Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
ExplanationCommentary
Verse 21. If thou wilt be perfect. This shews there is a difference betwixt things that are of precept, and those that are of counsel only, which they aim at, that aspire to the greatest perfection. Witham.—Evangelical perfection essentially consists in the perfect observance of God’s commandments, which is greatly assisted by embracing not only voluntary poverty, but also the other counsels given to us in the gospels, such as perpetual chastity, and entire obedience.—Follow me. Thus to follow Christ, is to be without wife and care of children, to have no property, and to live in community; this state of life hath a great reward in heaven. This state, we learn from Saint Augustine, the apostles followed; and he himself not only embraced it, but exhorted as many others as he possibly could to embrace it. Aug. ep. lxxxix, in fine, and in Ps. ciii conc. 3. post. med. B.—The whole perfection of a Christian life consists in following Christ, by an imitation of his virtues. So that he who possesses poverty and chastity, does not immediately become perfect, but only enters upon the way of perfection, by facilitating his progress to perfection, removing hindrances, and laying aside all care of temporal concerns. Nicholas de Lyra.—In this chapter Jesus Christ delivers the evangelical counsels. In verse 12, he recommends continency—here he proposes voluntary poverty, and immediately adds that of obedience, follow me. Saint Augustine teaches, that the apostles bound themselves by vow to the observance of these three counsels. De civit. Dei. B. xvii. chapter 4.