And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;

And He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend and shall go to him in the middle of the night and say, "'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread;

And he said to them, Which of you, having a friend, would go to him in the middle of the night and say to him, Friend, let me have three cakes of bread;

And he said to them: "Which of you will have a friend and will go to him in the middle of the night, and will say to him: 'Friend, lend me three loaves,

Jesus also said to them, "Suppose that one of you who has a friend were to go to him in the middle of the night and say 'Friend, lend me three loaves,

And he said unto them - Jesus proceeds to show that, in order to obtain the blessing, it was necessary to "persevere" in asking for it. For this purpose he introduces the case of a friend's asking bread of another for one who had come to him unexpectedly. His design is solely to show the necessity of being "importunate" or persevering in prayer to God.
At midnight - A time when it would be most inconvenient for his friend to help him; an hour when he would naturally be in bed and his house shut.
Three loaves - There is nothing particularly denoted by the number "three" in this place. Jesus often threw in such particulars merely to fill up the story, or to preserve the consistency of it.
My children are with me in bed - This does not necessarily mean that they were in the "same bed" with him, but that they were "all" in bed, the house was still, the door was shut, and it was troublesome for him to rise at that time of night to accommodate him. It should be observed, however, that the customs of Orientals differ in this respect from our own. Among them it is not uncommon indeed it is the common practice for a whole family - parents, children, and servants - to sleep in the same room. See "The Land and the Book," vol. i. p. 180. This is "not" to be applied to God, as if it were troublesome to him to be sought unto, or as if "he" would ever reply to a sinner in that manner. All that is to be applied to God in this parable is simply that it is proper to "persevere" in prayer. As a "man" often gives because the request is "repeated," and as one is not discouraged because the favor that he asks of his neighbor is "delayed," so God often answers us after long and importunate requests.

(2) And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;
(2) We must pray with faith.

And he said unto them, which of you shall have a friend,.... A neighbour, or acquaintance:
and shall go unto him at midnight; which may seem a very unseasonable time, and which nothing but real distress, not knowing what otherwise to do, would put a man upon:
and say unto him, friend, lend me three loaves: it was usual of the Jews to borrow bread of one another, and certain rules are laid down, when, and on what condition, this is to be done; as for instance, on a sabbath day (k),
"a man may ask of his friend vessels of wine, and vessels of oil, only he must not say, lend me: and so a woman, , "bread of her friend".''
Again (l),
"so said Hillell, let not a woman lend "bread to her friend", till she has fixed the price; lest wheat should be dearer, and they should be found coming into the practice of usury.''
For what was lent, could not be demanded again under thirty days (m).
(k) Misn. Sabbat, c. 23. sect. 1. (l) Misn. Bava Metzia. c. 5. sect. 9. (m) T. Bab. Maccot, fol. 3. 2. Jarchi in T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 148. 1. Bartenona in Misn. Sabbat, c. 23. sect. 1.

Christ encourages fervency and constancy in prayer. We must come for what we need, as a man does to his neighbour or friend, who is kind to him. We must come for bread; for that which is needful. If God does not answer our prayers speedily, yet he will in due time, if we continue to pray. Observe what to pray for; we must ask for the Holy Spirit, not only as necessary in order to our praying well, but as all spiritual blessings are included in that one. For by the influences of the Holy Spirit we are brought to know God and ourselves, to repent, believe in, and love Christ, and so are made comfortable in this world, and meet for happiness in the next. All these blessings our heavenly Father is more ready to bestow on every one that asks for them, than an indulgent parent is to give food to a hungry child. And this is the advantage of the prayer of faith, that it quiets and establishes the heart in God.

at midnight . . . for a friend is come--The heat in warm countries makes evening preferable to-day for travelling; but "midnight" is everywhere a most unseasonable hour of call, and for that very reason it is here selected.

Friend, lend me three loaves. This parable is uttered to teach earnestness in prayer.
My children are with me in bed. He could not rise to give the bread without disturbing them.
Because of his importunity. When he should continue knocking and asking. How much more will the loving Father yield to the importunity of his children. Compare Genesis 32:28; Psalm 55:17; 1-Thessalonians 3:10 and 1-Thessalonians 5:17; 1-Timothy 5:5; 2-Timothy 1:3.

At midnight - The most unseasonable time: but no time is unseasonable with God, either for hearing or answering prayer.