Matius 19:17-20

19:17 He 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, 19:19 honor your father and mother, ¹  and love your neighbor as yourself.” ²  19:20 The young man said to him, “I have wholeheartedly obeyed ³  all these laws. ⁴  What do I still lack?”

[19:19]  ¹ sn A quotation from Exod 20:12-16; Deut 5:16-20.

[19:19]  ² sn A quotation from Lev 19:18.

[19:20]  ³ tn 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.

[19:20]  ⁴ tn Grk “these things.” The referent of the pronoun (the laws mentioned by Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:20]  sn 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.