Context is important when examining passages in the Bible. Where was Jesus when he spoke the words, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:25)?

Looking at the context

Matthew, Mark, and Luke—the three evangelists who record this dialogue—seem to place Jesus somewhere between Galilee and Jericho on his final journey to Jerusalem. Somewhere along this journey, a young rich man approached Jesus and fell on his knees, a sign of respect or a gesture of flattery, seeking an honest answer or perhaps, more likely, trying to justify his own life. He asked, “Good teacher, . . . what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mark 10:17).

Knowing the man’s spiritual condition, Jesus directed him to the Second Table of the Ten Commandments, which requires love for one’s neighbor. Upon hearing this, the man declared his own judgment on his life: “Teacher, . . . all these I have kept since I was a boy” (Mark 10:20). Parents especially may find themselves chuckling because they know their children’s sinful escapades. Jesus, however, wasn’t chuckling; he was deeply concerned for the man’s delusional opinions about his own holy life and even more so for the young man’s soul.

Jesus loved him. So he gave the man a simple task regarding the First Table of the Law (love for God) and the Second Table of the Law (love for others): Sell everything; give the proceeds to the poor; and follow Jesus, the good teacher. This was not so much a call to poverty as a call to faith and discipleship.

At this, the man went away very sad. That’s when Jesus said, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:24,25).

Understanding the historical times

So just what did Jesus mean by a camel going through the eye of a needle? The simplest, clearest meaning—and perhaps the most obvious—is that Jesus is speaking about an actual camel and an actual sewing needle. In Jesus’ day, a needle would not have been the very teeny, tiny kind typically used in needlepoint, but one a bit larger, about two to three inches with an eye of approximately three-eighths of an inch to a half-inch in size, which was most often used for sewing things like tents and leather goods. This picture supports the point of impossibility. There is no way any camel was going to walk itself through the eye of such a needle. It’s not going to happen.

To be fair, others suggest alternative meanings. Some believe that Jesus was referring to the Eye of the Needle Gate in Jerusalem, which is a narrow, very short gateway passage. A camel could, with great difficulty and with some help, wiggle its way through. Others think that the Greek word camel was mistaken for the word rope (a one letter difference). Even if that is true, threading a rope through a needle is no more possible than threading a camel through it.

Nevertheless, a few things argue against these alternative suggestions. The first is that both the suggestion of the Eye of the Needle Gate and the word rope being mistaken for camel are arguments that were posited three to five centuries after Jesus’ ministry on earth. Until then, his words were always taken at face value. Also, since Jesus was almost certainly not standing in or near the city wall of Jerusalem, it would seem strange for him to reference it outside that context.

Finally, Jesus was not saying that it would be very difficult or nearly impossible for rich people to enter the kingdom of heaven by their own efforts or with help from their friends. Jesus was clearly saying that it was 100 percent impossible. The disciples’ reaction and Jesus’ reply confirm this: “The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, ‘Who then can be saved?’ Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible’ ” (Mark 10:26,27).

It is helpful to understand why the disciples came to this conclusion so quickly, when often they had been slow to understand Jesus’ teaching. It was a common opinion in the Jewish community—and had been for hundreds of years—that wealth was a sign not just of God’s gracious blessing but of God’s favor resting on the individual. Even the prophets had spoken against this understanding, warning the people that God was angry with them for their idolatry. Nevertheless, the people who were doing very well financially rejected these divine warnings because they had taken comfort in the erroneous belief that their wealth indicated the opposite of what the prophets were saying. So, the disciples’ reasoning was this: If the rich don’t have a camel-through-the-eye-of-a-needle’s chance of getting into heaven with all the favor of God resting on them, then no one can be saved. This conclusion was correct: “With man this is impossible.”

Applying the truth today

Are you resolutely convinced of this truth too? Honestly evaluate your entire life under the spotlight of the Ten Commandments. While wealth is not inherently sinful, have you always feared, loved, and trusted in God above everything—including riches—and everyone else? Have you always loved others in your thoughts, words, and actions as much as you love yourself? Your answer must lead you to confess the trustworthy saying affirmed by St. Paul about himself: “I am the worst of sinners; I am the worst sinner I know, because I can’t know others as well as I know myself” (see 1 Timothy 1:15,16). Therefore, be convinced that you cannot in any way save yourself or assist with your own salvation.

The lesson, however, could not end there; Jesus would not allow it. “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). That is precisely why Jesus, the good teacher, had come into the world. St. Paul’s trustworthy saying also included this great truth: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1:15).

Do not be afraid to count yourself the worst of sinners. Do not fear your failures; confess them. Trust that Jesus loves you and do what the young man refused to do: Confess all your sins. Confess how your sinful nature makes you unable to do anything good toward God. Divest yourself of all the human things in which you tend to take pride and find assurance of God’s favor. Drop them all and follow Jesus because he is God, who has done the impossible for you! The impossible, perfect life; the impossible-to-endure eternal punishment; the impossible, incalculable debt payment; and the impossible feat of willfully rising from the dead—Jesus has done all of it. He did it for you because he loves you.

That’s the point of Jesus’ use of the word impossible. With God all things are possible. Jesus has made your impossible possible. Because of him, God’s favor rests on you.

Author: Aaron Glaeske
Volume 111, Number 10
Issue: October 2024