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18 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,

19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

20 The young man saith 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 that 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.

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x. 17-31, and Luke xviii, 30.— From St. Luke we learn that the young man who came to our Lord on this occasion was "a ruler," i. e. probably, a ruler of a synagogue; and St. Mark tells us that he came running,—and that he fell upon his knees, by way of respectful saluta

27 Then answered Peter tion. ¶ 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 which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit twelve thrones, judging the

twelve tribes of Israel.

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30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

n Mark x. 17. Luke xviii. 18.- Luke x. 25.-p Ex.

The latter Evangelist also

mentions the affecting circumstance that "Jesus, beholding him, loved him;" that is, was pleased with his amiable manners, even while, as a teacher of truth, he declared his moral delinquency, and guilt in the sight of God.

It may be observed that, by saying to this young man "Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God," our Saviour probably intended to give him an opportunity of declaring his conviction of the Messiahship of him to whom he had given that title. He might have justified his style of address, by saying, "Yea Lord, but thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God!" It appears, however, that he had not formed any correct idea of the real nature and dignity of the person whom he was addressing; he regarded him as a mere human teacher, or prophet; and consequently, the appellation "good," though not too much for Christ to

xx. 13.-Deut. v. 17.-q ch. xv. 4-7 Lev. xix. 18 ch. receive, as being himself God as well

xxii. 39. Rom. xiii. 9. Gal. v. 14. James ii. 8-8 ch.
vi. 20. Luke xii. 33; & xvi. 9. Acts ii. 45; & iv. 34, 35,
1 Tim. vi. 18, 19.-7 ch. xiii. 22 Mark x. 24. 1 Cor. i.
26. 1 Tim. vi. 9, 10.- Gen. xviii. 14. Job xlii. 2. Jer.
xxxii. 17. Zech. viii. 6. Luke i. 37; & xviii. 27.-x Mark
ch. iv. 20.
x. 25. Luke xvii. 28-y Deut. xxxii. 9.
Luke xvii. 28.-y Deut. xxxiii. 9. ch. iv. 20. Luke v.
11.-2 ch. xx. 21. Luke xxii. 28, 29, 30. 1 Cor. vi. 2, 3.

as man, was yet too much for this young man to bestow, as being ig norant of his divinity. He gave,

Rev. 11. 26.- Mark x. 29, 30. Luke xviii. 29, 30.-6 ch. perhaps thoughtlessly, to one whom

xx. 16; & 21, 31, 32. Mark x. 31. Luke xiii. 30.

Reader. We find the substance of this narrative repeated in Mark

he supposed to be no more than man, that honour which belongs to God alone. And our Lord saw fit

to administer a reproof accordingly. The expression (ver. 24) "for a camel (or elephant) to go through the eye of a needle," is a common oriental phrase to denote any thing impossible or extremely difficult. A reading, which has been sometimes adopted, whereby the Greek word for "a cable" has been substituted for that denoting "a camel," appears to have originated in mistake, probably on the part of some transcribers who were ignorant of the form of speech employed by our Saviour on this occasion. A commentator, well versed in oriental literature, reminds us that there is an expression similar to this in the Koran, (Surat vii. ver. 37);—" The impious, who in his arrogance shall accuse our doctrine of falsity, shall find the gates of heaven shut; nor shall he enter there till a camel shall pass through the eye of a needle. It is thus that we shall recompense the wicked." And he adds that, "it was also a mode of expression common among the Jews, and signified a thing impossible." Hence this proverb, "A camel in Media dances in a kabe,"-a measure which held about three pints. Again, "No man sees a palm tree of gold, nor an elephant passing through the eye of a needle;" because these are impossible things. "Rabbi Shesheth answered Rabbi Amram, who had advanced an absurdity, Perhaps thou art one of the Pambidithians who can make an elephant pass through the eye of a needle; that is, says the Aruch, who speak things impossible."

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The words of the 28th verse may require some explanation. It is commonly supposed that the phrase "in the regeneration means "'at the restoration of all things," when the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and there will be new heavens and a new earth,-when the order of the universe, which has been disturbed by sin, shall be restored. And the entire promise to the Apostles, conveyed under the figure of an earthly monarch and his deputies, implies that they should receive eminent dignity in the kingdom of Messiah. Perhaps it is not possible to determine the meaning of this promise more closely; it may be sufficient to regard it as a grant of peculiar honour to be hereafter bestowed upon those who were peculiarly zealous and laborious in their master's cause.

READER. One came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?-What was the character of this young this young man ?-His address and general deportment appear to have been extremely amiable; and he seems to have manifested some seriousness in religious matters. But we discover those moral defects, which betray, it must be feared, a heart not right with God. Perhaps, at the foundation of that question, "What good thing shall I do?" there was a proud desire to work out a path to eternal life in the way of merit. He wished

to enjoy heaven as his due,-some-, solemn admonition, "If any man thing which he could challenge at love the world, the love of the Father the hand of God as his undoubted is not in him." right on account of previous desert. A desire to obtain everlasting happiness is quite consistent with that proud and independent frame of mind which is the essence of rebellion, and alienation from the living God. Again, there was probably no small degree of unfounded self-complacency, and ignorance, more or less voluntary, of the real nature and tenor of his past conduct, -in that question of this young man, What lack I yet? He had not perfectly fulfilled the moral law, even so far as it related to his duties towards his neighbours. But he was not acquainted with his own demerits; and therefore little disposed to exercise penitence, humility, and faith. And, moreover, he appears to have been a slave of covetousness, or at least of a love of the world and of his present possessions. He could not consent to renounce his riches even at the command of one whom he seemed disposed to recognise as a "good teacher."-Let us gather instruction from his history. Let us be willing to receive eternal life, humbly and thankfully, as the gift of God, and not as the fruit of our own doings or deservings. Let us honestly compare our own lives and actions with the entire and perfect law of God, and learn to seek pardon for our offences, rather than to boast of a fancied righteousness. And let us watch and pray against the insidious and encroaching love of present good; remembering that

If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.-If we would obtain eternal life under the moral law as a covenant of works, then we must render complete, unfailing, sinless obedience to that law. But this, through the fall, has become impossible. See Rom. iii. 20-28; Gal. ii. 16; Eph. ii. 9; 2 Tim i. 9.If we would be saved under the Gospel, then we must keep the commandments, or fulfil the demands, of that dispensation. These commandments are summed up in the duties of repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. We are required to surrender ourselves sincerely to the love and service of God, coming to him by faith in the one Mediator Jesus Christ, and showing forth our faith by our works. This, through grace given, we can do, and must do, if we would partake of that great gift of God, eternal life.-The commandments to which our Lord referred the young man were those of the second table, comprising our duty to our neighbour; and, if he had failed in respect of them, how much more had he come short of his duty towards God! He asserted, however, that he had kept all these things from his youth up. Perhaps he had done so, outwardly, in the letter; but he had failed in the spirit. His covetousness and love of the world had involved practically the neglect of many a duty; and this continued to be one of his besetting sins. Our

Lord therefore proposed a test, with reference to this evil disposition; and he could not abide it.-Let us continually seek not only for that mercy which may pardon our transgressions and failings, but also for that grace which may write the law upon our hearts, and enable us to obey it not in the letter only, but in the spirit. "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and wordly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Titus ii. 11-14.

Jesus saith unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, &c.-As a touchstone of his sincerity and the universality of his obedience, our blessed Lord proposed to this young ruler the same line of conduct which had been already adopted by his Apostles. He gave him the same call (Follow me) to which others had cheerfully responded, forsaking all. They, through grace given, had obeyed the call; but he, through pride and ignorance, and an evil love of the world, resisted the grace, and refused to obey. Let their conduct be our pattern and encouragements; and let his be our warning. He went away sorrowful. Riches that keep the heart from God, will one day be sore occasions of sorrow to their possessors.

Verily, I say unto you, that a rich

man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. We find, by reference to St. Mark, that our Lord is here speaking particularly of "them that trust in riches." But it cannot be doubted that the mere possession of wealth is, in itself, a source of temptation, and forms a difficulty to be overcome,-an especial obstacle to be surmounted,-in the way of salvation. Still, praise be to the Divine goodness, and the power of Divine grace, these difficulties are not necessarily fatal. He who gives abundance of riches, is also ready to bestow abundance of that spiritual influence whereby their peculiar dangers may be successfully met and overcome. With men it is impossible to deliver the rich man's heart from the love of this world,—to save it either from grasping covetousness on the one hand, or from self-indulgence and sensuality on the other; but "with God all things are possible," and this among the rest. He can give power to obey that command. "If riches increase, set not your heart upon them." And, through his grace strengthening us, we may be enabled to "trust not in uncertain riches,but in the living God."

Then answered Peter,-still, as on other occasions, the forward speaker, and in this instance betraying perhaps some symptoms of human weakness,-Behold we have forsaken all and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?-It was comparatively little of this world's good which these poor fishermen had been called upon to forsake; but still it was their all.

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