Matthew 7:10 (DBY)

Passage

and if he ask a fish, will give him a serpent?

Nearby Context

Matthew 7:8 For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened.

Matthew 7:9 Or what man is there of you who, if his son shall ask of him a loaf of bread, will give him a stone;

Matthew 7:10 and if he ask a fish, will give him a serpent?

Matthew 7:11 If therefore *ye*, being wicked, know [how] to give good gifts to your children, how much rather shall your Father who is in the heavens give good things to them that ask of him?

Matthew 7:12 Therefore all things whatever ye desire that men should do to you, thus do *ye* also do to them; for this is the law and the prophets.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "fish", "give", and "serpent". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "fish" and "give", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "Or what man is there of you..." into verse 11's "If therefore ye being wicked know how...", so "fish" and "give" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "fish" and "give" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.