From: Matthew 19:16-22

The Rich Young Man

[16] And behold, one man came up to Him (Jesus), saying, “Teacher, what good
deed must I do, to have eternal life?” [17] And He said to him, “Why do you ask
Me about what is good? One there is who is good. If you would enter life, keep
the commandments.” [18] He said to Him, “Which?” And Jesus said, “You shall
not kill, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear
false witness, [19] Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neigh-
bor as yourself.” [20] The young man said to Him, “All these I have observed;
what do I still lack?” [21] Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell
what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in Heaven;
and come, follow Me.” [22] When the young man heard this he went away sor-
rowful; for he had great possessions.

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Commentary:

17. The Vulgate and other translations, supported by a good many Greek codi-
ces, fill this verse out by saying, “One alone is good, God.”

20-22. “What do I still lack?” The young man kept the commandments that were
necessary for salvation. But there is more. This is why our Lord replies, “if you
would be perfect...” that is to say, if you want to acquire what is still lacking to
you. Jesus is giving him an additional calling, “Come, follow Me”: He is showing
that He wants him to follow Him more closely, and therefore He requires, as He
does others (cf. Matthew 4:19-22), to give up anything that might hinder his full
dedication to the Kingdom of God.

The scene ends rather pathetically: the young man goes away sad. His attach-
ment to his property prevails over Jesus’ affectionate invitation. Here is sadness
of the kind that stems from cowardice, from failure to respond to God’s calling
with personal commitment.

In reporting this episode, the evangelists are actually giving us a case study
which describes a situation and formulates a law, a case study of specific divine
vocation to devote oneself to God’s service and the service of all men.

This young man has become a symbol of the kind of Christian whose mediocrity
and shortsightedness prevent him from turning his life into a generous, fruitful
self-giving to the service of God and neighbor.

What would this young man have become, had he been generous enough to res-
pond to God’s call? A great apostle, surely.

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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading	Judges 2:11-19 ©

The Lord appoints judges to rescue the men of Israel

The sons of Israel did what displeases the Lord, and served the Baals. They deserted the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods from the gods of the peoples round them. They bowed down to these; they provoked the Lord; they deserted the Lord to serve Baal and Astarte. Then the Lord’s anger flamed out against Israel. He handed them over to pillagers who plundered them; he delivered them to the enemies surrounding them, and they were not able to resist them. In every warlike venture, the hand of the Lord was there to foil them, as the Lord had warned, as the Lord had sworn to them. Thus he reduced them to dire distress.

Then the Lord appointed judges for them, and rescued the men of Israel from the hands of their plunderers. But they would not listen to their judges. They prostituted themselves to other gods, and bowed down before these. Very quickly they left the path their ancestors had trodden in obedience to the orders of the Lord; they did not follow their example. When the Lord appointed judges for them, the Lord was with the judge and rescued them from the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived, for the Lord felt pity for them as they groaned under the iron grip of their oppressors. But once the judge was dead, they relapsed and behaved even worse than their ancestors. They followed other gods; they served them and bowed before them, and would not give up the practices and stubborn ways of their ancestors at all.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 105(106):34-37,39-40,43-44 ©