^19:16Now²⁰ someone came up to him and said, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to gain eternal life?” ^19:17He said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” ^19:18“Which ones?” he asked. Jesus replied, “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, ^19:19honor your father and mother,²¹ and love your neighbor as yourself.”²²^19:20The young man said to him, “I have wholeheartedly obeyed²³ all these laws.²⁴ What do I still lack?” ^19:21Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go sell your possessions and give the money²⁵ to the poor, and you will have treasure²⁶ in heaven. Then come, follow me.” ^19:22But when the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.²⁷

Read in Logos

Footnotes

20 Grk “And behold one came.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis ( 1). Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
21 A quotation from Exod 20:12–16; Deut 5:16–20.
22 A quotation from Lev 19:18.
23 Grk “kept.” The implication of this verb is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail, so the adverb “wholeheartedly” has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance.
24 Grk “these things.” The referent of the pronoun (the laws mentioned by Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. While the rich man was probably being sincere when he insisted I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws, he had confined his righteousness to external obedience. The rich man’s response to Jesus’ command—to give away all he had—revealed that internally he loved money more than God.
25 The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
26 The call for sacrifice comes with a promise of eternal reward: You will have treasure in heaven. Jesus’ call is a test to see how responsive the man is to God’s direction through him. Will he walk the path God’s agent calls him to walk? For a rich person who got it right, see Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1–10.
27 Grk “he had many possessions.” This term (κτῆμα, ktēma) is often used for land as a possession.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

“Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

“Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Just then someone came up and asked him, “Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?”

“Why do you ask me about what is good?” he said to him. “There is only one who is good. If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

“Which ones?” he asked him.

Jesus answered: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; honor your father and your mother; and love your neighbor as yourself.

“I have kept all these,” the young man told him. “What do I still lack?”

“If you want to be perfect,” Jesus said to him, “go, sell your belongings and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard that, he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

NLTNew Living Translation

Someone came to Jesus with this question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

“Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments.”

“Which ones?” the man asked.

And Jesus replied: “ ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“I’ve obeyed all these commandments,” the young man replied. “What else must I do?”

Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And behold, someone came up to him and said, “Teacher, what good thing must I do so that I will have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why are you asking me about what is good? There is one who is good. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments!” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “Do not commit murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and your mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have observed. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give the proceeds to the poor—and you will have treasure in heaven—and come, follow me.” But when the young man heard the statement, he went away sorrowful, because he was one who had many possessions.

KJV 1900King James Version

And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 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. He saith 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, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

Public Domain