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Thomas Constable · Citado em PreceptAustin
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Constable - Jesus’ final question suggests that there will be few on the earth who believe in Him when He returns (Lk 17:22–18:1+). Remember that the Second Coming is in view, not the Rapture....Prayer not only secures God’s help during persecution, but it also demonstrates faith in God...The parable is an exhortation to persevere in the faith rather than apostatizing (i.e., turning away from it). God will vindicate His elect at the Second Coming (cf. Ps. 25:2–3; Rev. 6:9–11). That will be His ultimate answer to these prayers of His people, but immediate help before that coming is primarily in view in this parable. Leon
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Constable on inherit - He was talking about getting something that he as a Jew thought that he had a good chance of obtaining because of his ethnic relationship to Abraham. (ED: But as noted above "What must I do to inherit eternal life" was a typical Jewish question.) Eternal life always refers primarily to a QUALITY of life and not so much a QUANTITY of life. The phrase is not found in the Old Testament although the equivalent "everlasting life" is found in Daniel 12:2+ (which is an excellent verse to substantiate the tragic truth that spiritual death like spiritual life is everlasting, as the same Hebrew verb olam modifies both conditions. Eternal punishment is forever beloved [cf Mt 25:46]. 🙏 THOUGHT - Eternal punishment is forever beloved [cf Mt 25:46+]. Dear fellow believer, we must believe that truth, not to shock others so much as to shock ourselves into this absolute reality, one that the Spirit of God will/can use to motivate us deeply to boldly share the Gospel (cf Acts 4:31+) with those who are only one heartbeat away from everlasting punishment! May our Father stir our hearts with this truth and grant us the gift of Spirit enabled boldness and spiritual vision to recognize the opportunities (Col 4:5-6+) He gives us to share the Gospel with those who will be otherwise forever lost. Amen. 🙏 THOUGHT - Another side thought is that eternal life for believers is NOW. Too many believers are living their lives for the temporal rather than the eternal, in part because they do not fully grasp that they are living in "eternity" today, right NOW. If we come to fully grasp all that "the hope of eternal life (Titus 1:2), this reality has the potential to radically transform our approach to our temporal existence. It is the difference between what I like to call "vertical vision" (eternal perspective) versus "horizontal vision" (temporal perspective). If you are living for eternity (vertically so to speak), it will affect every decision you make in time (horizontally, so to speak). See discussion of "Vertical Vision." Adrian Rogers once said "The Bible is a window in this prison-world through which we may look into eternity. Life is too short, eternity is too long, souls are too precious, the Gospel is too wonderful — for us to sleep through it all! There are only two places where there's no hope. One is in Hell because when you go to Hell, you've lost hope. The other is in Heaven because when you're in Heaven, you don't need hope. People say that the church is full of hypocrites. I'd rather spend some of the time here on earth with some of the hypocrites — than eternity in Hell with all of them!" In his commentary on Matthew, John
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Constable - Jesus’ question accomplished two things. It set the standard for goodness, namely God (cf. Lk 18:11). It also confronted the man with the logical implication of his question (Lk 18:18), namely that Jesus was God. That the man did not believe that Jesus was God seems clear from his response to Him (Lk 18:23). Cornerstone Bible Commentary explains Jesus question about good this way - This puzzling question may imply that the man should focus not on his own good deeds, but on the goodness of the one true God (perhaps an allusion to Deut 6:4). Or it may mean that since God is good, his commandments provide a detailed definition of goodness. Good (18) (agathos) (see good deeds) means intrinsically good, inherently good in quality, with the idea of good which is also profitable, useful, benefiting others, benevolent (marked by or disposed to doing good). Agathos is one whose goodness and works of goodness are transferred to others. Good and doing good is the idea. Agathos describes that which is beneficial in addition to being good. Agathos is that which is good in its character, beneficial in its effects and/or useful in its action. Agathos is used in the New Testament primarily of spiritual and moral excellence. Paul uses agathos to describe the Gospel as the “glad tidings of good things” (Ro 10:15+). The writer of Hebrews uses it in the same way, of “the good things to come” of which “Christ appeared as a high priest” (Heb 9:11+) and of which the law was “only a shadow” (Heb 10:1+). Adrian Rogers - Jesus didn't come to make you a nicer person. He came to radically, dramatically, and eternally transform you!....Now Jesus is teaching the rich young ruler, in this one sentence, two things. 1. He Himself Is Not Good - Number one: Jesus is teaching this man that he himself is not good. Jesus is teaching this young man that he himself—the young man—is not good. This young man thought he was a quite a good boy. And Jesus said, “Look, there is none good but God.” 2. Jesus Himself Is God The second thing Jesus was teaching this young man is that Jesus Himself is God. Now those of you who just want to tip the hat to Jesus and not bow the knee to Jesus—let me tell you this about Jesus: Jesus is God. And if Jesus is not God, Jesus is not good. How do I know? Jesus Christ Himself said so. Jesus said, “There is none good but One—that’s God” (Mark 10:18). Put it down big, plain, and straight. Don’t just flatter Jesus. Don’t just tip the hat to Jesus and say, “Jesus is a nice fellow.” You don’t tip the hat; you bow the knee. Because, Jesus said, “There is none good but One, and that is God” (Mark 10:18). And what Jesus was saying in this one sentence: “I am God, and you’re a sinner. I am God, and you are a sinner. There is none good but One, and that is God.” And by the way, you might want to put in your margin, Romans 3:10-12....You know, there are people who join churches today like they are doing God a wild favor. They come down the aisle and join churches. They are religious, but they have never seen the holiness of God, and their own sinfulness, and the wrath of God against sin....And so what is Jesus teaching this young man? Jesus is teaching this young man that proud men at their best are really sinners at their worst. You know, there are people writing books today with titles like this: Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People? Come up close. I want to tell you something: There are no good people. You say, “Who do you think you are?” Just a preacher preaching what Jesus said—“There’s none good but One, and that’s God” (Mark 10:18)....The worst sin, the sin of all sins, the worst form of badness—is human goodness, when human goodness becomes a substitute for the new birth. The worst form of badness is human goodness. Jesus said that prostitutes and crooked tax collectors were going to Heaven before the Pharisees, because they had their self-righteousness as a substitute for God’s mercy....the worst form of badness is human goodness, when human goodness becomes the substitute for the new birth. (From his sermon Three Strikes and You’re Out) Luke 18:20 "You know the commandments, 'DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.'" You know the commandments: Lu 10:26-28 Isa 8:20 Mt 19:17-19 Mk 10:18,19 Ro 3:20 7:7-11 DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY,: Ex 20:12-17 De 5:16-21 Ro 13:9 Ga 3:10-13 Eph 6:2 Col 3:20 Jas 2:8-11 Luke 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Luke 18:18-27 How Good People Get Saved - Steven Cole Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 1 - John MacArthur Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 2 - John MacArthur THE PURPOSE OF THE COMMANDMENTS You know the commandments - He absolutely knew the commandments. And he thought he had kept them. So why is Jesus bringing up the commandments? Recall what the young man had just asked in Lk 18:18+ - "Good Teacher, what shall I DO to inherit eternal life?" Luke's version does not have Jesus' response "if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." (Mt 19:17). In Matthew's account, the young man still hopeful, still intent on doing something to procure eternal life responds with a question "Which ones?" (Mt 19:18). At this point it would seem Jesus replies "You know" them and He lists the commands (commands 5-9) in the second table of the 10 Commandments . The young man is "painting himself into a corner," for after he answers "All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?" (Mt 19:20), Jesus "lowered the boom" on him in Luke 18:22. He was still lacking enough "doing" to inherit eternal life and Jesus said he must sell all of his possessions (Lk 18:22). We will discuss this more fully below. Know (1492)(eido, oida - eido is used only in the perfect tense = oida) means in general to know by perception. This verb speaks of the fact that any good Jewish boy would have had the Commandments drilled into the heart and mind. So without a shadow of doubt the young man would know them. But knowing and keeping are two different things. Matthew's version has a slight twist regarding the commandments, Jesus declaring to the young ruler "if you wish to enter into life, keep ( heed, observe = tereo in aorist imperative) the commandments.” (Mt 19:17) As an aside, it is notable that Jesus did not say "eternal" here but only "life," substantiating that "life" refers more to a quality than a quantity of life. Of course there are differences in the way believers experience this "life" for Jesus Himself said "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly (perissos = that which goes far beyond what is necessary)." (Jn 10:10). Now back to the passage, the most startling aspect of Mt 19:17 is Jesus' command to keep the commandments. On the surface what does this sound like? Is sounds like Jesus is teaching salvation by works. You could just imagine some of the Pharisees in the crowd shouting "Amen, brother. Preach it!" Martin Luther's eyes must have rolled back in his head on reading Matthew 19:17! But is Jesus really teaching salvation by works? This is what Jews were taught all their life - that by keeping or obeying the commandments they could attain eternal life. In fact, Leviticus 18:5+ taught ‘So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he DOES them; I am the LORD." And so Jesus' command in Matthew to keep the commandments if you wish to gain eternal life (I am paraphrasing) is saying the same thing as Leviticus 18:5. Of course the problem is that no man could keep them perfectly. James 2:10 makes it clear that "whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all." Jesus' point in giving this impossible to keep commandment is to shock the young man (and all of us) into realizing there is NO WAY we can possibly keep the Law perfectly! As Paul would teach later, the Law while not saving, did play a vital part in one's salvation because it served as "our tutor to lead us to Christ so that we might be justified by faith." (Galatians 3:24+). And again Paul reiterates this truth writing, summarizing the purpose of the Law "By the works of the Law no (Gk = "ou" = absolutely no) flesh will be justified in His sight; for (term of explanation) through the Law comes the knowledge of sin." (Ro 3:20+) (See another discussion of the function of the law below in Romans 7:7-11+). This young man has missed (or misunderstood or is self-deceived concerning) the true purpose of God's Law (See Related Resources below) which was given to teach him that he is a rank sinner (like all of us)! Leon Morris was absolutely spot on when he said that "When anyone takes seriously the requirements of the law, he is on the way to coming to Christ." You may be asking "When is my child ready to be saved?" The answer is when they come to the full understanding that they are "little sinners" for then they come to see their need for a Great Savior! The rich young ruler had yet to come to the understanding that before a Holy God, he was a great sinner and in a wretched state. This is Paul's pattern in the his explanation of the Gospel in Romans - Romans 1:18-3:20 = the NEED for salvation; Romans 3:21-5:21 = the WAY of salvation; Romans 6:1-8:39 = the LIFE of salvation; Romans 9:1-11:36 = the SCOPE of salvation; Romans 12:1-16:27 = the Spirit enabled SERVICE of salvation (For much more detail see this chart which clearly shows the Pauline pattern of presenting the Gospel). Note that in Matthew 19:19b Jesus sums up commandments 5-10 by quoting the "Second Great Commandment" declaring "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Quoted from from Leviticus 19:8+ - most quoted OT verse in the NT = Mt. 22:39; Lk 10:27b, Ro 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8). Have you truly loved your neighbor as much as you love yourself?”The commandments - Jesus proceeds to quote from Exodus 20:12-16 (cf Dt 5:16-20), enumerating five of the "Ten Commandments," (#5-9), but Luke records this list out of order when compared to Exodus 20, whereas the parallel lists in Matthew 19:18-19 and Mark 10:19 record the commandments in the same order as in Exodus 20. Note that all 5 of these commandments deal very directly with one's relationships, one's treatment of his fellow man, all external behaviors that could generally be assessed as to whether they had been broken. Notice that Jesus leaves out Commandment #10 - "You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17). Why? Well, one reason might be that this commandment does not deal with external, observable actions. One could go through a "checklist" of Commandments 5-9 and determine whether one has "kept" them or not (of course with the caveat of Jesus' teaching on one's internal, heart attitudes, not just one's external behavior). DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY - Commandment #7 (Exodus 20:14). DO NOT MURDER - Commandment #6 (Exodus 20:13). DO NOT STEAL - - Commandment #8 (Exodus 20:12). DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS - Commandment #9 (Exodus 20:16). HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER - Commandment #5 (Exodus 20:12). Adrian Rogers - Jesus is not—underscore that—is not teaching salvation by commandment keeping. He is teaching just the opposite, but you have to pay attention to see what Jesus is teaching. You see, the Bible teaches that you’re not saved by keeping the commandments. But yet, this young man said, “How do I have eternal life?” And Jesus begins to refer him to the commandments. Now what Jesus is teaching this young man is he is not keeping the commandments like he may think that he is keeping the commandments. Now commandment keeping has never saved anybody. Put in your margin, Galatians 2, verse 16: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:16+). The law—the Ten Commandments—cannot save anybody. While the Ten Commandments do not save you, they are an essential element in evangelism and salvation. (From "Three Strikes and You're Out") Related Resources: Purpose of the Law What was the purpose of the Levitical Law? What is the difference between the ceremonial law, the moral law, and the judicial law in the Old Testament? The Purpose of the Law - John MacArthur Four Functions of the Law, Part 1 - John MacArthur Four Functions of the Law, Part 2 - John MacArthur Luke 18:21 And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth." Lu 18:11,12 15:7,29 Mt 19:20,21 Mk 10:20,21 Ro 10:2,3 Php 3:6 Luke 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Luke 18:18-27 How Good People Get Saved - Steven Cole Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 1 - John MacArthur Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 2 - John MacArthur THE YOUNG RULER'S IMPULSIVE, CONFIDENT REPLY And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth" - The rich young ruler is being sincere. As regards the external keeping of Commandments 5-9 he would honestly say that he had kept them since his youth. Although he did not go so far as to say he was sinless, his statement still reminds me of John's teaching that "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us." (1 John 1:8+) So "yes and no" he had kept the commandments - Yes in the sense that externally he may have kept them, but internally in his heart, No, he had not kept them. He was woefully ignorant of the deeper spiritual meaning of the commandments. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus took the "letter of the Law" and applied it to one's heart. For example, Jesus equated anger with murder (Mt 5:21-22+) and surely the young man had been angry with someone since his youth. And Jesus equated looking at a woman with lust as an act of adultery (Mt 5:27-30+), and for a young man with hormones raging it would be a stretch for him to say he had never looked at a woman with lust! The rich young ruler was like Paul who thought he was blameless regarding the righteousness which is in the Law (cf Php 3:6). The rich young ruler clearly had some sense of self-righteousness, but knew that he was still missing something. He needed to see himself as not a partially righteous person but as an entirely sinful soul! Jesus had alluded to this need in Luke 5 declaring “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Lk 5:32+) Before our heart can be prepared to see its need of Jesus' perfect righteousness, we need to first see our perfect sinfulness. I have kept (5442)(phulasso) means to watch or guard much like a military guard or sentry keeps watch over his post (cp Acts 23:35, 28:16) which gives us a good sense of this young man's mindset regarding the commandments - like a sentry at his post he kept watch to make sure he did not let one of the commandments escape his attention! The NT uses phulasso of guarding truth (eg, 1Ti 5:21, 6:20, 2Ti 1:14+). The NET Note writes that "The implication of this verb (phulasso) is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail throughout his life, so the adverb "wholeheartedly" has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance - cf Lk 18:21NET).
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Constable comments that "He wanted Jesus to tell him what that act was. He was a performance oriented person." Criswell - The law is truly a way of salvation only if it can be kept. The difficulty is that man cannot keep the law. Jesus probably quotes these commandments because they are the easiest to measure. Although the young man has a sense of security in his conduct, he still has a void in his life. (Believer's Study Bible) Luke 18:22 When Jesus heard this, He said to him, "One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." One thing you still lack: Lu 10:42 Ps 27:4 Php 3:13 2Pe 3:8 sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor,: Lu 12:33 16:9 Mt 6:19,20 Ac 2:44,45 4:34-37 1Ti 6:18,19 and come, follow Me: Lu 9:23,57-62 Mt 19:21,27,28 Luke 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Luke 18:18-27 How Good People Get Saved - Steven Cole Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 1 - John MacArthur Luke 18:18-27 The Impossibility of Salvation, Part 2 - John MacArthur JESUS' TEST - THE KINGDOM OR YOUR CASH? THE ANSWER - ABANDON EVERYTHING! When Jesus heard this, He said to him (Mt 19:21, Mk 10:21) - Here we see the other two Gospels have some significant additions when compared to Luke's version. Mark's version (Mk 10:21) adds the unforgettable phrase "Looking (emblepo = fixing His gaze upon him, fixing His eyes intently upon him, looking intently at him - imagine those eyes gazing into yours!) at him, Jesus felt a love (agapao) for him and said to him...." (only place in Mark where he directly states Jesus loved someone, although of course love naturally flowed from Jesus at all times). Looking (emblepo) means to know something or someone by inspection. Jesus read this young man's heart. He saw the turmoil that His next words would bring. His own great heart of love went out to him. So while the commands to sell and distribute are radical, they are delivered with a "radical love" of Jesus for this young man and his eternal destiny! As John Trapp said "Think not, therefore, as many do, that there is no other hell but poverty, no better heaven than abundance.” Matthew's version (Mt 19:21) adds the phrase "Jesus said to him "If you wish to be complete (or perfect)..." where complete is teleios which means having attained the end or the goal. Teleios is translated perfect in Mt 5:48+ where Jesus says "you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." One thing you still lack (Mk 10:21) - You can just picture the rich young ruler's countenance fall at these words! He had it all except one thing! What did he still lack? Eternal life, the very thing that had prompted his running to and kneeling at the feet of Jesus! Clearly this young ruler had underestimated and/or failed to understand God's goodness and that it was perfect, setting a standard that no human being could possibly achieve by human effort! And he failed to understand the essence of the commandments, which were never meant to save him, but were given to show him his great need for forgiveness. Ray Pritchard on one thing - Jesus drops the bombshell: “You still lack one thing” (Luke 18:22). That must have floored him. It’s like saying to a boxer, “You’re the greatest 14-round boxer in the world.” Unfortunately, boxing matches go 15 rounds. And you keep getting knocked out in the 15th round.” It’s like saying to an artist, “You’re real good at what you do except you’re not real good with the color blue. In fact, your blue stinks.” (The Miserable Millionaire) One thing - This little phrase is used in several other interesting contexts - Mt 21:24, Lu 10:42+, John 9:25, Ps 27:4, Php 3:13+. I love Rich Mullins' convicting and inspiring vocal "My One Thing."
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Constable - Having passed the first test to his satisfaction, Jesus now presented him with the higher hurdle of not coveting, the tenth commandment (cf. Rom. 7:7–8). Jesus’ command exposed the man’s greed, which is idolatry (Col. 3:5). Thus this man had really violated the first and the tenth commandments. If he would have been willing to give away his possessions, he would have shown that he was repudiating his greed. By following Jesus, he would have shown that he was repudiating his own self-righteousness. These would have been the appropriate fruits of his repentance. Poor (4434)(ptochos from ptosso = crouch, cringe, cower down or hide oneself for fear) is an adjective which describes one who crouches and cowers and is used as a noun to mean beggar. These poor were unable to meet their basic needs and so were forced to depend on others or on society. The irony of this story is that if the rich young ruler had obeyed Jesus, he would have become on earth a ptochos, albeit he would be rich with "treasure in heaven." TREASURES ON EARTH OR TREASURE IN HEAVEN You shall have treasure in heaven - So while it looks like Jesus is talking about losing everything, what He is really talking about is finding everything, everything that really counts. He is talking about having treasure in Heaven. He is talking about possessing this treasure FOREVER! Luke used this same phrase earlier recording Jesus' promise Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. 34 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Lk 12:33-34+) And again Jesus spoke on acquiring treasures in heaven in His Sermon on the Mount... Do not store up (present imperative with negative = stop doing this!) for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 “But store up (present imperative = Not a suggestion but a command to make this your life's goal, daily pursuing treasuring treasure in Heaven, a goal only possible as you rely on and are enabled by the power of the Holy Spirit - Php 2:13NLT+) for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Mt 6:19-21+) 🙏 THOUGHT - Jesus' negative and positive commandments beg a searching question that only you can answer - Where is your treasure? Where is your heart? Here or there! Corollary - Show me your treasure and I will tell you who you truly worship! Lane on treasure in heaven - The assurance of “treasure in heaven” reflects an idiom that was current in Judaism {S-BK I (1922), pp. 429–431; F. Hauck, TWNT III (Eng. Tr. 1965), pp. 136–138. When the Jewish proselyte, King Monobazus of Adiabene, was chided for bestowing so much of his wealth upon the poor and afflicted, he replied, “I need to accumulate an imperishable treasure for the age to come” (Tos. Peah IV. 18).}, which allowed Jesus to enter the thought-world of his contemporaries. Here, however, it is stripped of its customary associations of merit (as if selling one’s property and giving the money received to the poor will earn a significant reward), since the promised treasure signifies the gift of eternal life or salvation at the revelation of the Kingdom of God. (See The Gospel of Mark - Page 367) Come, follow Me - Two staccato like commands that should have pierced the young man's heart, but did not as his subsequent response demonstrates. The command to follow Me echoes repeatedly throughout the Gospels (Matt. 4:19; Matt. 8:22; Matt. 9:9; Matt. 16:24; Matt. 19:21; Mk. 1:17; Mk. 2:14; Mk. 8:34; Mk. 10:21; Lk. 5:27; Lk. 9:23; Lk. 9:59; Lk. 18:22; Jn. 1:43; Jn. 10:27; Jn. 12:26; Jn. 13:36; Jn. 21:19; Jn. 21:22) Follow (190)(akoloutheo from a = expresses union with, likeness + keleuthos = a road, way) means follow closely (used of soldiers, servants, pupils), to walk the same road (Ponder that simple definition dear believer - Am I walking the road with Jesus? Am I willing to walk the same road as Jesus?) Literally the picture is to follow (like the crowds followed Jesus) and in a figurative sense to follow Jesus as a disciple. Follow is a command in the present imperative which calls for following the footsteps of Jesus to be our lifestyle, the habit of our life. How are you doing dear follower of Christ? Some days, off on other days? Early in the history of the Greek language akoloutheo came to mean to imitate or follow someone's example. This dual meaning colored the New Testament use of our word akoloutheo. Akoloutheo is a technical term in Hebrew and Greek for the reactions and relationships of a disciple to his teacher. The essence of Christianity in fact lies in the words "to follow Jesus." When we walk with Him, He promised we would never walk in darkness! (Jn 8:12). He is our Lamp wherever we walk, always walking with us, His Spirit within us enabling us to "Walk by the Spirit." (Gal 5:16) Paul expressed walking after Jesus as being His imitator (1 Cor 11:1) When He say's go, I go. When He says stop, I stop. His sheep know His voice and follow Him (Jn 10:27) Sadly , some declined to follow (Mt 19:21-23). Akoloutheo in Luke's writings - Lk. 5:11; Lk. 5:27; Lk. 5:28; Lk. 7:9; Lk. 9:11; Lk. 9:23; Lk. 9:49; Lk. 9:57; Lk. 9:59; Lk. 9:61; Lk. 18:22; Lk. 18:28; Lk. 18:43; Lk. 22:10; Lk. 22:39; Lk. 22:54; Lk. 23:27; Acts 12:8; Acts 12:9; Acts 13:43; Acts 21:36 William Lane has an interesting comment - Jesus separated persons from their normal historical existence (cf. Mk 1:16–20; Mk 2:14; Mk 3:13f. - Ed: see NT uses of "Follow Me" above) in order to introduce them to a new quality of existence based upon fellowship with himself. This means that the command to follow Jesus is an invitation to lay hold of authentic life offered as a gift in his own person. Jesus’ demand is radical in character. He claims the man utterly and completely, and orders the removal of every other support which could interfere with an unconditional obedience. The terms defined by Jesus clarify what following signifies (cf. Ch. 10:28), and indicate that Jesus himself is the one answer to the man’s quest for life. (See The Gospel of Mark - Page 368) Kent
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Constable - The man’s sorrow on hearing Jesus’ command was proportionate to his wealth. His unwillingness to part with his riches showed that he valued them more than treasure in heaven. He really wanted material wealth more than eternal life. Jesus’ logic is quite clear in this conversation. He reasoned that God alone is perfect (Lk 18:19). Moreover God’s standard for obtaining eternal life by good works is perfection (Lk 18:20–21). Therefore no one can obtain eternal life by good works. Adam
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Constable - Riches are a handicap because they present two temptations to the wealthy (cf. 1 Tim. 6:9–10). First, rich people sometimes conclude that because they are rich they are superior to the poor, perhaps more blessed by God, and therefore do not need God’s grace. Second, they may conclude that because they are rich they are secure, and therefore they fail to plan for the future beyond the grave. Hard (1423)(duskolos [used in Mk 10:23] from the adjective duskolos [used in Mk 10:24] in turn from dus = implying difficulty + kolon = food - difficult about one's food, figuratively hard to please, difficult in Mk 10:24) is an adverb which means hard, with difficulty, with belabored effort and pertains to that which is difficult to accomplish. Only used in three synoptic stories of the rich young ruler - Matt. 19:23; Mk. 10:23; Lk. 18:24. Not found in the Septuagint. Ray
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Constable - Luke played down the amazement and fear of the disciples that Mark stressed. Instead he focused the reader’s attention on the disciples’ failure to understand what was going to happen in Jerusalem. There is a continuation of the theme of responding to Jesus’ words that precedes. The rich young ruler failed to respond to the good news that Jesus proclaimed. Similarly the disciples, though believing the gospel, failed to respond to the bad news He told them. There is also a continuation of the theme of entering the kingdom. The disciples would enter because they believed in Jesus, but they would have to go through trials and tribulations, as Jesus would, before they did. The death of Jesus provided the basis for God’s gracious dealings with believers through His Son (Lk 18:26–27).
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Constable has an interesting note - The Hellenistic mind resisted the idea that a God-man could be truly human. The ancient Greek concept of the gods visiting humankind lay behind this difficulty. Consequently Luke presented much evidence for his Greek readers throughout his Gospel that Jesus was a real man. The Jews on the other hand had difficulty accepting the fact that Jesus was truly God. This accounts for Matthew’s stress on Jesus’ deity. Throughout church history there have been those who like the Greeks had trouble accepting Jesus’ full humanity and others like the Jews who have resisted His full deity. (Luke 18) David Thompson emphasizes the importance of the phrase all things that point to the Messianic prophecies that would be fulfilled - There are seven specific prophecies He would fulfill. (Prophetic Fulfillment #1) - It is time for the Son of man to be handed over to the Gentiles. 18:32a It was clearly predicted in Psalm 2:2 that the Gentile rulers would take counsel together against the Lord’s anointed. It was time for that to be fulfilled. He would go to Jerusalem and fulfill this very prophecy. He would appear before Pilate who would be turned over to Roman soldiers for crucifixion. This of course was unthinkable to the Jews. They could not conceive of the fact that their Messiah would allow Gentiles powers to have the upper hand over Him. Of course the reason why they couldn’t conceive of this is because they did not know the word of God. (Prophetic Fulfillment #2) - It is time for the Son of man to be mocked. 18:32b It was clearly predicted that the one who would deliver people from sin would be despised and sneered at (Ps. 22:6-7). Isaiah said He would be despised and forsaken of men (Is. 53:3). People would actually see Him and mock Him and laugh at Him. He would not be respected by any one. (Prophetic Fulfillment #3) - It is time for the Son of Man to be mistreated. 18:32c He was abused in every way. Darrel Bock, in his commentary, said Jesus would “receive shameful treatment” (Luke 9:51-24:53, p. 1497). Even His beard was predicted to be ripped from His face (Is. 50:6). (Prophetic Fulfillment #4) - It is time for the Son of man to be spit on. 18:32d Again Isaiah specifically predicted that the One who could save people from sin, would be spit on (Is. 50:6). Jesus is pointing out the minutia of the prophetic things He must fulfill. (Prophetic Fulfillment #5) - It is time for the Son of man to be scourged. 18:33a Isaiah predicted that He would be so beaten that His appearance was worse than any man ever seen (Is. 52:14). He also said that the Messiah would give His back to those who would strike Him and scourge Him (Is. 50:6). (Prophetic Fulfillment #6) - It is time for the Son of Man to be killed. 18:33b It was clearly predicted that the Son of Man would be killed. He will not just appear to be dead, He will be dead. In fact, it was specifically predicted that He would be crucified and have His hands and feet pierced (Ps. 22:16). Isaiah said He would allow Himself to be led like a Lamb to slaughter (Is. 53:7). (Prophetic Fulfillment #7) - It is time for the Son of Man to be resurrected. 18:33c This would be a defining moment in identifying the God/Savior/Messiah/King. He would be raised from the dead on the third day (Ps. 16:10; 49:15; 86:13 = Acts 13:34-38). Took...aside (3880)(paralambano from para = beside + lambano = receive, take) means to receive alongside or to take to oneself into close association, the latter sense of course being the intended meaning in this context. This idea of a private time with Jesus is found in other uses by Luke as when "He took along Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray" so that these 3 might bear witness of His Transfiguration. (Lk 9:28+) Paralambano uses by Luke - Lk. 9:10; Lk. 9:28; Lk. 11:26; Lk. 17:34; Lk. 17:35; Lk. 17:36; Lk. 18:31; Jn. 1:11; Jn. 14:3; Jn. 19:17; Acts 15:39; Acts 16:33; Acts 21:24; Acts 21:26; Acts 21:32; Acts 23:18 Behold (2400)(idou) a demonstrative particle is used to arrest the hearer (and reader's) attention. Jesus is saying "Listen up! Do not miss this truth!" He is alerting them to the fact that this is the beginning of the end. Written (1125)(grapho from root graph- = primarily means to scratch on or engrave as on an ornament, reports, letters, etc; English = graph, graphic, etc) means to engrave or inscribe with a pen or stylus characters or letters on a surface which can be wood, wax, metal, leather, stone, parchment, dirt (John ), paper, etc. Grapho (as it often is) is in the perfect tense signifying that everything written down in the past regarding the Son of Man stands written! It is a permanent and lasting record which will be fully fulfilled to the last detail. Study of the Messianic prophecies was a major element in my coming to faith in the Messiah as I came to see their incredible accuracy even though they were written centuries before the events. Luke has two other similar uses of grapho... because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled. (Lk 21:22+) Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” (Lk 24:44+) Luke's uses of grapho Lk. 1:3; Lk. 1:63; Lk. 2:23; Lk. 3:4; Lk. 4:4; Lk. 4:8; Lk. 4:10; Lk. 4:17; Lk. 7:27; Lk. 10:26; Lk. 16:6; Lk. 16:7; Lk. 18:31; Lk. 19:46; Lk. 20:17; Lk. 20:28; Lk. 21:22; Lk. 22:37; Lk. 24:44; Lk. 24:46; Acts 1:20; Acts 7:42; Acts 13:29; Acts 13:33; Acts 15:15; Acts 15:23; Acts 18:27; Acts 23:5; Acts 23:25; Acts 24:14; Acts 25:26; Will be accomplished (5055)(teleo from telos = goal, end, purpose) means to bring to an end as one brings a process, a course, a task or an undertaking to the end. The purpose for which Jesus came was that He might die. He was nearing His goal, a goal that had been set in motion by the sovereign council of the Trinity even before the beginning of the world! It is fitting that when Jesus had once and for all time offered Himself as the sacrificial Lamb, with His dying words He used this same verb teleo in the perfect tense, crying out "Tetelestai!" which means "It is finished!", it is "Paid in full!" John records this incredible event "Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. (John 19:30+) Teleo - 28v accomplished(3), carried(1), carry(1), completed(3), finish(1), finished(11), fulfilled(2), fulfilling(1), keeps(1), pay(2), perfected(1), performed(1) - Matt. 7:28; Matt. 10:23; Matt. 11:1; Matt. 13:53; Matt. 17:24; Matt. 19:1; Matt. 26:1; Lk. 2:39; Lk. 12:50; Lk. 18:31; Lk. 22:37; Jn. 19:28; Jn. 19:30; Acts 13:29; Rom. 2:27; Rom. 13:6; 2 Co. 12:9; Gal. 5:16; 2 Tim. 4:7; Jas. 2:8; Rev. 10:7; Rev. 11:7; Rev. 15:1; Rev. 15:8; Rev. 17:17; Rev. 20:3; Rev. 20:5; Rev. 20:7 Summary of Jesus' Nine Prophecies of His Passion Matthew Mark Luke First passion announcement Mt 16:21–23 Mk 8:31–33 Lk 9:22+ Second passion announcement Mt 17:22–23 Mk 9:30–32 Lk 9:43–45+ Third passion announcement Mt 20:17–19 Mk 10:32–34 Lk 18:31–34+
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Constable - “Son of David” was a messianic title that expressed the man’s faith in Jesus as Israel’s Messiah (cf. Lk 1:27, 32; 2 Sa 7:8–16; Isa. 11:1, 10; Jer. 23:5–6; Ezek. 34:23–24). Like the tax collector (v. 13), he called out for mercy without claiming any merit. His insistence reflected his belief that Jesus could help him and his hope that Jesus would help him. Opposition only made him more adamant in his desire. Notice the paradox in this passage - a blind beggar is the one who recognizes Jesus as the Messiah! (Yahweh speaks these words to His prophet Nathan to in turn speak to King David) “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you (SOLOMON), who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever (THIS WAS NOT SOLOMON WHO GAVE RISE TO A TEMPORARY DIVIDED KINGDOM BUT IS ULTIMATELY A REFERENCE TO THE MESSIAH - cf "from then on and forevermore" in Isa 9:6-7+). (2 Sa 7:12-13) Mattoon - The title, Son of David, refers to God's promise to King David that he would have a descendant who would have an eternal throne and be the Messiah King.(Treasures from the Scriptures) (The angel speaking to Mary declaring) “He (JESUS) will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” (Lk 1:32, 33+) It is ironic that while most of the nation of Israel was blind to the presence of the Messiah, two other blind men had the spiritual insight to recognize and acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the "Son of David"... Matthew 9:27+ As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” Son of David is used 16 times in the NT all in the Gospels but most often in Matthew which was addressed to a Jewish audience who would be familiar with the fact that Son of David was a title of their long expected Messiah - Mt. 1:1 (IN JESUS' GENEALOGY), Mt 1:20; 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30-31; 21:9,15; 22:42; Mk. 10:47-48; 12:35; Lk. 3:31; 18:38-39 It is almost certain the beggar used Son of David as a title of the Messiah, for during His ministry those names had become synonyms... Mark 11:9; 10 (JESUS' TRIUMPHAL ENTRY IN WHICH CROWDS THOUGHT MESSIAH WAS COMING - WHICH HE WAS!) Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: “Hosanna! (= "Save Now" ~ Save us from the Roman Oppression) BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; (QUOTING FROM Ps 118:25-26 PART OF THE HALLEL ["PRAISE] SUNG AT JEWISH FESTIVALS, ESPECIALLY THE PASSOVER) 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!” (THE JEWISH CROWDS ACKNOWLEDGED JESUS AS THE MESSIAH SON OF DAVID [cf Mt 21:9 = "The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David."] AND HE LET THEM DO IT!. THEY THOUGHT HE WAS BRINGING IN THE MESSIANIC KINGDOM WHICH THEY KNEW HAD BEEN PROMISED TO DAVID'S SON!) (As an eschatological aside - The date of Messiah's "triumphal entry" into Jerusalem was Monday, 10 Nisan, 30 AD, exactly 483 years after the decree of Artaxerxes - SEE Da 9:24+, Da 9:25+, Da 9:26+). Mark 12:35-37 And Jesus began to say, as He taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that THE CHRIST (TRANSLATION OF OT HEBREW WORD FOR MESSIAH) is the SON OF DAVID? 36 “David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘THE LORD (JEHOVAH) SAID TO MY (DAVID'S) LORD (ADONAI), “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET.”’ (Quoting Ps 110:1 A MESSIANIC PSALM) 37 “David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And the large crowd enjoyed listening to Him. Comment: David pictures Jehovah (Yahweh) speaking to the Messiah, Whom David in turn calls his Lord. The Jewish religious leaders recognized Psalm 110 as clearly Messianic.