---
title: John 14:13
url: https://jw-apologetics.app/verses/john-14-13/
markdown: https://jw-apologetics.app/verses/john-14-13.md
type: verse
perspective: Protestant (historic Nicene) response to Jehovah's Witness teaching
reference: John 14:13
testament: NT
section: Gospels
index: https://jw-apologetics.app/llms.txt
---

# John 14:13

## Text (Berean Standard Bible)

> And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

## NWT Wording of the Key Phrase

- NWT (2013 revision): "Also, whatever you ask in my name, I will do this, so that the Father may be glorified in connection with the Son."

## JW Usage

Read with John 14:14 to teach that prayer is addressed to Jehovah through Jesus' name — Jesus is the means, not the addressee. The Watchtower's strict policy is that prayer must be directed to Jehovah, never to Jesus.

## Protestant Usage

Jesus is the one who answers: "I will do this." The combined teaching of vv.13-14 — especially with the standard Greek text of v.14 that includes "ask me anything in my name" — is that Jesus invites prayer in his name and personally answers it. That is divine prerogative. Pair John 14:13 with the Old Testament "call upon the name of Jehovah" pattern (Joel 2:32; Psalm 116:4), Paul's application of the same pattern to Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:2; Romans 10:13), and Stephen's dying prayer (Acts 7:59 echoing Psalm 31:5 — but addressed to "Lord Jesus"). The earliest believers prayed to Jesus, and Jesus himself made room for it in this very passage.

## NWT Issue

Where the Greek reads ἐν τῷ υἱῷ — "in the Son" — the NWT renders "in connection with the Son." The associative paraphrase widens the gap between Father and Son: the Father is glorified "in connection with" rather than "in" the Son, distancing the ontological glory-sharing the verse otherwise asserts. The same translation pattern recurs at John 14:10-11 and 15:5 ("in union with"); the cumulative effect is to weaken the mutual-indwelling language wherever it appears.

## Arguments Using This Verse

- [Call Upon the Name of the Lord Jesus](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/call-upon-name.md) — The OT worship phrase applied to Jesus [Deity of Christ]
- [The Salvation-Name Dilemma](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/salvation-name-dilemma.md) — Old Testament — only Jehovah's name saves. New Testament — only Jesus' name saves. [Deity of Christ]
- [Until Now You Have Not Asked in My Name](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/john-16-23-26-prayer-trap.md) — John 16:23-26 — the unitarian collapse on prayer [Deity of Christ]