Emphasis Scriptures

The word 'ask' occurs 221 times in the standard works.

76 of those occurances are found in the list of scriptures highlighted below. These verses have the highest concentration of the word 'ask' in the standard works and contain 34.4% of all occurances. Assuming 30 seconds per verse, it would take about 34 minutes to read the entire list.

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Luke 11:9-13 (5 in 5 verses)

D&C 8:9-11 (4 in 3 verses)

John 16:23-26 (4 in 4 verses)


JS-H 1:11-14 (4 in 4 verses)

 1:11 While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

 1:12 Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know; for the teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible.

 1:13 At length I came to the conclusion that I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the determination to "ask of God," concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture.

 1:14 So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally.




Isa. 7:11-12 (3 in 2 verses)

James 4:2-3 (3 in 2 verses)

2 Ne. 17:11-12 (3 in 2 verses)

Morm. 9:27-28 (3 in 2 verses)

1 Kgs. 2:20-22 (3 in 3 verses)

Matt. 7:9-11 (3 in 3 verses)

Mark 6:22-24 (3 in 3 verses)

1 Jn. 5:14-16 (3 in 3 verses)

Alma 5:8-10 (3 in 3 verses)

3 Ne. 14:9-11 (3 in 3 verses)

D&C 46:7-9 (3 in 3 verses)

D&C 50:29-31 (3 in 3 verses)

D&C 88:63-65 (3 in 3 verses)

Deut. 4:32 (2 in 1 verse)

Moro. 10:4 (2 in 1 verse)

D&C 109:4 (2 in 1 verse)

Moses 7:59 (2 in 1 verse)

John 14:13-14 (2 in 2 verses)

James 1:5-6 (2 in 2 verses)

3 Ne. 27:28-29 (2 in 2 verses)

D&C 9:7-8 (2 in 2 verses)

D&C 42:61-62 (2 in 2 verses)

D&C 129:7-8 (2 in 2 verses)

Exact Word Count

  FULL PART ALL
OT 47 101 148
NT 62 89 151
BM 47 11 58
DC 56 16 72
PGP 9 3 12
Moses 4 1 5
JS-H 5 2 7
TOTAL 221 220 441

JS-H 1:11
While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

JS-H 1:13
At length I came to the conclusion that I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the determination to "ask of God," concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture.

JS-H 1:14
So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally.

JS-H 1:18
My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)-- and which I should join.

JS-H 1:26
I had now got my mind satisfied so far as the sectarian world was concerned-- that it was not my duty to join with any of them, but to continue as I was until further directed. I had found the testimony of James to be true-- that a man who lacked wisdom might ask of God, and obtain, and not be upbraided.

JS-H 1:64
"I went to the city of New York, and presented the characters which had been translated, with the translation thereof, to Professor Charles Anthon, a gentleman celebrated for his literary attainments. Professor Anthon stated that the translation was correct, more so than any he had before seen translated from the Egyptian. I then showed him those which were not yet translated, and he said that they were Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic; and he said they were true characters. He gave me a certificate, certifying to the people of Palmyra that they were true characters, and that the translation of such of them as had been translated was also correct. I took the certificate and put it into my pocket, and was just leaving the house, when Mr. Anthon called me back, and asked me how the young man found out that there were gold plates in the place where he found them. I answered that an angel of God had revealed it unto him.