COMMENTARY ON MARK
LESSON NUMBER 131
“ Mark 12:28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, Which is the first commandment of all? 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: 30 and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”(Mark 12:28-31; Matthew 22:34-40)
THE FIRST COMMANDMENT OF ALL
INTRODUCTION
Jesus is about His Father’s business – in the Temple, speaking of things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. He has drawn the attention of the people – both friend and foe – for that is His nature. Wherever His presence is detected, He is always dominant. To my knowledge, no one ever asked Jesus to join their movement or group. There seemed to be an awareness that He was operating by a different agenda, and could not be enticed to become part of some other enterprise. One of the ways to diffuse the expression of tangential thoughts is to speak the truth as it is in Jesus. It is vastly superior, and by its very nature moves people to a higher plateau of thinking. We are witnessing examples of this in the questions that have been asked of Jesus in the closing days of His ministry. Here are some that were asked during the days covered in our text: “Is it lawful for a man to put away His wife for every cause?” (Matt 19:3). “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk 10:17). “Is it lawful to pay tribute to Casesar?” (Mk 12:14). “In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife” (Mark 12:23). And now, a man asks Jesus concerning the greatest commandment. Notice the nature and theme of all of these questions. Even when they were tempting questions, designed to catch Jesus in a technical error, they all dealt with things from the spiritual point of view. Even when asking about paying taxes, they wanted to know if it was “lawful” – i.e., if the matter had been addressed in the Word of God. All of this confirms the kind of impact that Jesus had upon people. They never associated Him with mere trivia, or called upon Him to participate in such things. That is because the accent of His communication was unquestionably clear. Those who represent themselves as being with Him ought also to be clearly associated with such things.
PERCEPTION PROMPTS ANOTHER QUESTION
“ Mark 12:28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, Which is the first commandment of all?”
HE HEARD THEM REASONING TOGETHER. Unless Jesus withdrew with His disciples, His teaching was of a public nature. If you were where He was, you could hear what He was saying. This means that Jesus’ instruction was not always personalized, dealing with individual matters. Truth has a larger circumference than human experience. It is like a jewel that is held within the setting of eternal purpose. This why, when it is truly known, it makes the people free (John 8:32). Here, we find a scribe who was listening to the dialog Jesus was having with the Sadducees. Matthew informs us that he was actually with the Pharisees, who consorted with the scribes regularly: “But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question” (Matt 22:34-35).
There is something of interest to be noted here. Jesus did not make a practice of joining in the discussions of others. However, others were drawn into what He was saying, even though their purposes were not always honorable. I am always suspicious of an approach to Christ and His work that attracts unthinking and slothful people. This is not to be confused with publicans and harlots getting into the Kingdom of God before the religious elite (Matt 21:31). The people in this category (publicans and harlots), of whom Jesus spoke, knew what they were, were discontent with it, and saw in Jesus a means of escape. I do not know that it is proper to associate them with vagrants, the drug culture, and the likes.
HE PERCEIVED JESUS HAD ANSWERED THEM WELL. This particular scribe took note of the excellence of Jesus’ answer. This reveals much about the manner in which Jesus spoke. He did not speak loosely, but with holy deliberation and insight. His words drew the attention of thoughtful people. It is not proper for those who speak for Jesus to be noted for clumsy speech, flawed expressions, and unchallenging thoughts. Truth has an appeal to the highest part of man – a part that is hidden beneath the veneer of sin, but is drawn out by truth.
Matthew also tells us that the scribe was tempting Jesus with this question (Matt 22:35). That is, he was testing Jesus – examining the level of His knowledge and probing His understanding. This may seem like an innocent gesture, but it was not. It is the evidence of unbelief, as though some weakness or inconsistency could be discovered in the Teacher from Nazareth. Men are forbidden to tempt the Lord, seeking to discover whether or not He is everything He seems to be. The proper way to prove the Lord is not by asking Him questions, but by doing what He has commanded. This is the point God made to Israel concerning tithing (Mal 3:10). He called upon them to act in faith, not test Him in unbelief.
WHICH IS THE FIRST COMMANDMENT OF ALL? Matthew says He asked, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?” (Mat 22:36). This was a thoughtful question, and revealed a mind-set that has nearly been lost by our generation. Sin, being basically self-centered, does not allow for such questions. It does not think about what is primary, fundamental, essential, or preeminent. It does not allow for the “one thing” mentality, unless it is the gratification of the flesh. God has created man after His own image. Part of that likeness is being driven by a single purpose, and gathering all things under a solitary objective. This image has been greatly corrupted by sin, yet enough of it remains to still qualify men as being “the image and glory of God” (1 Cor 11:7; Gen 9:6; James 3:9). As such, they can think in terms of an emphasis, accentuation, or stress.
Now, here is an exceptional question, even though it was not asked with the proper motive. We know it was a good question because Jesus answered it, and did not rebuke the man for asking it. The question itself was within the perimeter of truth, and reflected a Kingdom manner.
“Which is the first commandment of all?” The scribe is not asking about the commandments of men – although the answer to his question will address even those. He is asking about the most prominent commandment “in the law” (Matt 22:36). What is the most important requirement of the Law? The words of the covenant, written on the tables of the covenant, had the Ten Commandments. There were hundreds of other commandments that surrounded those requirements. Some had to do with daily human conduct. Others with handling certain kinds of social matters. There were many that related to the ordained ceremonies required in the Old Covenant. What was the single commandment that stood out above them all? What was first in priority? What was the main thing men were to do? What was their primary duty? It is to be understood that whatever it is, if it is not done, nothing else really matters. In our day, this kind of thinking is unusual, and there is by no means a unity within the church concerning the answer to this question.
THE FIRST OF ALL COMMANDMENTS
“ 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”
THE FIRST OF ALL. Jesus precisely answers the question asked by the scribe. Other versions read, “the foremost,” NASB “the most important one,” NIV “chief commandment,” WEYMOUTH and “first and principle one.” AMPLIFIED As used here, the word “first” means “first in rank, influence, honor, and principle.” THAYER All commands, then, do not have an equal ranking. In the Law, there was one commandment that outranked all others, and upon which all of the others depended. This was not an academic ranking, but a moral one. To fail in this commandment was to fail in all other commandments. In fact, a failure to obey this commandment accounted for all disobedience and waywardness.
THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD. Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6:4-5: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” Moses nowhere declared this to be the first and foremost commandment. Had he done so, the scribe’s question would have required nothing more than the recollection of a text. This is a question that required discernment. It called for a conclusion. On one occasion “a certain lawyer” asked Jesus “Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What is written in the law? how readest thou?” (Luke 10:25-26). The lawyer gave the same answer Jesus will give this scribe, and Jesus told him, “Thou hast answered right” (Lk 10:27-28).
That is the kind of answer Jesus is giving – how the Law was to be understood. This commandment was not on the tables of the covenant. Yet, if anyone read the tables correctly, this is the conclusion to which they should have come.
LOVE GOD WITH ALL THE HEART. Make no mistake about this – this was an absolute requirement – the first commandment of all! God was to be loved “with all the heart.” The requirement is driven by the fact that “The Lord our God is One” – that is, He is God alone. There is no other God. That demands that love not be withheld from Him, which withholding is idolatry. To love anything or anyone more than God is, in fact, idolatry.
The “heart” is the inmost part of man. Intellectual, emotional, and determinative capacities are there. Here is where character is found, motivation, causes, and the want, desires, or will. God does not require some token recognition by the heart, but that He be loved with all of the heart, so that no part of man’s essential makeup is not focused upon the Lord.
LOVE GOD WITH ALL THE SOUL. The “soul” is equates to the personality of the individual, and has primarily to do with expression. It also has the capacity to cause the person to be elevated with expectation, or cast down in despair. God is to be loved, preferred, and served with all of our expressive capacities. Paul calls them our “members” (Rom 6:13).
LOVE GOD WITH ALL THE MIND. The Deuteronomy text does not contain the word “mind.” This a further breakdown of the soul of man, and refers to the capacity to understand, discern, comprehend, and engage in protracted thought. God is to be loved with all of the mind, so that he is discerned, and comprehended. He is to be the Theme of meditation, contemplation, musing, and cogitation.
LOVE GOD WITH ALL THE STRENGTH. Moses used the word “might.” This refers to ability, aptitude, or capability. Because all ability is given by God, it is to be given back to Him, loving and preferring Him above all else – for He is above all. Moses reminded the people that this was a Divine requirement. “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul” (Deut 10:12).
Moses knew that sin had so blighted man’s capacities that this commandment could not possibly be obeyed. However, that did not remove the commandment, or make it less of a requirement. It still had to be done. Therefore Moses promised the people, “And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live” (Deut 30:6).
THIS IS THE FIRST COMMANDMENT. If a person wants to talk about commandments, this is the ranking one – and it is not even stated as such in the Ten Commandments. The great salvation of God enables men to keep this commandment, and to do so joyfully, and with unparalleled satisfaction.
Among other things, the words of our Lord confirm that man’s primary responsibility has to do with his individual response to God Himself. When it comes to DOING, what is done Godward is the fundamental thing. The first commandment is now encapsulated in believing on Christ, which enables us to meet the requirements of this love (1 John 3:23).
THE SECOND IS LIKE THE FIRST
“ 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”
THE SECOND. The scribe did not ask about the second commandment, but Jesus will declare a word on it anyway, because He was being tempted, or tested, by the question and He knew it. The word “second” does not reflect the sequence of the commandment, but its subordination to the first commandment. It is second in priority, not first. It is second in importance, not primary. It is the next commandment and not the first one. It is man’s secondary responsibility, not his fundamental one.
Also, by saying “the second,” Jesus means that the Law really contained only two commandments. They related to man’s responsibility to God Himself, and to man, who is the offspring of God. The table of the Law detailed the involvements of loving God in the first four commandments (Having no other gods before Him, no graven images or bowing down to idols, not taking God’s name in vain, and keeping the Sabbath day holy – Ex 20:3-11). Secondly, loving our neighbor was encapsulated in the last six commandments (honoring father and mother, not killing, not committing adultery, not stealing, not lying, and not coveting – Ex 20:12-17).
Several texts of Scripture summarize human responsibility in a brief manner. SOLOMON: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Eccl 12:13). MICAH: “He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Micah 6:8). JOHN: “And this is His commandment, That we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment” (1 John 3:23). JESUS: “Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent” (John 6:29). The more detailed we are in our thinking, the further we tend to drift, both morally and spiritually.
LOVE THY NEIGHBOR AS THYSELF. In the Law, “the second” commandment was not declared together with the first one, as it is by Jesus. Moses cites this commandment in another place, and within the context of a number of detailed instructions. Here is what he wrote by inspiraion. “Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbor, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the LORD” (Lev 19:18).
Jesus is giving the summation of the law concerning our neighbor. He finds the requirement within a rather lengthy discourse, lifts it out of the context, and declares it to be “the second” commandment. I do not believe it is possible to take an academic approach to the matter, have an open-book test, and find the students making a statement like this. This was the expression of understanding – the articulation of the “sense” of the commandment.
Paul gave a similar summation of this requirement: “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Rom 13:9-10). He wrote the same to the Galatians: “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Gal 5:14).
Within the framework of the New Covenant, this commandment is enlarged. For example, Jesus did not tell His disciples to love one another as they loved themselves. He rather said, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another” (John 13:34). John declared that the person who loved his brother was abiding in the light, and there was no occasion of stumbling in him (1 John 2:10).
Under Christ, failing to love our brother not only reveals one does not love God, but that he does not know God – for no one who knows Him does not love Him. Thus John wrote, “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1 John 4:8).
When it comes to loving our “neighbor,” without regard to whether or not they are in Christ, the requirement of the Law is summed up in a single statement: “love does no harm to a neighbor” NKJV (Rom 13:10). In Christ, however, the bar is raised higher. Brotherly love is depicted as “preferring one another” (Rom 12:10). It also expresses itself when the saints “esteem other better than themselves” (Phil 2:3). Thus, in Christ Jesus, and under the New Covenant, loving our neighbor as ourselves is not enough. That is not satisfactory for those who have been reconciled to God!
Therefore, when Jesus says, “There is none other commandment greater than these,” He is speaking within the context of the Law and the Prophets. Matthew clearly states this in his record of this occasion. “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets”(Matt 22:40). Once Jesus takes away the sin of the world, as He is preparing to do, it will enable men to see much more, and thus will alter the entire landscape of human responsibility.