NOTES for Mat 19:16-30
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? |
17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. |
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, |
19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. |
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? |
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. |
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. |
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. |
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. |
25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? |
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. |
27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? |
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. |
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. |
30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. |
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It can be said that the young man himself "asked for" the proposal to give up his possessions, since at first he was simply told to keep the commandments prescribed for everyone. But then he declared that he had kept all this, that is, the commandments, from his youth.
Of course, one can ask another question: is the young man claiming too much for himself, since it is very hard never to break a single commandment even once? But let us suppose that the young man managed to live blamelessly. Even so, in that case he still feels that something is lacking for him; his spiritual hunger is not satisfied. What should he do next? And only after this does Jesus propose that he make a difficult decision.
But the proposal corresponds to the request: the commandments given for everyone are not enough for you; you wanted to surpass the general level, so do what surpasses what is offered to the rest. And so the young man leaves, unable to do what he himself had asked about.
The words Jesus speaks to the disciples after the young man leaves are full of sorrow. If we listen closely, He is grieving that earthly wealth blocks people from heaven. We are used to applying these words to those who are especially rich, but if we think carefully, even people of modest means, or even the poor, may have some very small treasure that blocks heaven no less, or even more, than millions of dollars or vast estates. It is hard for even a very thin and unloaded camel to pass through the eye of a needle.
But Christ again and again invites us not to cling to earthly wealth. After all, He gives us not only everything necessary for earthly life, but much more as well, that which surpasses any earthly wealth.
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Readings for 22 September 2025
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