1When Jesus had finished these words, he departed from Galilee and came into the borders of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2Great multitudes followed him, and he healed them there.
3Pharisees came to him, testing him and saying, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”
4He answered, “Haven’t you read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, 5and said, ‘For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh?’ 6So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, don’t let man tear apart.”
7They asked him, “Why then did Moses command us to give her a certificate of divorce and divorce her?”
8He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it has not been so. 9I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and he who marries her when she is divorced commits adultery.”
10His disciples said to him, “If this is the case of the man with his wife, it is not expedient to marry.”
11But he said to them, “Not all men can receive this saying, but those to whom it is given. 12For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven’s sake. He who is able to receive it, let him receive it.”
13Then little children were brought to him that he should lay his hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. 14But Jesus said, “Allow the little children, and don’t forbid them to come to me; for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to ones like these.” 15He laid his hands on them, and departed from there.
16Behold, one came to him and said, “Good teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?”
17He said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but one, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
18He said to him, “Which ones?”
Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder.’ ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ‘You shall not steal.’ ‘You shall not offer false testimony.’ 19‘Honor your father and your mother.’ And, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
20The young man said to him, “All these things I have observed from my youth. What do I still lack?”
21Jesus 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.” 22But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he was one who had great possessions.
23Jesus said to his disciples, “Most certainly I say to you, a rich man will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven with difficulty. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter into God’s Kingdom.”
25When the disciples heard it, they were exceedingly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?”
26Looking at them, Jesus said, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
27Then Peter answered, “Behold, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?”
28Jesus said to them, “Most certainly I tell you that you who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on the throne of his glory, you also will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29Everyone who has left houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive one hundred times, and will inherit eternal life. 30But many will be last who are first, and first who are last.
1:4 John addressed Revelation to seven churches in the province of Asia, which today is southwestern Turkey. The churches' names are given in order, going clockwise from the southwest. Him who is and who was and who is to come describes Christ, who exists now, always has and always will exist (see Heb.13:8). The seven Spirits may refer to the angels of the seven churches (chs.2; 3), or to the Holy Spirit (see Isa 11:2).
1:5 Jesus Christ...the firstborn from the dead guarantees the Christian's Resurrection through His Resurrection (ICor. 15:20,23). Christ will not exert authority (see Matt 28:18) over the kings of the earth until His second coming (19:17-21).
John now communicates God’s greetings to the seven churches, which were the original recipients of this Revelation. Their location is identified as “Asia,” the designation given to the region by the Romans. Today, it is often referred to as Asia Minor in light of our knowledge of the existence of East Asia. We are also introduced to the first trinitarian formula in Revelation. The order of the members of the Godhead differs from other parts of the New Testament, identifying God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and then the Son. However, it reminds us that the members of the Godhead are coequal.
God the Father is identified as the eternal One, “who is and who was and who is to come.” The grammatical construction of this title emphasizes the eternality of God, present, past, and future. It involves a solecism, which means that it uses Hebrew grammar with Greek words. Here, the title is in the nominative case, which is normally used for the subject of a sentence. However, it is the place of a direct object and so “should,” in normal Greek grammar, be in the accusative case. In Hebrew, God’s names and titles are always in the nominative case, even when not the subject of the sentence. This is a sign of respect for God and recognizes that He is the subject of the universe.
The Holy Spirit is referred to as “the seven Spirits” before God’s throne. Later, in chapter 4, the Holy Spirit will be symbolized by a menorah with seven lamps.