There are several Greek words which are translated "ask" in the New Testament. The two most
prominent of these are aiteo and erotao. Aiteo means to ask, beg, crave, or demand something.
Erotao often means to interrogate, to ask a question, but is also used in the context of making a
petition or a request. In Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words the following
distinction is made:"Aiteo more frequently suggests the attitude of a suppliant, the petition of one
who is lesser in position than he to whom the petition is made; e.g., in the case of men in asking
something from God. . . . Erotao more frequently suggests that the petitioner is on a footing of
equality or familiarity with the person whom he requests."

Aiteo is found in the following passages:"Ask, and it shall be given you. . . . For every one that
asketh receiveth. … Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a
stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 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?" (Matthew 7:7-11). "Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that
would borrow of thee turn not thou away" (Matt. 5:42). "But the chief priests and elders
persuaded the multitude that they should ask [for] Barabbas, and destroy Jesus" (Matthew 27:20).
"He [Joseph of Arimathea] went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus" (Matthew 27:58). "If
any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God" (James 1:5).

In Matthew 16:13 we find erotao in the context of asking a question:"When Jesus came into the
coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of
man am?" In several places, this word is translated "beseech":"Furthermore then we beseech you,
brethren . . . that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would
abound more and more" (1 Thess. 4:1). "So when the Samaritans were come unto Him, they
besought Him that He would tarry with them" (John 4:40). "And His disciples came and besought
Him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us" (Matt. 15:23).

It is noteworthy that the Lord Jesus never used aiteo when making request to the Father. It was
always erotao, that is, making a request in the consciousness of His equal dignity with the Father.
Thus, for example, "And I will pray [erotao] the Father, and He shall give you another
Comforter" (John 14:16; see also John 16:26 and 17:9,15,20). Martha, on the other hand,
betrayed her poor understanding of the person of Christ when she said to Him, "But I know, that
even now, whatsoever Thou wilt ask [aiteo] of God, God will give it Thee" (John 11:22). Her
thoughts did not rise above Christ begging of the Father, as one of lower position than the Father.

Let us now consider some passages in which both aiteo and erotao are found. First, in John 16:23
we read:"And in that day ye shall ask [erotao] Me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Whatsoever ye shall ask [aiteo] the Father in My Name, He will give it you." The first part of this
verse refers back to verse 19:"Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask [erotao] Him, and
said unto them, Do ye enquire among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and ye shall not see
Me:and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me?" In "that day," that is, after Jesus left them to
return to the Father, the disciples would no longer be asking Him questions. However, they were
not to be left destitute with their Lord, teacher, provider, healer, and Saviour gone. Whatsoever

they asked or begged of the Father in the Name of the Lord Jesus, He would give it to them.

Three verses later we find both words again:"At that day ye shall ask [aiteo] in My Name, and
I say not unto you, that I will pray [erotao] the Father for you" (John 16:26). Here we see the
difference in words used because of the difference in relative position of the petitioner and the one
petitioned. The statement, "I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you," may seem
rather strange at first, but the verse following helps to explain it:"For the Father Himself loveth
you, because ye have loved Me, and have believed that I came out from God." Thus, Jesus was
saying that there was no need for Him to make request to the Father for the disciples, as if the
Father did not know them or love them; for indeed the Father Himself did love them dearly, just
as they dearly loved Jesus.

The final example is found in 1 John 5:16:"If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto
death, he shall ask [aiteo], and He shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is
a sin unto death:I do not say that he shall pray [erotao] for it." In this verse it might seem as if
aiteo should have been used in the last clause instead of erotao. But on careful consideration we
can see a solemn rebuke connected with the use of the word erotao in this passage. The purpose
of that last clause is to put a guard on what has gone before. The subject of verses 14 to 16 is
petitioning God and interceding for our brethren. But if a brother has committed a sin unto death,
then it would betray a lack of communion with God to pray that such a soul should live. If we
discern it to be a sin unto death, then we must bow to God instead of interceding for the brother.
The use of the word erotao suggests that when we pray for that which is contrary to God’s will,
we are, in a sense, putting ourselves on the same level as or above God; that is, we are implying
that His will is not the best.

How needful it is for us to pray, not haphazardly, but intelligently, according to the mind of God.
This can only be accomplished through continual communion with the Father. P. L. Canner

The inventor of the telegraph, Professor Samuel F. B. Morse, was asked, "When you were
making your experiments, did you ever come to a standstill, not knowing what to do next?"

"Oh yes, more than once," he replied.

"And at such times what did you do next?"

"Whenever I could not see my way clearly, I prayed for more light."

"And the light generally came?"

"Yes," answered Morse. "And when flattering honors came, I never felt I deserved them. I have
made a valuable application of electricity, solely because God who meant it for mankind must
reveal it to someone, and was pleased to reveal it to me."

The first message sent by the inventor in Morse code was, "What hath God wrought!" (Numbers
23:23).