Jan's Bible NotesMatthew 19
1-12 Jesus speaks about marriage and divorce. The Pharisees try again to trap Him with a question. “For any cause at all” is the issue here. There were two schools of thought: divorce was permissible for the slightest offense (the popular view), or, only for sexual offense (the Mosaic Law view). They want Jesus to take a side, which would then make Him unpopular with one group or the other. Does Jesus give a yes/no answer?
4-6 Instead of talking about divorce, Jesus talks about what? He takes them back to what? Before the Law. Before what else? The fall. This was God’s perfect plan for marriage, before sin entered the world.
7-9 But sin DID enter the world. Because marriage is to be permanent, remarriage is equivalent to adultery, unless unfaithfulness was the reason. What is marriage a picture of? Read Eph. 5:22-32. But DID Moses command anyone to divorce? Playing word games. Jesus changed “command” to the correct word.
10 The disciples get His meaning, that if marriage was to be taken THAT seriously, it might be better not to marry. Apparently marriage vows were taken as lightly then as now, just as convenience, rather than something binding before God. Jesus said unfaithfulness is grounds for divorce; what might Christians today add to that list? Not loving, drunk, brutal. We need to distinguish what is biblical vs. what is popular Christian thinking. Are Christians promised or told to expect a loving fulfilling marriage? What if it is not? Another passage on divorce is I Cor. 7.
11 I’m not sure what this is saying. That not many are capable of having the right approach to marriage?
12 A eunuch is a man who has been physically altered so as not to be sexually active or inclined. Some take this to also apply to those who are not interested in marriage. Some choose not to marry in order to devote themselves to God’s work (also I Cor. 7:20-35), but qualifications for elders (pastors) include marriage, so there is no biblical requirement for priests or nuns to be celibate.
13-15 Children. Matthew ties God’s concern for permanent marriage with God’s concern for children. 13, why might the disciples do this?
14 Some Christians believe children cannot receive Christ, so they do not evangelize children. Adults must become like children, in faith; also points to the idea that children go to heaven when they die, before they reach the age when they are accountable for their own decision about Christ. The context is how to enter the kingdom, who can enter.
16-17 Luke identifies this young man as a ruler, so this is often referred to as the story of the rich young ruler. He was interested in eternal life, entering the kingdom, for which righteousness was required. Jesus counters with a question; why? Who is good (perfect)? So is Jesus good or not, is He God or not? This is what the man really needed to know. This is the way to eternal life.
This addresses the question of what is meant by “good.” Most of us think we are pretty good, and we know many people we think are good, by human standards. But in God’s eyes, “good” means sinless. Only God is good. We cannot be good enough, because we cannot be sinless. We may be good people, but God says we are NOT good. Rom. 3:10. Our best efforts at being good are so far from His standard of good that He compares them to filthy rags, Is. 64:6. Righteousness in God’s eyes comes not by doing good things, but by exercising faith in Jesus Christ, Rom. 4:5, II Cor. 5:21, Phil. 3:9.
18-20 He was either fairly righteous, or arrogant. But Jesus didn’t speak to him about arrogance. Why did he think he was still missing something?
21-22 Do all who wish to follow Christ need to sell everything? We don’t find that throughout scripture. Why did Jesus tell him to? For him, this was the issue; this was his god, his idol, the thing that had the highest priority in his life. So he HAD broken the first commandment, Ex. 20:3.
23-24 So does this say that the rich must become un-rich before they can find salvation? No, but what must they do? Stop trusting in their riches, hold them lightly, be willing to part with them if God should ask them to. He is saying that most rich people DO trust in their possessions. If we are not rich, what is the application here for us? We should hold EVERYTHING lightly that we have and value. Jesus knows how to use figures of speech, hyperbole, to get His point across.
25 Hadn’t God promised physical blessings to the righteous, to Israel? More evidence of a new dispensation; now God is setting things up different. Wealth is no longer the mark of God’s blessing, and can even be a hindrance.
26 We must have faith to be saved; is that faith of our own doing? Read Eph. 2:8-9. Does that mean we have no part in salvation, that it is just election, God’s action only? No, we are told in many places to believe and to receive Him, to repent, follow, obey. John 1:12, 3:16.
27-30 What is Peter concerned about? Rewards, status, power. Might he be comparing himself and the disciples to the young ruler; they HAD left much. But does Jesus rebuke his question? What is ahead for the 12 disciples? What does this tell us about who will be resurrected when? 29, rewards for what kind of people? 30, but what? Things might not turn out according to our human earthly values. Or maybe, they who appeared “last” in the world’s eyes, will then be first, and those who have everything now will be at the bottom of the heap then. OR, could this be a time reference? They (Israel) were first, we (the church) come last; we will receive our promises first (at the rapture, the church will be complete in heaven), they will get theirs later, after us, at the earthly millenial kingdom. The next chapter opens by illustrating this statement.
Copyright 2003 Jan Young