Matthew 19:21

19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Isaiah 33:6

33:6 He is your constant source of stability;

he abundantly provides safety and great wisdom;

he gives all this to those who fear him.

Luke 12:33

12:33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves purses that do not wear out – a treasure in heaven that never decreases, where no thief approaches and no moth 10  destroys.

Luke 18:22

18:22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have 11  and give the money 12  to the poor, 13  and you will have treasure 14  in heaven. Then 15  come, follow me.”

Luke 18:1

Prayer and the Parable of the Persistent Widow

18:1 Then 16  Jesus 17  told them a parable to show them they should always 18  pray and not lose heart. 19 

Luke 6:17

The Sermon on the Plain

6:17 Then 20  he came down with them and stood on a level place. 21  And a large number 22  of his disciples had gathered 23  along with 24  a vast multitude from all over Judea, from 25  Jerusalem, 26  and from the seacoast of Tyre 27  and Sidon. 28  They came to hear him and to be healed 29  of their diseases,

Hebrews 10:34

10:34 For in fact you shared the sufferings of those in prison, 30  and you accepted the confiscation of your belongings with joy, because you knew that you certainly 31  had a better and lasting possession.

Hebrews 11:26

11:26 He regarded abuse suffered for Christ 32  to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for his eyes were fixed on 33  the reward.

James 2:5

2:5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters! 34  Did not God choose the poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?

James 2:1

Prejudice and the Law of Love

2:1 My brothers and sisters, 35  do not show prejudice 36  if you possess faith 37  in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. 38 

James 1:4

1:4 And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you will be perfect and complete, not deficient in anything.

James 5:4

5:4 Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.

Revelation 2:9

2:9 ‘I know the distress you are suffering 39  and your poverty (but you are rich). I also know 40  the slander against you 41  by those who call themselves Jews and really are not, but are a synagogue 42  of Satan.

tn The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

sn The call for sacrifice comes with a promise of eternal reward: You will have treasure in heaven. Jesus’ call is a test to see how responsive the man is to God’s direction through him. Will he walk the path God’s agent calls him to walk? For a rich person who got it right, see Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10.

tn Heb “and he is the stability of your times.”

tn Heb “a rich store of deliverance, wisdom, and knowledge.”

tn Heb “the fear of the Lord, it is his treasure.”

sn The call to sell your possessions is a call to a lack of attachment to the earth and a generosity as a result.

tn Grk “give alms,” but this term is not in common use today.

tn Grk “in the heavens.”

tn Or “an unfailing treasure in heaven,” or “an inexhaustible treasure in heaven.”

10 tn The term σής (shs) refers to moths in general. It is specifically the larvae of moths that destroy clothing by eating holes in it (L&N 4.49; BDAG 922 s.v.). See Jas 5:2, which mentions “moth-eaten” clothing.

11 sn See Luke 14:33.

12 tn The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

13 sn See Luke 1:50-53; 6:20-23; 14:12-14.

14 sn The call for sacrifice comes with a promise of eternal reward: …you will have treasure in heaven. Jesus’ call is a test to see how responsive the man is to God’s direction through him. Will he walk the path God’s agent calls him to walk? For a rich person who got it right, see Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10.

15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the conversation.

16 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

17 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

18 tn Or “should pray at all times” (L&N 67.88).

19 sn This is one of the few parables that comes with an explanation at the start: …they should always pray and not lose heart. It is part of Luke’s goal in encouraging Theophilus (1:4).

20 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

21 tn Or “on a plateau.” This could refer to a message given in a flat locale or in a flat locale in the midst of a more mountainous region (Jer 21:13; Isa 13:2). It is quite possible that this sermon is a summary version of the better known Sermon on the Mount from Matt 5-7.

22 tn Grk “large crowd.”

23 tn There is no verb in Greek at this point, but since “a large crowd” (see preceding tn) is in the nominative case, one needs to be supplied.

24 tn Grk “and.”

25 tn Grk “and from,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

26 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

27 map For location see Map1-A2; Map2-G2; Map4-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.

28 sn These last two locations, Tyre and Sidon, represented an expansion outside of traditional Jewish territory. Jesus’ reputation continued to expand into new regions.

29 sn To hear him and to be healed. Jesus had a two-level ministry: The word and then wondrous acts of service that showed his message of God’s care were real.

30 tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א D2 1881 Ï), read δεσμοῖς μου (desmoi" mou, “my imprisonment”) here, a reading that is probably due to the widespread belief in the early Christian centuries that Paul was the author of Hebrews (cf. Phil 1:7; Col 4:18). It may have been generated by the reading δεσμοῖς without the μου (so Ì46 Ψ 104 pc), the force of which is so ambiguous (lit., “you shared the sufferings with the bonds”) as to be virtually nonsensical. Most likely, δεσμοῖς resulted when a scribe made an error in copying δεσμίοις (desmioi"), a reading which makes excellent sense (“[of] those in prison”) and is strongly supported by early and significant witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western texttypes (A D* H 6 33 81 1739 lat sy co). Thus, δεσμίοις best explains the rise of the other readings on both internal and external grounds and is strongly preferred.

31 tn Grk “you yourselves.”

32 tn Grk “the abuse [or ‘reproach’] of Christ.”

33 tn Grk “he was looking away to.”

34 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

35 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

36 tn Or “partiality.”

37 tn Grk “do not have faith with personal prejudice,” with emphasis on the last phrase.

38 tn Grk “our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.” Here δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

39 tn Or “know your suffering.” This could refer to suffering or distress caused by persecution (see L&N 22.2).

40 tn Because of the length and complexity of this Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the phrase “I also know” to link this English sentence back to “I know” at the beginning of the verse.

41 tn The words “against you” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

42 sn A synagogue was a place for Jewish prayer and worship, with recognized leadership (e.g., Mt 4:23, Mk 1:21, Lk 4:15, Jn 6:59).