To read the texts click on the texts: Ezekiel 28:1-10; Mt 19:23-30
Immediately after the rich young man
departs, the next words of Jesus are to his disciples. Matthew reformulates it
as an “AMEN” saying. The word “Amen” occurs thirty-two times in Matthew.
Beginning some of his pronouncements with “Amen” was a unique aspect of Jesus’
own authoritative speech. Amen is not a Greek word, but a transliteration of
the Hebrew word “Amen” which is a responsive affirmation to something said
previously. In this context, it is used to make the pronouncement of Jesus
solemn. The pronouncement is about the impossibility of a rich person entering
the kingdom of God. Jesus clearly reached for the most extreme illustration of
impossibility, and the disciples got the point.
In response to Peter’s question, which
must be seen as a continuation of the preceding dialogue (for taken by
itself, Peter’s question seems purely selfish) Jesus affirms the eschatological
reward for those who have not depended on their own goodness/talents/abilities/righteousness,
but acknowledge their dependence on God’s free grace.
The point is not so much that God will
prevent the rich from entering the kingdom, but that their riches will be an
obstacle in their path.
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