13 Jesus said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him towards midnight and says to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves because a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey and I have nothing to set before him'; and suppose his friend answers from within, 'Don't bother me; the door has already been shut and my children are in bed with me; I can't get up and supply you'--I tell you, if he will not rise and supply him because he is his friend, he will rise and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Luke 11:5

And he said unto them, which of you shall have a friend ,.... A neighbour, or acquaintance: and shall go unto him at midnight ; which may seem a very unseasonable time, and which nothing but real distress, not knowing what otherwise to do, would put a man upon: and say unto him, friend, lend me three loaves : it was usual of the Jews to borrow bread of one another, and certain rules are laid down, when, and on what condition, this is to be done; as for instance, on a sabbath day ... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 11:1-5

Teach us to pray - See the nature of prayer, with an ample explanation of the different parts of the Lord's Prayer, treated of in Matthew 6:5-16 ; (note). The prayer related here by Luke is not precisely the same as that mentioned by Matthew; and indeed it is not likely that it was given at the same time. That in Matthew seems to have been given after the second passover; and this in Luke was given probably after the third passover, between the feasts of tabernacles, and the dedication. It... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 11:5

Verse 5 Luke 11:5.Which of you shall have a friend, Luke adds this comparison, which is not mentioned by Matthew. The general instruction conveyed by it is this: Believers ought not to be discouraged, if they do not immediately obtain their desires, or if they find them difficult to be obtained: for if, among men, importunity of asking extorts what a person would not willingly do, we have no reason to doubt that God will listen to us, if we persevere constantly in prayer, and if our minds do... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 11:1-13

The Lord ' s teaching on the subject of prayer. Again the scene is far away from Jerusalem; no special note of time or place enables us to fix the scene or date with any exactness. Somewhere in the course of the last journeyings towards Jerusalem, related especially in this Gospel, did this scene and its teaching take place. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 11:1-13

Christ teaching his disciples to pray. "He was praying in a certain place." Might not he have dispensed with the special season and act of prayer? Was not his whole life one continuous act of prayer? Did he not always realize that communion with the Father to which praying is the means? Yes; but even he needed the time and the place of prayer. "Made in all things like to his brethren," he, too, required to recruit the energy; he, too, for power with God and men, must lift up his eyes to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 11:1-13

Lessons on prayer. Luke takes us from "the one thing needful," which Mary's loving waiting on her Lord illustrates, to a kindred subject, viz. the lessons on prayer which Jesus gave his disciples. He had been enjoying what we should now call a " retreat " with them, and had himself led the devotions of the little band. Struck by the beauty of his petitions, one of his disciples asked him to teach them to pray, as John had taught his disciples. To this appeal Jesus responds at once, and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 11:5

And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves. This whole passage follows naturally the Lord's own formula of prayer. The teaching contained in Luke 11:1-13 may be well summarized as the Master's lesson on prayer. The disciples, when they heard Jesus pray, asked him to instruct them in the holy art. The Lord then suggested to them a series of short subjects for constant prayer, and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 11:5-10

Continuance in prayer. These words of our Lord are not intended to present God to us as one that is reluctant to respond to our prayer, and that, consequently, has to be besought and entreated with growing energy and ardor, as Baal's prophets imagined to be the case with the deity they worshipped ( 1 Kings 18:1-46 .). Rather should we think of him as of a Divine Father who, for our sake , delays his answer to our prayer, in order that we may be disciplined in devotion, and in order... read more

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