But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
All Commentaries on Matthew 19:22 Go To Matthew 19
Cornelius a Lapide
AD 1637
When the young man heard, &c. Wisely says S. Augustine (Epist43. ad Paulin.), "I know not how it is that when superfluous earthly things are loved, the more acquired the more they bind. Wherefore did that young man depart in sorrow, except because he had great riches? For it is one thing to be unwilling to incorporate with yourself what you have not; it is another thing to tear away what has been incorporated. The former may be repudiated as something not belonging to you: divesting yourself of the latter is like cutting off your limbs." In the Gospel according to the Hebrews which Origen cites, there is here a considerable addition. It is as follows. "Another of the rich men said unto Him, Master, what good thing shall I do that I may live? He saith unto him, Prayer of Manasseh , keep the Law and the Prophets. He answered Him, I have done this. He said unto him, Go and sell all that thou possessest, and divide amongst the poor, and come, follow Me. But the rich man began to scratch his head, and it pleased him not. And the Lord said unto him, How sayest thou, I have kept the Law and the Prophets? For it is written in the Law, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, and lo, many of thy brethren, the sons of Abraham, are clothed in filthy garments, and perish of hunger, and thy house is full of many good things, and there goeth not out of it anything whatsoever unto them. And He turned and said unto His disciple Simon, who was sitting by Him,—Simon, son of Jonah , it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of Heaven."
