Now, over the gate there was written, 'Knock, and it shall be opened unto you.'
— from The Pilgrim's Progress from this world to that which is to come Delivered under the similitude of a dream, by John Bunyan by John Bunyan

She was looking after him all night, giving him laurel-drops and repeating to him till daybreak, “You will still be of use; you will still make your mark; you will be appreciated … in another place.”
— from The Possessed (The Devils) by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Cheerful society would be of use; you should be as little alone as possible; you should take plenty of exercise."
— from Villette by Charlotte Brontë

Especially here in front of the lawyer, where both of us, you and me, we're only tolerated because of his charity.
— from The Trial by Franz Kafka

Hear and judge: The best of us, as I conceive, when we listen to a passage of Homer, or one of the tragedians, in D which he represents some pitiful hero who is drawling out his sorrows in a long oration, or weeping, and smiting his breast—the best of us, you know, delight in giving way to sympathy, and are in raptures at the excellence of the poet who stirs our feelings most.
— from The Republic of Plato by Plato

But unless you chose a colleague 199 to share that empire on whose behalf you had spared no pains to exterminate the brood of usurpers, you thought that no act of yours could be worthy of your former achievements.
— from The Works of the Emperor Julian, Vol. 1 by Emperor of Rome Julian

The earl answered in a friendly and respectful way, that the king's friendship lay near to his heart: "And if you think, sire, that my help against other chiefs can be of use, you have already every claim to it; but I cannot be your vessel for service, as I am an earl of the Scottish king, and owe fealty to him.
— from Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway by Snorri Sturluson

You can’t get that bracelet off, unless you know where the spring is.
— from An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde

(The moment that you learned this, you led your army out of the narrow and dangerous passes, and he followed in pursuit, as he thought, unaware that he was being outgeneralled, until you both reached open country.
— from The Works of the Emperor Julian, Vol. 1 by Emperor of Rome Julian

As for directions, all I can say is that from this ridge back of us you can see across the half desert valley to the higher range of mountains.
— from The Air Ship Boys : Or, the Quest of the Aztec Treasure by H. L. (Harry Lincoln) Sayler

“Walk out, now, to the end of the branch, or until you come to one of those drops of water, then [ Pg 254] take it in your mouth and suck, and all the water you want will flow out.”
— from Zuñi Folk Tales by Frank Hamilton Cushing

Receive them , O Lord: and as thou hast promised by thy well-beloved Son, saying, Ask, and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: So give now unto us that ask; let us that seek find; open the gate unto us that knock; that these persons may enjoy the everlasting benediction of thy heavenly washing, and may come to the eternal kingdom which thou hast promised by Christ our Lord.
— from The Book of Common Prayer and The Scottish Liturgy by Episcopal Church in Scotland

Therefore, if you will ask of me you shall receive; if you will knock, it shall be opened unto you.
— from History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Volume 1 Period 1. History of Joseph Smith, the Prophet by Smith, Joseph, Jr.

We must be mad, both of us; you to talk as you have done, and I to listen!
— from Leslie's Loyalty by Charles Garvice

“Knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”
— from Bunyan Characters (2nd Series) by Alexander Whyte

I said, I thought I did; though, in truth, I was perfectly confused, and could hardly tell how I felt: but this little man was of the order of beings who must not be opposed, unless you possessed an all-dominant force sufficient to crush him at once.
— from Villette by Charlotte Brontë

The Transcriber corrected the first “knock” to “given” because the text under discussion is “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and the door shall be opened unto you.”
— from How to Master the Spoken Word Designed as a Self-Instructor for all who would Excel in the Art of Public Speaking by Edwin Gordon Lawrence

In modern war, you may not know, till fire breaks out upon you, where the defence, which you have to attack, is hidden.
— from Gallipoli by John Masefield

A band of unruly youths engaged in a long continued "students' strike" in a college, on account of their dissatisfaction with a certain teacher, disbanded at two simple questions put by the Director,—"Is your professor a blameless character?
— from Bushido, the Soul of Japan by Inazo Nitobe