17 ¶ And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 18 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God. 17 And as he was going forth 'into the way, there ran one to him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good 2Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal 18 life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou a Matt. 19:16; Luke 18: 18....b Ps. 86: 5; 119: 68. | 1 Or, on his way....2 Or, Teacher thing." The question is that of Pharisaism. It does not confess any inability or weakness with respect to good, but rather assumes full power and seeks for guidance only in the selection of a course of conduct. The idea of doing something, in order to gain, and even to inherit, life had full possession of the young man's mind, as we might expect from his Pharisaism. The need of doing good works, and full confidence in his own power and willingness to do any needful good work, these are the striking points of the question. Yet a Pharisee must have been touched by an unwonted influence before he would come running to Jesus with this inquiry, addressing him as "Rabbi," and especially as "Good Rabbi," a title unknown among the Jews, and framed by him to suit his thought (Farrar, 2. 160, note). The man must have felt that this Rabbi was indeed good and able to teach him concerning the good that he would gladly do. (Matt. 26: 7; Mark 14: 3) simply as a woman." The raising of Lazarus, with all that could suggest it, was kept out of sight by the synoptists, evidently of set purpose; and not until John wrote was the concealment removed. If Lazarus were to be mentioned by the synoptists, it would probably be in some such way as this. (2) The young man was rich, and the family at Bethany is proved, by the story of the alabaster box of ointment, to have been of the wealthier class. (3) He had high Jewish standing and connexions. He was a ruler-at least, of the synagogue, and possibly of something higher. He may have been a member of the Sanhedrin. After the death of Lazarus "many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother." With John "the Jews" are always the ruling class, the religious leaders. The family at Bethany therefore had social relations with many of this class, as they would have if one of their number were a "ruler," in either sense. (4) The young man was evidently a Pharisee, and the conversation of Martha after the death of her brother indicates that she had been taught as a Pharisee. (5) The only special hint of personal relations between Jesus and Lazarus is found in the words, "Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick." The only man of whom it is said that Jesus loved him, apart from the circle of the apostles, is this rich young man. The fact that Jesus beholding him loved him would certainly, if the young man was Lazarus, reaching the good?" Here, though the reference is his sisters and touch their hearts, and might most naturally be taken up by them as an appeal to Jesus when they wished him to come and save their brother's life. If the young man was not Lazarus, he was some one who was situated in life much as Lazarus was; and the coincidences are such as to render the identification at least considerably plausible. It should be remembered that there is evidence of only one visit to the house in Bethany before this time. The signs of intimacy there belong to the closing period of our Lord's life. 17. Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? The question is identical in Mark with that of the lawyer at Luke 10:25. In Matthew the young man proposes to himself the doing of some "good 18. In the answer there is no emphasis on either thou or me. It is not, Why callest thou me good? as if he would say, "What, from your point of view, can such a title mean?" It is not, Why callest thou me good? as if he would say, "Why single me out to receive this title?" Why do you call me good?" read in the ordinary way, exactly represents the answer, and the emphatic word is good. In Matthew the true reading of the reply is different, and Jesus asks, “Why askest thou me concern to the question the man had asked rather than to the title he had employed, the effect is the same in calling his attention to the word good and the idea of goodness. In both, his thoughts are called away at once from himself and from the Rabbi whom he is consulting to the word he has used and the true way to find a definition of it. "What of that word 'good'? Do you understand it? Do you know where you must look for a true idea of goodness? No one is good but God alone. You are talking of higher things than you suppose, and you must look up to him for your standard before you can talk or act intelligently about goodness." In this view, our Lord does not disclaim the title Good, but rather ignores it as applied to himself, and asserts that the word can never be understood 19 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honor thy father and mother. 2) And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 21 Then Jesus beholding him, loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasured in heaven: and conie, take up the His Mother's 19 me good? none is good save one, even God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor thy father and mo20 ther. And he said unto him, 'Master, all these things 21 have I observed from my youth. And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure Picture. THE following touching story concerning Admiral Dewey has just been published. Just before the battle of Manila, when the order was given to strip for action, the smallest powder-boy on the flag ship dropped his coat overboard. mission to jump after it, but was refused. He asked per .d Matt. 6: 19, 20; Luke ,found his answer; ng told to do what 10t, consciously; it been doing. Was of integrity accordJudaism was full of hes shallow and self ae commandments ; God alone is good, ty and spirituality bring? No; and nd the difference, better thing. Here and outwardly reof the soul for some He went to the other side of the ship, dropped overboard, yout. But had the recovered his coat, and was promptly arrested for disobedience. After the battle he was tried and found guilty. When the sentence was submitted to Commodore Dewey for his approval, he became interested in the case, as he could not understand why the boy should risk his life for a coat just before the battle. He had the boy brought to him. He spoke kindly to the youngster, who broke down and told the Commodore that the coat contained his mother's picture, which he had just kissed, and he could not bear to see it lost. etic demand to know contrast his inquiries What lack I yet?" s 2: 37 and 16: 30. him, loved him. Dewey's eyes filled with tears, he fairly embraced the boy and it looking with a fixed ordered him to be released, saying: 66 Boys who love their mothers enough to risk their lives for her picture cannot be kept in irons on this fleet."-[Evangelist. Whether Mark's Defraud not is an interpre- 20. Master (" Rabbi ")-not, again, "Good" the beholders did not ouch of remembrance young man must have gaze revealed a gen e. made itself manifest 'erhaps some word or sion. There is no need as to the effect of the ny, or of bringing the lations. Let the story It is enough to say that the heart of Jesus lovingly yearned over the young man in his sincere though Pharisaic seeking after good. If the young man was Lazarus, the remembrance of the love attached itself to his name.-Love is always kind, especially his love, but this time it was severe : severity was kindness. This command was the true utterance of love. One thing thou lackest. He does not say one thing alone, but one he mentions. The similarity of this language to that of his quiet rebuke to Martha has been noticed by those who here have Lazarus in mind (Luke 10:4 42). The command is twofold, looking 17¶ And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 18 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God. 17 And as he was going forth 'into the way, there ras one to him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good "Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal 18 life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou a Matt. 19:16; Luke 18: 18.... Ps. 86: 5; 119: 68. -1 Or, on his way....2 Or, Teacher thing." The question is that of Pharisaism. It does not confess any inability or weakness with respect to good, but rather assumes full power and seeks for guidance only in the selection of a course of conduct. The idea of doing something, in order to gain, and even to inherit, life had full possession of the young man's mind, as we might expect from his Pharisaism. The need of doing good works, and full confidence in his own power and willingness to do any of the question. Yet a Pharisee must have been touched by an unwonted influence before he would come running to Jesus with this inquiry, addressing him as "Rabbi," and especially as "Good Rabbi," a title unknown among the Jews, and framed by him to suit his thought (Farrar, 2. 160, note). The man must have felt that this Rabbi was indeed good and able to teach him concerning the good that he would gladly do. (Matt. 26: 7; Mark 14: 3) simply as "a woman." The raising of Lazarus, with all that could suggest it, was kept out of sight by the synoptists, evidently of set purpose; and not until John wrote was the concealment removed. If Lazarus were to be mentioned by the synoptists, it would probably be in some such way as this. (2) The young man was rich, and the family at Bethany is proved, by the story of the alabaster box of ointment, to have been of the wealthier class. (3) He had high Jewish standing and connex-needful good work, these are the striking points ions. He was a ruler-at least, of the synagogue, and possibly of something higher. He may have been a member of the Sanhedrin. After the death of Lazarus "many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother." With John "the Jews" are always the ruling class, the religious leaders. The family at Bethany therefore had social relations with many of this class, as they would have if one of their number were a "ruler," in either sense. (4) The young man was evidently a Pharisee, and the conversation of Martha after the death of her brother indicates that she had been taught as a Pharisee. (5) The only special hint of personal relations between Jesus and Lazarus is found in the words, "Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick." The only man of whom it is said that Jesus loved him, apart from the circle of the apostles, is this rich young man. The fact that Jesus beholding him loved him would certainly, if the young man was Lazarus, reaching the good?" Here, though the reference is his sisters and touch their hearts, and might most naturally be taken up by them as an appeal to Jesus when they wished him to come and save their brother's life. If the young man was not Lazarus, he was some one who was situated in life much as Lazarus was; and the coincidences are such as to render the identification at least considerably plausible. It should be remembered that there is evidence of only one visit to the house in Bethany before this time. The signs of intimacy there belong to the closing period of our Lord's life. 17. Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? The question is identical in Mark with that of the lawyer at Luke 10:25. In Matthew the young man proposes to himself the doing of some "good 18. In the answer there is no emphasis on either thou or me. It is not, Why callest thou me good? as if he would say, “What, from your point of view, can such a title mean?" It is not, Why callest thou me good? as if he would say, "Why single me out to receive this title?" 'Why do you call me good?" read in the ordinary way, exactly represents the answer, and the emphatic word is good. In Matthew the true reading of the reply is different, and Jesus asks, “Why askest thou me concern 66 to the question the man had asked rather than to the title he had employed, the effect is the same in calling his attention to the word good and the idea of goodness. In both, his thoughts are called away at once from himself and from the Rabbi whom he is consulting to the word he has used and the true way to find a definition of it. "What of that word 'good'? Do you understand it? Do you know where you must look for a true idea of goodness? No one is good but God alone. You are talking of higher things than you suppose, and you must look up to him for your standard before you can talk or act intelligently about goodness." In this view, our Lord does not disclaim the title Good, but rather ignores it as applied to himself, and asserts that the word can never be understood 19 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honor thy father and mother. 2) And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 21 Then Jesus beholding him, loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasured in heaven: and conie, take up the cross, and follow me. 19 me good? none is good save one, even God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor thy father and mo20 ther. And he said unto him, 'Master, all these things 21 have I observed from my youth. And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure a Ex. 20; Rom. 13: 9....b Isa. 58: 2; Ezek. 33: 31, 32: Mal. 3:8; Rom. 7:9; Phil. 3: 6....c James 2: 10....d Matt. 6: 19, 20; Luke 12: 33; 16: 9.1 Or, Teacher until one has learned to define it through the knowledge of God. His purpose is to awaken in the man a sense of the inadequacy of his own conceptions; and this he seeks to do by leading him to lift his eyes to the Perfect Goodness.Our Lord did not disclaim the title; yet we need not have been troubled if by saying, "God alone is good," he had meant, "That title is not for me." He spoke always in human relations -not, indeed, "as man any more than " God:" both phrases are wrong; but there was no word upon his lips that did not become the position and standing of a man; and the humility that would disclaim the title Good in such a connection as this would argue nothing against either his divinity or his sinlessness. as 19. But as for counsel respecting the attainment of life he refers (as in verse 3) to the existing authority, the law under which the man is living. This authority, he says, is already known. Thou knowest the commandments. The parts of the law that he cites are from the second table of the Decalogue, and relate to the duty of man to man. Mark alone adds Defraud not, which is not, like the other commands, in the Decalogue. Perhaps it may have been meant as a special application, in a rich man's case, of the tenth commandment, "Thou shalt not covet;" as if Jesus would lead him to inquire whether all his wealth had been acquired without defrauding. Matthew inserts instead of it, as a solemn close, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."Whether Mark's Defraud not is an interpretation of the tenth commandment or an interpolation of a command from elsewhere in Scripture to the midst of the Decalogue, it is a very remarkable instance of free use of OldTestament language by New-Testament writers, and by our Lord himself. One would think that if exact quotation were to be found anywhere, it would be in the use of the Decalogue by Jewish writers and by our Lord. Yet here is a striking neglect to quote with precision. 20. Master (“Rabbi ")—not, again, "Good" (Meyer)-all these have I observed from my youth. He had not yet found his answer; he was still perplexed at being told to do what he supposed he had always been doing. Was this self-praise? Perhaps not, consciously; it was rather the consciousness of integrity according to an outward law. Judaism was full of that consciousness, sometimes shallow and selfrighteous and sometimes devout. But had the young man ever observed the commandments with the full conviction that God alone is good, and with the deep humility and spirituality which that thought should bring? No; and he did not yet comprehend the difference, though he longed for the better thing. Here is the record of a moral and outwardly religious life, with the cry of the soul for something more and the pathetic demand to know what that something is: “What lack I yet?" (Matthew). Compare and contrast his inquiries with the questions in Acts 2: 37 and 16: 30. 21. Jesus beholding him, loved him. Not merely beholding, but looking with a fixed and earnest gaze, which the beholders did not forget. This exquisite touch of remembrance is peculiar to Mark. The gaze revealed a genuine love, of which the young man must have been aware, and which made itself manifest also to the disciples. Perhaps some word or act completed the expression. There is no need of perplexing ourselves as to the effect of the love on the man's destiny, or of bringing the love into theological relations. Let the story remain sweet and simple. It is enough to say that the heart of Jesus lovingly yearned over the young man in his sincere though Pharisaic seeking after good. If the young man was Lazarus, the remembrance of the love attached itself to his name.-Love is always kind, especially his love, but this time it was severe: severity was kindness. This command was the true utterance of love. One thing thou lackest. He does not say one thing alone, but one he mentions. The similarity of this language to that of his quiet rebuke to Martha has been noticed by those who here have Lazarus in mind (Luke 10: 42).—The command is twofold, looking 22 And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved; for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 22 in heaven: and come, follow me. But his countenance fell at the saying, and he went away sorrowful: for he was one that had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches 24 enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the a Job 31: 24: Ps. 52: 7; 62: 10; Hab. 2:9; 1 Tim. 6: 17; Rev. 3: 17.-1 Some ancient authorities omit for them that trust in riches. back and looking forward; and both parts are intended to reveal to the man whether or not he has a heart for the good. The first part,sell whatsoever thou hast, etc., enjoins the breaking off of his old life by an act of extreme selfsacrifice and of genuine usefulness. It was an act, too, that lay directly in the line of his own principles; for almsgiving was great in the esteem of all devout Jews. Only this would be an extreme, self-emptying act that would scatter his worldly store and destroy his pride as a rich man. Yet there was encouragement. Thou shalt have treasure in heaven. The blessing of God on a right deed. (Compare Matt. 6:19, 20; 1 Tim. 6:17-19; Ps. 112:9; and especially Luke 12:33.) -The second part, come, . . . follow me (the revisers omit, on good authority, take up the cross), directs the man to set out in a new life, the life of a disciple. The whole is, "Deny yourself of what you now possess, devote it to doing good, and then join yourself to me." It often seems as if this command were in direct contrast with the characteristic words, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest;" but it is not, for this command only points out what it will be for this man, heavy laden with his peculiar burdens, to come and learn of him who is meek and lowly in heart. This is no arbitrary test. The requirement, taken in connection with the man's question, means, "Do you know and love the good well enough to devote to it your wealth and your life?" To obey the command of Jesus would be this man's short course to rest for his soul. 22. The descriptive word sad, used in Mark alone, is translated "lowering" in the only other place in the New Testament where it is found (Matt. 16:3). No doubt it was chosen in vivid remembrance of the lowering look upon his sad countenance. He went away grieved (Luke, "very sorrowful," as in Mark 6: 26 and 14:34); for he had great possessions. For the time at least love was too severe for him, and the good was too exacting. He was an illustration of Luke 2: 34, 35. Jesus was set for his fallperhaps also for his rising-but at present the thoughts of his heart were revealed as the thoughts of a man who was not "fit for the kingdom” (Luke 9:62). He was proposing to put his hand to the plough, but he was looking back to the things that were behind. He could count himself a man and keep the commandments in a fair life, but he could not become a little child. Yet we cannot but be glad that he was sorrowful: if he had gone recklessly away, we should have had no hope of him. 23. Now again the deliberate look of Jesus round the whole circle of his disciples, gazing into each face, impressed itself on the memory of Mark's informant. His saying, How hardly-i. e. with what difficulty-shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! is amply confirmed by experience. Christian men often become rich, but rich men rarely become Christians. The reason is not far to seek the process of gaining wealth encourages self-seeking, and the possession of it encourages self-importance; but the spirit that can enter the kingdom is the spirit of a little child. 24. This remarkable verse is peculiar to Mark. The astonishment of the disciples was natural, with their ideas of the kingdom. "Hard for rich men! What can he mean ?" All the splendid imagery of the prophets (as in Isa. 60) might rise in their minds to contradict him; and the idea of delivering Israel from oppression by a kingdom that rich men could scarcely enter must have seemed to them absurd. But Jesus solemnly repeated his hard saying; yet his mood was tender, as his word Children shows, here alone addressed to them. ("Little children," in John 13: 33.)--According to the common reading, the repetition of the saying explains and softens it by the modification. How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter. But there seems sufficient reason to accept the reading of ancient manuscripts by which the words for them that trust in riches are omitted. In that case the repetition of the saying removes it from the special case of rich men and applies the senti, ment more widely: Children, how hard it is to enter into the kingdom of God! |