# Matthew 19.17

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-06-03 | updated: 2026-06-03 -->

**Book:** [Matthew](/codex/matthew-the-apostle/) · NASB95

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 15. <span class="rl-speech">And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">And behold, one came to him and said, Teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?</span>
>
> **17. And he said unto him, <span class="rl-speech">Why askest thou me concerning that which is good? One there is who is good: but if thou wouldest enter into life, keep the commandments.</span>**
>
> 18. He saith unto him, <span class="rl-speech">Which?</span> And Jesus said, <span class="rl-speech">Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,</span> 19. <span class="rl-speech">Honor thy father and mother; and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.</span> (Matthew 19:15-19, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 15. <span class="rl-speech">He laid his hands on them, and departed from there.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">Behold, one came to him and said, “Good teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?”</span>
>
> **17. He said to him, <span class="rl-speech">“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.”</span>**
>
> 18. He said to him, <span class="rl-speech">“Which ones?”</span> Jesus said, <span class="rl-speech">“‘You shall not murder.’ ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ‘You shall not steal.’ ‘You shall not offer false testimony.’</span> 19. <span class="rl-speech">‘Honor your father and your mother.’ And, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’</span>” (Matthew 19:15-19, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 15. <span class="rl-speech">And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?</span>
>
> **17. And he said unto him, <span class="rl-speech">Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.</span>**
>
> 18. He saith unto him, <span class="rl-speech">Which?</span> Jesus said, <span class="rl-speech">Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,</span> 19. <span class="rl-speech">Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.</span> (Matthew 19:15-19, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 15. <span class="rl-speech">and having laid on them [his] hands, he departed thence.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">And lo, one having come near, said to him, 'Good teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have life age-during?'</span>
>
> **17. And he said to him, <span class="rl-speech">'Why me dost thou call good? no one [is] good except One, God; but if thou dost will to enter into the life, keep the commands.'</span>**
>
> 18. He saith to him, <span class="rl-speech">'What kind?'</span> And Jesus said, <span class="rl-speech">'Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness,</span> 19. <span class="rl-speech">honour thy father and mother, and, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.'</span> (Matthew 19:15-19, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** _TBD_
- **Audience:** _TBD_
- **Location:** _TBD_
- **Time period:** _TBD_

## Theological reading

_Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added._

## Key words

_Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap._

- _TBD_
- _TBD_
- _TBD_
- _TBD_

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## Quoted in

**Arguments and defeaters:**

- [Jesus Said Only God Is Good Objection Defeater](/codex/jesus-said-only-god-is-good-objection-defeater/)
- [Paul Invented Christianity Objection Defeater](/codex/paul-invented-christianity-objection-defeater/)

**Concepts:**

- [Jesus Said](/codex/jesus-said/), via [Matthew 19](/codex/matthew-19/)
- [Young's Literal Translation](/codex/ylt/), via [Matthew 19.16-17](/codex/matthew-19-16-17/)

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_Scripture quotations taken from the **New American Standard Bible®** (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by **The Lockman Foundation**. Used by permission. All rights reserved. [www.lockman.org](https://www.lockman.org)_

## Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

- **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.