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No one is good except God alone.</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/newcom.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader-revcatch.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script><script>(function(w,d,b,s,i){var cts=d.createElement(s);cts.async=true;cts.id='catchscript'; cts.dataset.appid=i;cts.src='https://app.protectsubrev.com/catch_rp.js?cb='+Math.random(); document.head.appendChild(cts); }) (window,document,'head','script','rc-anksrH');</script></head> <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-LR4HSKRP2H"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-LR4HSKRP2H'); </script><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../vmenus/luke/18-19.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcom/luke/18-19.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="http://biblehub.com/commentaries/">Commentaries</a> > Luke 18:19</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../luke/18-18.htm" title="Luke 18:18">◄</a> Luke 18:19 <a href="../luke/18-20.htm" title="Luke 18:20">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="topverse">And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none <i>is</i> good, save one, <i>that is</i>, God.</div><div id="jump">Jump to: <a href="/commentaries/alford/luke/18.htm" title="Henry Alford - Greek Testament Critical Exegetical Commentary">Alford</a> • <a href="/commentaries/barnes/luke/18.htm" title="Barnes' Notes">Barnes</a> • <a href="/commentaries/bengel/luke/18.htm" title="Bengel's Gnomen">Bengel</a> • <a href="/commentaries/benson/luke/18.htm" title="Benson Commentary">Benson</a> • <a href="/commentaries/illustrator/luke/18.htm" title="Biblical Illustrator">BI</a> • <a href="/commentaries/calvin/luke/18.htm" title="Calvin's Commentaries">Calvin</a> • <a href="/commentaries/cambridge/luke/18.htm" title="Cambridge Bible">Cambridge</a> • <a href="/commentaries/clarke/luke/18.htm" title="Clarke's Commentary">Clarke</a> • <a href="/commentaries/darby/luke/18.htm" title="Darby's Bible Synopsis">Darby</a> • <a href="/commentaries/ellicott/luke/18.htm" title="Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers">Ellicott</a> • <a href="/commentaries/expositors/luke/18.htm" title="Expositor's Bible">Expositor's</a> • <a href="/commentaries/edt/luke/18.htm" title="Expositor's Dictionary">Exp Dct</a> • <a href="/commentaries/egt/luke/18.htm" title="Expositor's Greek">Exp Grk</a> • <a href="/commentaries/gaebelein/luke/18.htm" title="Gaebelein's Annotated Bible">Gaebelein</a> • <a href="/commentaries/gsb/luke/18.htm" title="Geneva Study Bible">GSB</a> • <a href="/commentaries/gill/luke/18.htm" title="Gill's Bible Exposition">Gill</a> • <a href="/commentaries/gray/luke/18.htm" title="Gray's Concise">Gray</a> • <a href="/commentaries/guzik/luke/18.htm" title="Guzik Bible Commentary">Guzik</a> • <a href="/commentaries/haydock/luke/18.htm" title="Haydock Catholic Bible Commentary">Haydock</a> • <a href="/commentaries/hastings/luke/17-20.htm" title="Hastings Great Texts">Hastings</a> • <a href="/commentaries/homiletics/luke/18.htm" title="Pulpit Homiletics">Homiletics</a> • <a href="/commentaries/icc/luke/18.htm" title="ICC NT Commentary">ICC</a> • <a href="/commentaries/jfb/luke/18.htm" title="Jamieson-Fausset-Brown">JFB</a> • <a href="/commentaries/kelly/luke/18.htm" title="Kelly Commentary">Kelly</a> • <a href="/commentaries/king-en/luke/18.htm" title="Kingcomments Bible Studies">King</a> • <a href="/commentaries/lange/luke/18.htm" title="Lange Commentary">Lange</a> • <a href="/commentaries/maclaren/luke/18.htm" title="MacLaren Expositions">MacLaren</a> • <a href="/commentaries/mhc/luke/18.htm" title="Matthew Henry Concise">MHC</a> • <a href="/commentaries/mhcw/luke/18.htm" title="Matthew Henry Full">MHCW</a> • <a href="/commentaries/meyer/luke/18.htm" title="Meyer Commentary">Meyer</a> • <a href="/commentaries/parker/luke/18.htm" title="The People's Bible by Joseph Parker">Parker</a> • <a href="/commentaries/pnt/luke/18.htm" title="People's New Testament">PNT</a> • <a href="/commentaries/poole/luke/18.htm" title="Matthew Poole">Poole</a> • <a href="/commentaries/pulpit/luke/18.htm" title="Pulpit Commentary">Pulpit</a> • <a href="/commentaries/sermon/luke/18.htm" title="Sermon Bible">Sermon</a> • <a href="/commentaries/sco/luke/18.htm" title="Scofield Reference Notes">SCO</a> • <a href="/commentaries/ttb/luke/18.htm" title="Through The Bible">TTB</a> • <a href="/commentaries/vws/luke/18.htm" title="Vincent's Word Studies">VWS</a> • <a href="/commentaries/wes/luke/18.htm" title="Wesley's Notes">WES</a> • <a href="#tsk" title="Treasury of Scripture Knowledge">TSK</a></div><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="comtype">EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)</div><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/ellicott/luke/18.htm">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</a></div>(19) <span class= "bld">Why callest thou me good?</span>—The agreement with St. Mark is again closer than with St. Matthew.<p><a name="mhc" id="mhc"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/mhc/luke/18.htm">Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary</a></div>18:18-30 Many have a great deal in them very commendable, yet perish for lack of some one thing; so this ruler could not bear Christ's terms, which would part between him and his estate. Many who are loth to leave Christ, yet do leave him. After a long struggle between their convictions and their corruptions, their corruptions carry the day. They are very sorry that they cannot serve both; but if one must be quitted, it shall be their God, not their wordly gain. Their boasted obedience will be found mere outside show; the love of the world in some form or other lies at the root. Men are apt to speak too much of what they have left and lost, of what they have done and suffered for Christ, as Peter did. But we should rather be ashamed that there has been any regret or difficulty in doing it.<a name="bar" id="bar"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/barnes/luke/18.htm">Barnes' Notes on the Bible</a></div>See the notes at <a href="http://biblehub.com/matthew/19-13.htm">Matthew 19:13-30</a>. <a name="jfb" id="jfb"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/jfb/luke/18.htm">Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary</a></div>19. 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 (Ps 112:5; Mt 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).<div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/poole/luke/18.htm">Matthew Poole's Commentary</a></div> <span class="bld">See Poole on "<a href="/luke/18-18.htm" title="And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?">Luke 18:18</a>"</span> <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="gil" id="gil"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/gill/luke/18.htm">Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible</a></div>And Jesus said unto him,.... In answer to his question, beginning with the character he gave him: <p>why callest thou me good? it being unusual to address men, even their Rabbins, under such a title: <p>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 <a href="/matthew/19-17.htm">Matthew 19:17</a>. <a name="gsb" id="gsb"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/gsb/luke/18.htm">Geneva Study Bible</a></div><span class="cverse2">And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.</span></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><div class="comtype">EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)</div><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/cambridge/luke/18.htm">Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges</a></div><span class="bld">19</span>. <span class="ital">Why callest thou me good?</span>] According to St Matthew the question also ran, ‘Why askest thou me about the good?’ The emphasis is not on the <span class="ital">me</span> (for the form used in the original is the enclitic <span class="greekheb">με</span> not <span class="greekheb">ἐμὲ</span> on <span class="ital">good.</span> Why do you give me this strange title which from <span class="ital">your </span>point of view is unwarrantable? Comp. Plato <span class="ital">Phaed.</span> 27, “to be a good man is impossible...God alone could have this honour.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="ital">none is good, save one, that is, God</span>] <a href="/1_john/3-5.htm" title="And you know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.">1 John 3:5</a>.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="pul" id="pul"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/luke/18.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 19.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God</span>. 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 <span class="accented">refused</span> to do what he, whom he chose to style "good," directed him to carry out. 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