One of the scribes, when he came forward and heard them disputing and saw how well he had answered them, asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” 29 Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, ‘He is One and there is no other than he.’ 33 And ‘to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself’ is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that [he] answered with understanding, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Jesus was asked a question frequently asked of Jewish teachers in the synagogue; which is the greatest among the 613 precepts of the OT Law? The Rabbis listed 248 commands and 365 prohibitions as precepts of the Law, some of which were considered ‘grave’ and some ‘light’. Jesus answered with quotations from Deuteronomy (Deut. 6:4-5) and Leviticus (Lev. 19:18). Loving God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength was foundational to the Jews. They recited the Shema (v. 29) on mornings and evenings every day. This was their confession of faith.
Loving your neighbor as yourself (v. 31) is what Jesus taught and it cannot be separated from loving God. Loving your neighbor is a commandment from both the OT and the NT (Lv. 19:18; Jn. 13:34). Scripture tells us one cannot hate his brother and say he loves God (1 John 4:20). These two commandments address our inner disposition and are at the root of our relationship with God and our relationship with each other. If we love God, we will obey Him, and if we love our neighbor, we will never harm him. The two great commandments fulfill the moral law and are superior to ritual worship. The Scribe’s answer did not mean that burnt offerings and sacrifices should be abolished, but that love of God and love of neighbor were the foundation of the sacrificial system. His understanding of Christ’s words won Christ’s approval.
Almighty God, it is by your grace that we can love you as you desire to be loved. Look with favor upon our efforts and lead us more and more deeply into perfect union with you. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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