The Parable of the Friend at Night (Importunate Neighbour), is a parable of Jesus written in the New Testament in Luke 11:5-8. A man refuses to help his neighbour during an emergency at midnight. His neighbour persists in asking until he changes his mind.
What Jesus said
The parable:
Based on the Parable of the Ten Virgins, the unexpected arrival of the neighbour's guest at midnight could mean it is Jesus himself.
What it means
Jesus told this parable after he taught his disciples how to pray the Lord's Prayer. The parable is therefore an incentive to pray. The parable of the Unjust Judge has a similar meaning.
Depictions
The most famous depiction of this parable is The Importunate Neighbour (1895) by William Holman Hunt, kept at the National Gallery of Victoria, Australia.