Luke 18:18-30 – A Rich Ruler Asks Jesus about Eternal Life

BIBLE TEXT

Luke 18:18-30

Summary

When a rich ruler asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life, Jesus tells him to sell all his possessions, distribute the proceeds among those who live in poverty, and then follow him. The man becomes sad as a result and Jesus teaches about wealth and the kingdom of God

Analysis

The rich ruler who comes to Jesus appears to do so in good faith; he is not trying to trick Jesus or parade his own virtue. He wants to know about eternal life. Likewise when Jesus names some of the ten commandments (see Exodus 20:12-17) and the man claims to have followed them–nothing appears amiss. What Jesus says next is shocking, however, since he does not say the same thing to anyone else he meets in Luke (however, see Luke 14:33), at least not in a way like this. Jesus seems to target the man’s particular weak spot, given his wealth and power: “Sell all that you own and distribute the money to the poor.” 

Luke does not disclose how the man responds, except to note that he becomes sad. Jesus asks him to do more than separate himself from his wealth, so the issue here is about more than simply relinquishing one’s money, security, and advantages. Jesus tells him to redistribute his wealth to people who are poor. This is a significant move, for it appears to imply that the man must give up his status and privilege, as well. If he does, he will no longer be either rich or a ruler. The man, if he follows Jesus’ command, will make himself at the mercy, so to speak, of others whom he has, by his relinquishments, helped to elevate over himself. He will give up his honor and his social standing as well as his money, and those things are not easily earned back.

In what follows, Jesus does not lessen his demands or imply that his expectations for the rich ruler do not apply more broadly. He says, rather, that it is extremely difficult for a wealthy person to enter the kingdom of God. With an absurd example, he compares the situation to a camel trying to pass through the eye of a needle. What he means is plain: a large thing simply cannot fit into a tiny opening. It is impossible.

(Note: there was no gate in Jerusalem, or anywhere else in the ancient world that scholars know about, called “the eye of the needle.” Some have proposed that there was such a gate, in imaginative attempts to soften Jesus’ statement by implying that a humble, crawling camel carrying nothing on its back might barely fit through such a gate. But Jesus neither promises nor implies any such thing.)

Jesus’ words shock those who hear them, for they exclaim “Then who can be saved?” Jesus holds out hope, perhaps, when he replies, “What is impossible for mortals is possible for God.” Those around Jesus might assume that a wealthy person appears to be blessed by God already. If, as they now learn, someone with wealth does not fit in the kingdom of God, then who does? Jesus has more to say, to explain the importance of giving up wealth, status, and other things that purport to provide security.

Jesus tells Peter and the others that he is aware of all they have relinquished to follow him. He reassures them that they do not remain destitute or alone as a result. They “get back very much more,” now and in the future. This is not a promise of wealth or repayment. Jesus definitely does not preach a prosperity gospel in Luke, or in any other biblical Gospel. Jesus means that life in the kingdom of God comes with new family and new ways of finding security. His words would be comforting, one presumes, to those around him and those in the early church who found themselves estranged from friends and family because of their decision to follow Christ.