17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus is about to leave for his journey to Jerusalem but before he leaves a man runs to him. An act of desperation. He kneels before Jesus, typically an action reserved for royalty or God. He calls Jesus “Good Teacher”, and asks him how he is to inherit eternal life. This is not typical language of a Jew from the Old Testament context but the clue is in “inherit”.
Jews were definitely aware of their inheritance in Kingdom of God, the message that Jesus preaches though they had various understandings of what that meant. If Mark is not romanizing a Hebrew phrase then we can assume that during the intertestamental period, the latter half of Second Temple Judaism, eternal life and being in the Kingdom of God that is to come with the messiah were synonymous.
18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.
Based on Jesus’ answer here, and that we know Jesus can read the hearts of those around him, we can see that this mans declaration of Jesus being a “Good Teacher” was simply a human acknowledgement. This is not like those who see Jesus and make a confession of faith, this man (like many people in the modern day) just see Jesus as a “Good Teacher” which if you pay attention to Jesus’ words, he does not give us the opportunity to see him as just that. Liar, Lunatic or Lord comes to mind if you have heard of that trilemma.
Since Jesus is aware of how the man is perceiving him, he essentially agrees with his mortal perception but then if that were true, he would not actually be good therefore the man is not making sense. Basically Jesus is saying “If I am Good, then I am not just a teacher am I?” He is inviting the man deeper which is not a reach by me, Jesus extends his hand to draw the man deeper in the following verses. People just have a habit of misrepresenting the beginning of the conversation.
19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ”
20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.”
The man wants eternal life in the Kingdom of God, Jesus tells him what he already knows and lists some of the most important of the Decalogue. If he wants more he has to go deeper, it is like the man is somewhat aware that the Law is merely a shadow of the Word itself. He calls Jesus “Teacher”, no longer calling him “Good”, this means he will follow what Jesus tells him to a certain point. He explains that he has followed all of these laws. Now we can start to see why the pious remained hopeful of the future promised covenant. Abiding by the Mosaic Law was “observed” not lived, it was not a fulfilling relational covenant.
21 And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
Jesus looked at the man and loved him. This is a great expression of agape. This man in front of Jesus is a truly upstanding Jew of his time, he has done exactly what was required of him but unfortunately “observation” was only a temporary component of salvation history. Doing and living in a relationship with God was coming which means doing and living a certain way. For example under the Old Law it was possible to fill-in all the checkbox’s of the observances and still be entirely attached to material wealth.
Jesus loved him and therefore tells him the secret of the New Covenant. He must give up his earthly attachments and follow Jesus. For all those who point to the earlier passages as evidence of Jesus denying his own divinity seem to lack the context of these verses that come after. A Jew, following all the Law’s of Moses, given to the Israelites from God is still missing something. Jesus. Jesus places himself above the Law of Moses here. The only thing above the Mosaic Law is God himself. Jesus is not denying his divinity, he humoured the mans mortal perceptions then outright admitted who he really is. God in the Flesh.
22 At that saying his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions.
The man could follow all the Law’s of Moses, he could keep all the ordinances but he could not give up his wealth. The throne room of his heart was occupied by things. His expression that presumably was filled with hope falls and he leaves sorrowful.
23 And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!”
24 And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God!
Jesus sees his disciples around him who we can assume are confused as they usually are. It is important to note that a wealthy person in Jewish culture at this time was perceived to be blessed by God, that they were being rewarded for their piety. The typical understanding was “He’s rich? Keeps the Law? He’s a Saint!” But Jesus undercuts all of this and says the complete opposite. People who have wealth can afford to appear pious but they’re typically wealthy because they’re attached to their wealth. They don’t want to give it up. Therefore it is hart for them to enter the Kingdom of God where there is not financial entry fee.
The disciples are amazed but Jesus doubles down. Those who trust in their riches, define themselves by their wealth. Will find it very difficult to get into the Kingdom of God.
25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.”
Now the common phrase that so many have heard, even those who have never read scripture. It is easier to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God.
First of all, time to correct some stupid things said about this passage. There are many protestant/evangelical circles (especially rich wealthy self seeking ones) that invented a fictional gate called the “needle gate” and claimed it was in Jerusalem and in order to go through it you had to bow forward. People will make up anything in order to get away from what Jesus is saying. Jesus is talking about a sowing needle, the eye of which is the loop that the thread goes through. It is easier for a camel go go through that than a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. This action is impossible by the efforts of man. That is the point. No amount of money will pay for a camel to be able to go through a sowing needle eye.
If entering the Kingdom of God is a divine action and not a human one then reliance on human wealth will not get you there, if you are a person who is defined by their wealth and clings to it as their rock and refuge, you will not be able to get there. But God makes all things possible. Through God a person with wealth can inherit the Kingdom. What’s really fun about this passage is that Jesus is not saying rich people don’t go to Heaven, he is saying that it is only by a miracle that they do. Consider the ancient context we mentioned, to ancient Jews, wealth was a sign of blessing from God, Jesus is saying “uh no, they’re kinda cursed actually” they need more help from God than poor people do. The poor already rely on God for everything, grace is no extra baggage for them but wealthy who rely on their own money, they’re going to struggle and if they think they can pay their way out they will fail.
Leave a Reply