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The rich young ruler asks about eternal life.

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Matthew 19:16-24 Mark 10:17-23 Luke 18:18-25
16And behold, one came and said to Him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? 17And He said to him, Why do you call Me good? There is none good but one, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments. 18He said to Him, Which? Jesus said, You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, 19honor your father and mother, and, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. 20The young man said to Him, I have kept all these things from my youth up; what do I lack yet? 21Jesus said to him, If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in Heaven. And come, follow Me. 22But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. 23Then Jesus said to His disciples, Truly I say to you that a rich man will with great difficulty enter into the kingdom of Heaven. 24And again I say to 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.
MKJV
 17And when He had gone out into the way, one came running up and kneeled to Him, and asked Him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 18And Jesus said to him, Why do you call Me good? No one is good except one, God. 19You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, honor your father and your mother. 20And he answered and said to Him, Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth. 21Then Jesus, beholding him, loved him and said to him, One thing you lack. Go, sell whatever you have and give it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in Heaven. And come, take up the cross and follow Me. 22And he was sad at that saying and went away grieved, for he had great possessions. 23And Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, How hardly those having riches will enter into the kingdom of God!
MKJV
 18And a certain ruler asked Him, saying, Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 19And Jesus said to him, Why do you call Me good? None is good except One, God. 20You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and your mother. 21And he said, I have kept all these from my youth up. 22And when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, Yet you lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you shall have treasure in Heaven. And come, follow Me. 23And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful, for he was very rich. 24And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, He said, How hardly those having riches shall enter into the kingdom of God! 25For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for a rich one to enter into the kingdom of God.
MKJV
Insights
  • The rich young ruler called Jesus, "good master/teacher", by this he was either denying or refusing to acknowledge any deity. This happened well into Jesus earthly ministry after Peter had said that Jesus was the Christ, after the feeding of the 5000 and the 4000 and after a few conflicts with the Pharisees and Sadducees. One should assume that a rich ruler would be up to date with community activites.
  • The first 4 of the 10 commandments are pertaining to our relationship with God, the last 6 commandments are pertaining to our relationships with others. The commandments that Jesus gave to the rich young ruler were (5, 6, 7, 8 and 9), relating to his relationship with others.
  • Jesus gave the man only relational commandments between men that can be kept through self-works and the rich young ruler said he had kept all of these, he should have been happy for meeting the requirements. Yet he knew that something was missing and when Jesus gave him a heart issue, he became sad.
  • Perhaps the rich young ruler was living a clean moral life, yet he knew something was missing. Knowing that you have eternal life is knowing God and is a matter of the heart, "And this is life eternal, that they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent," John 17:3.