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| Chapter 19 |
| Bible Text | Notes and Thoughts |
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1 ¶ And it came to pass that when Jesus had finished these sayings, He departed from Galilee and came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there. 3 ¶ The Pharisees also came unto Him, testing Him and saying unto Him, "Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?" 4 And He answered and said unto them, "Have ye not read, that He that made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘For this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh?’ 6 Therefore they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." 7 They said unto Him, "Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement and to put her away?" 8 He said unto them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, suffered you to put away your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery; and whoso marrieth her who is put away doth commit adultery." 10 His disciples said unto Him, "If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry." 11 But He said unto them, "All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given. 12 For there are some eunuchs who were so born from their mother’s womb, and there are some eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it." 13 ¶ Then were there brought unto Him little children, that He should put His hands on them and pray. And the disciples rebuked them, 14 but Jesus said, "Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto Me, for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven." 15 And He laid His hands on them and departed thence. 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 said 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 honor thy father and thy mother; and, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." 20 The young man said 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 what 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 Peter answered 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 that have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone 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 a hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life. 30 But many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first. |
Matthew records that Jesus now departs from the area of Galilee and starts on His final journey to Jerusalem. 19:1-12 Teaching on Divorce. v1 "Beyond Jordan" comes the area name "Perea" to the East of the Jordan river. v3 There were two religious teaching groups on divorce, the strict "Shammai" taught that divorce was only lawful due to the wife’s very bad conduct. The second group, the "Hillel," taught that Deuteronomy 24:1 allowed divorce for any reason. The Pharisees are therefore asking Jesus to which group does He belong. v4-6 In His reply Jesus does not refer to either but goes back to the original purpose of God the Father at creation, Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:24. God’s plan was that for a man and wife they would be "one flesh," any separation of the marriage was not according to God’s will. v7,8 The Pharisees then quoted the writings of Moses, Deuteronomy 24:1. Jesus showed that they had misunderstood the command, the instruction was to protect the wife from the husbands mood changes, stop him getting rid of his wife for any reason. v9,10 If "fornication" occurred it appears that Jesus allowed this as a condition for divorce, otherwise adultery is being committed on remarriage. Note: Under Jewish rules only the man can divorce the woman. In Mark, which was written for the Gentile reader, the woman is also permitted to divorce the man, Mark 10:12. Note that under Jewish teaching, ‘fornication’ normally referred to sexual acts by the bride to be during betrothal. (Joseph’s concern, Matt 1:18,19). If this was the case then Jesus does not permit divorce under any condition. v10 This could explain the concern by the disciples. v11,12 Following the thought "not good to marry," Jesus comments that not all men are able to accept that situation. Some people cannot marry because of being born with problems, others are restricted by the action of men (eunuchs). Others prefer to spend all their time in working for the Lord instead of marriage and its demands. v13-15 The blessing of the children. The little children must have been very young, Mark 10:16 possibly even babies. But the disciples were not happy with the parents bringing the children. Jesus reminds the disciples of His earlier teaching, Matt 18:3. Entry to heaven requires a mind and faith like a child. v16-30 The Rich Young Man. Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30; Compare Luke 10:25-30. This young man, called "a ruler" in Luke 18:18, wants to know how he may earn eternal life, to work for it. Mark and Luke tell us that he call Jesus "Good Master." Our Lord starts by asking the young man how he really saw Jesus, v17, for only God is good. Jesus then points him to what is already written in their Law, what instructions God had already sent and lists first the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 5th laws:-
v20-22 "All these things have I kept," not the words of a person who is proud, but from a person who thought "works" earned eternal life. v21 Jesus now reveals one of the real problems the young man has, "Go, sell, give away your riches, then follow me." Put your faith in Christ. The man’s reaction showed just how far he was away from God, riches counted more. v23 "It is hard for a rich man to enter ...." Many righteous people in Scripture were rich, e.g., Abraham, Job, Joseph of Arimathaea, many Jews thought that wealth was a reward for a righteous life, but it is not the wealth, or the money which is the problem, it is the false faith and trust which may come with being rich. See also 1 Tim 6:17; Mark 10:23-26. v24 This verse has caused some discussion. Some people think the "eye of needle " is referring to a special small door giving access into a walled city at night, a fully loaded camel could not get through it. Others feel Jesus is comparing the largest animal and smallest hole known by the Jewish people and how difficult it would be to do. Jesus is highlighting how riches can turn a person away from God. Consider 1 Tim 6:10; 1 Tim 6:10. (Note: "the love of money"). v25 "Who then can be saved?" The disciples were obviously of the same belief that wealth showed a divine favour. If a rich man could not therefore be saved, who could be saved? v26 Salvation is the work of God, only He can provide true righteousness. v27 "We have left all and followed you" is Peter’s response, this is what the young man could not do, Matt 4:18-23; Matt 9:9. "What shall we have therefore?" Not necessarily a demand for reward but Jesus shows the disciples what the reward would be. v28 "Regeneration" or ‘new spiritual birth,’ Titus 3:5 which will occur when the Messiah sets up His kingdom. Consider Rom 8:14-19. "Twelve thrones," clearly shown for the disciples in the Millennium. v29,30 If we make a sacrifice for Christ during our life, then we will be generously rewarded. There is however a caution, "many that are first shall be last," ‘many,’ not all, may find that they are not rewarded as they expected, eternal life is not a reward but a gift from God. Divine reward may not be according to the standards set by Man. |
Easy English Translation
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