Matthew 7:8

7:8 For everyone who asks¹ receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Matthew 12:44

12:44 Then it says, ‘I will return to the home I left.’² When it returns,³ it finds the house⁴ empty, swept clean, and put in order.⁵

Matthew 18:13

18:13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth,⁶ he will rejoice more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.

¹sn The actions of asking, seeking, and knocking are repeated here from v. 7 with the encouragement that God does respond.

²tn Grk “I will return to my house from which I came.”

³tn Grk “comes.”

⁴tn The words “the house” are not in Greek but are implied.

⁵sn The image of the house empty, swept clean, and put in order refers to the life of the person from whom the demon departed. The key to the example appears to be that no one else has been invited in to dwell. If an exorcism occurs and there is no response to God, then the way is free for the demon to return. Some see the reference to exorcism as more symbolic; thus the story’s only point is about responding to Jesus. This is possible and certainly is an application of the passage.

⁶tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”