Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one: God.
Parallel Translations
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Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one: God.
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Iesus sayd vnto him: Why callest thou me good? No man is good save God only.
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And Iesus said vnto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, saue one, euen God.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (8)
Passages linked to Luke 18:19 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Job 15:14-16 What is man, that he should be clean? What is he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? Behold, he puts no trust in his holy ones. Yes, the heavens are not clean in his sight; how much less one who is abominable and corrupt, a man who drinks iniquity like water!
- James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, nor turning shadow.
- Hebrews 7:26 For such a high priest was fitting for us: holy, guiltless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
- Job 14:4 Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one.
- Job 25:4 How then can man be just with God? Or how can he who is born of a woman be clean?
- Luke 1:35 The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.
- Luke 11:13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”
- 1 Timothy 3:16 Without controversy, the mystery of godliness is great: God was revealed in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, and received up in glory.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (8 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou…
19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
Ver. 19. See Mat 19:16-17.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain Our Saviour here reproves this person for calling him…
Our Saviour here reproves this person for calling him good, when he did not own him to be God; saying, There is none good, that is essentially and originally good, absolutely and immutably good, but God only; nor any derivatively good, but he that receives his goodness from God also.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And Jesus said unto him,.... In answer to his…
And Jesus said unto him,.... In answer to his question, beginning with the character he gave him:
why callest thou me good? it being unusual to address men, even their Rabbins, under such a title:
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none is good, save one, that is, God: or "but God alone"; as the Vulgate Latin and Arabic versions render it; or, "but the one God", as read the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions; See Gill on Mat 19:17.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain THE RICH YOUNG RULER AND DISCOURSE THEREON. (Luk 18:18-30)
THE RICH YOUNG RULER AND DISCOURSE THEREON. (Luk 18:18-30)
Why, &c.--Did our Lord mean then to teach that God only ought to be called "good?" Impossible, for that had been to contradict all Scripture teaching, and His own, too (Psa 112:5; Mat 25:21; Tit 1:8). Unless therefore we are to ascribe captiousness to our Lord, He could have had but one object--to raise the youth's ideas of Himself, as not to be classed merely with other "good masters," and declining to receive this title apart from the "One" who is essentially and only "good." This indeed is but distantly hinted; but unless this is seen in the background of our Lord's words, nothing worthy of Him can be made out of them. (Hence, Socinianism, instead of having any support here, is only baffled by it).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 19. Why callest thou me good?] According to St…
19. Why callest thou me good?] According to St Matthew the question also ran, ‘Why askest thou me about the good?’ The emphasis is not on the me (for the form used in the original is the enclitic με not ἐμὲ on good. Why do you give me this strange title which from your point of view is unwarrantable? Comp. Plato Phaed. 27, “to be a good man is impossible...God alone could have this honour.”
none is good, save one, that is, God] 1Jn_3:5.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (19) Why callest thou me good?—The agreement with St.…
(19) Why callest thou me good?—The agreement with St. Mark is again closer than with St. Matthew.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me…
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. The title "good" was a singular one for the young ruler to have used. It was never used to the most famous rabbis by their pupils. It implied an intense reverence, but nothing more. The young man distinctly did not then believe the Master was Divine, else he had never made the great refusal recorded directly afterwards. "To be a good man is impossible... God alone could have this honour" (Plate, "Phaed.," 27). "You are looking at me," said the Master, "as a man: why give me this strange, lofty title? You are looking on me only as an earthly Teacher." The great Heart-reader was reading the young man"s thoughts, thoughts which soon crystallized, as we shall see, into the refused to do what he, whom he chose to style "good," directed him to carry out.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 18:19 Why do you call me good? The man…
18:19 Why do you call me good? The man was calling Jesus “good” as a general compliment, but only God is truly good. Jesus was challenging the man’s understanding of goodness—true goodness requires moral perfection.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.