Index: ext/fts5/fts5.c
==================================================================
--- ext/fts5/fts5.c
+++ ext/fts5/fts5.c
@@ -72,10 +72,11 @@
 **   There is one entry in the aIdx[] array for each phrase in the query,
 **   the value of which is the offset within aPoslist[] following the last 
 **   byte of the position list for the corresponding phrase.
 */
 struct Fts5Sorter {
+  int eStmt;
   sqlite3_stmt *pStmt;
   i64 iRowid;                     /* Current rowid */
   const u8 *aPoslist;             /* Position lists for current row */
   int nIdx;                       /* Number of entries in aIdx[] */
   int aIdx[0];                    /* Offsets into aPoslist for current row */
@@ -374,13 +375,23 @@
   if( pCsr->pStmt ){
     int eStmt = fts5StmtType(pCsr->idxNum);
     sqlite3Fts5StorageStmtRelease(pTab->pStorage, eStmt, pCsr->pStmt);
   }
   if( pCsr->pSorter ){
-    Fts5Sorter *pSorter = pCsr->pSorter;
-    sqlite3_finalize(pSorter->pStmt);
-    sqlite3_free(pSorter);
+    Fts5Sorter *p = pCsr->pSorter;
+
+    /* TODO: It would be better here to use sqlite3Fts5StorageStmtRelease() 
+    ** so that the statement may be reused by subsequent queries. But that 
+    ** is not possible as SQLite reference counts the virtual table objects.
+    ** And since pStmt reads from this very virtual table, saving it here
+    ** creates a circular reference.
+    **
+    ** We wouldn't worry so much if SQLite had a built-in statement cache.
+    */
+    /* sqlite3Fts5StorageStmtRelease(pTab->pStorage, p->eStmt, p->pStmt); */
+    sqlite3_finalize(p->pStmt);
+    sqlite3_free(p);
   }
   
   if( pCsr->idxNum!=FTS5_PLAN_SOURCE ){
     sqlite3Fts5ExprFree(pCsr->pExpr);
   }
@@ -479,10 +490,11 @@
 static int fts5CursorFirstSorted(Fts5Table *pTab, Fts5Cursor *pCsr, int bAsc){
   Fts5Config *pConfig = pTab->pConfig;
   Fts5Sorter *pSorter;
   int nPhrase;
   int nByte;
+  int eStmt;
   int rc = SQLITE_OK;
   char *zSql;
   
   nPhrase = sqlite3Fts5ExprPhraseCount(pCsr->pExpr);
   nByte = sizeof(Fts5Sorter) + sizeof(int) * nPhrase;
@@ -489,20 +501,15 @@
   pSorter = (Fts5Sorter*)sqlite3_malloc(nByte);
   if( pSorter==0 ) return SQLITE_NOMEM;
   memset(pSorter, 0, nByte);
   pSorter->nIdx = nPhrase;
 
-  zSql = sqlite3_mprintf("SELECT rowid, %s FROM %Q.%Q ORDER BY +%s %s",
-      pConfig->zName, pConfig->zDb, pConfig->zName, FTS5_RANK_NAME,
-      bAsc ? "ASC" : "DESC"
-  );
-  if( zSql==0 ){
-    rc = SQLITE_NOMEM;
-  }else{
-    rc = sqlite3_prepare_v2(pConfig->db, zSql, -1, &pSorter->pStmt, 0);
-    sqlite3_free(zSql);
-  }
+  assert( FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC==1+FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC );
+  assert( bAsc==0 || bAsc==1 );
+
+  pSorter->eStmt = FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC+bAsc;
+  rc = sqlite3Fts5StorageStmt(pTab->pStorage, pSorter->eStmt, &pSorter->pStmt);
 
   pCsr->pSorter = pSorter;
   if( rc==SQLITE_OK ){
     assert( pTab->pSortCsr==0 );
     pTab->pSortCsr = pCsr;

Index: ext/fts5/fts5Int.h
==================================================================
--- ext/fts5/fts5Int.h
+++ ext/fts5/fts5Int.h
@@ -280,13 +280,15 @@
 /**************************************************************************
 ** Interface to code in fts5_storage.c. fts5_storage.c contains contains 
 ** code to access the data stored in the %_content and %_docsize tables.
 */
 
-#define FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC  0     /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... ORDER BY 1 ASC */
-#define FTS5_STMT_SCAN_DESC 1     /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... ORDER BY 1 DESC */
-#define FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP    2     /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... WHERE rowid=? */
+#define FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC   0    /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... ORDER BY 1 ASC */
+#define FTS5_STMT_SCAN_DESC  1    /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... ORDER BY 1 DESC */
+#define FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP     2    /* SELECT rowid, * FROM ... WHERE rowid=? */
+#define FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC 3   /* SELECT ... ORDER BY rank ASC */
+#define FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC  4   /* SELECT ... ORDER BY rank ASC */
 
 typedef struct Fts5Storage Fts5Storage;
 
 int sqlite3Fts5StorageOpen(Fts5Config*, Fts5Index*, int, Fts5Storage**, char**);
 int sqlite3Fts5StorageClose(Fts5Storage *p, int bDestroy);

Index: ext/fts5/fts5_storage.c
==================================================================
--- ext/fts5/fts5_storage.c
+++ ext/fts5/fts5_storage.c
@@ -17,11 +17,11 @@
 struct Fts5Storage {
   Fts5Config *pConfig;
   Fts5Index *pIndex;
   i64 nTotalRow;                  /* Total number of rows in FTS table */
   i64 *aTotalSize;                /* Total sizes of each column */ 
-  sqlite3_stmt *aStmt[9];
+  sqlite3_stmt *aStmt[11];
 };
 
 
 #if FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC!=0 
 # error "FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC mismatch" 
@@ -30,19 +30,24 @@
 # error "FTS5_STMT_SCAN_DESC mismatch" 
 #endif
 #if FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP!=2
 # error "FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP mismatch" 
 #endif
-
-#define FTS5_STMT_INSERT_CONTENT  3
-#define FTS5_STMT_REPLACE_CONTENT 4
-
-#define FTS5_STMT_DELETE_CONTENT  5
-#define FTS5_STMT_REPLACE_DOCSIZE  6
-#define FTS5_STMT_DELETE_DOCSIZE  7
-
-#define FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP_DOCSIZE  8
+#if FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC!=3
+# error "FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC mismatch" 
+#endif
+#if FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC!=4
+# error "FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC mismatch" 
+#endif
+
+#define FTS5_STMT_INSERT_CONTENT  5
+#define FTS5_STMT_REPLACE_CONTENT 6
+
+#define FTS5_STMT_DELETE_CONTENT  7
+#define FTS5_STMT_REPLACE_DOCSIZE 8
+#define FTS5_STMT_DELETE_DOCSIZE  9
+#define FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP_DOCSIZE  10
 
 /*
 ** Prepare the two insert statements - Fts5Storage.pInsertContent and
 ** Fts5Storage.pInsertDocsize - if they have not already been prepared.
 ** Return SQLITE_OK if successful, or an SQLite error code if an error
@@ -60,10 +65,14 @@
     const char *azStmt[] = {
       "SELECT * FROM %Q.'%q_content' ORDER BY id ASC",  /* SCAN_ASC */
       "SELECT * FROM %Q.'%q_content' ORDER BY id DESC", /* SCAN_DESC */
       "SELECT * FROM %Q.'%q_content' WHERE rowid=?",    /* LOOKUP  */
 
+      /* SORTER_DESC and SORTER_ASC: */
+      "SELECT rowid, \"%s\" FROM %Q.%Q ORDER BY +" FTS5_RANK_NAME " DESC",
+      "SELECT rowid, \"%s\" FROM %Q.%Q ORDER BY +" FTS5_RANK_NAME " ASC",
+
       "INSERT INTO %Q.'%q_content' VALUES(%s)",         /* INSERT_CONTENT  */
       "REPLACE INTO %Q.'%q_content' VALUES(%s)",        /* REPLACE_CONTENT */
       "DELETE FROM %Q.'%q_content' WHERE id=?",         /* DELETE_CONTENT  */
       "REPLACE INTO %Q.'%q_docsize' VALUES(?,?)",       /* REPLACE_DOCSIZE  */
       "DELETE FROM %Q.'%q_docsize' WHERE id=?",         /* DELETE_DOCSIZE  */
@@ -86,10 +95,14 @@
         }
         zBind[i*2-1] = '\0';
         zSql = sqlite3_mprintf(azStmt[eStmt],pConfig->zDb,pConfig->zName,zBind);
         sqlite3_free(zBind);
       }
+    }else if( eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC ){
+      zSql = sqlite3_mprintf(azStmt[eStmt], 
+          pConfig->zName, pConfig->zDb, pConfig->zName
+      );
     }else{
       zSql = sqlite3_mprintf(azStmt[eStmt], pConfig->zDb, pConfig->zName);
     }
 
     if( zSql==0 ){
@@ -629,10 +642,12 @@
 int sqlite3Fts5StorageStmt(Fts5Storage *p, int eStmt, sqlite3_stmt **pp){
   int rc;
   assert( eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC 
        || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SCAN_DESC
        || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP
+       || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC
+       || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC
   );
   rc = fts5StorageGetStmt(p, eStmt, pp);
   if( rc==SQLITE_OK ){
     assert( p->aStmt[eStmt]==*pp );
     p->aStmt[eStmt] = 0;
@@ -651,10 +666,12 @@
   sqlite3_stmt *pStmt
 ){
   assert( eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SCAN_ASC
        || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SCAN_DESC
        || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_LOOKUP
+       || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_DESC
+       || eStmt==FTS5_STMT_SORTER_ASC
   );
   if( p->aStmt[eStmt]==0 ){
     sqlite3_reset(pStmt);
     p->aStmt[eStmt] = pStmt;
   }else{