Matthew 6:33

6:33 But above all pursue his kingdom ¹  and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Matthew 7:7-8

Ask, Seek, Knock

7:7 “Ask ²  and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door ³  will be opened for you. 7:8 For everyone who asks ⁴  receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Matthew 11:12

11:12 From ⁵  the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it. ⁶ 

[6:33]  ¹ tc ‡ Most mss (L W Θ 0233 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat sy mae) read τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ (thn basileian tou qeou kai thn dikaiosunhn aujtou, “the kingdom of God and his righteousness”) here, but the words “of God” are lacking in א B pc sa bo Eus. On the one hand, there is the possibility of accidental omission on the part of these Alexandrian witnesses, but it seems unlikely that the scribe’s eye would skip over both words (especially since τοῦ θεοῦ is bracketed by first declension nouns). Intrinsically, the author generally has a genitive modifier with βασιλεία – especially θεοῦ or οὐρανῶν (ouranwn) – but this argument cuts both ways: Although he might be expected to use such an adjunct here, scribes might also be familiar with his practice and would thus naturally insert it if it were missing in their copy of Matthew. Although a decision is difficult, the omission of τοῦ θεοῦ is considered most likely to be original. NA²⁷ includes the words in brackets, indicating doubt as to their authenticity.

[7:7]  ² sn The three present imperatives in this verse (Ask…seek…knock) are probably intended to call for a repeated or continual approach before God.

[7:7]  ³ tn Grk “it”; the referent (a door) is implied by the context and has been specified in the translation here and in v. 8 for clarity.

[7:8]  ³ sn The actions of asking, seeking, and knocking are repeated here from v. 7 with the encouragement that God does respond.

[11:12]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[11:12]  ⁵ tn Or “the kingdom of heaven is forcibly entered and violent people take hold of it.” For a somewhat different interpretation of this passage, see the note on the phrase “urged to enter in” in Luke 16:16.