Luke 10:28
And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Jesus doesn't just affirm the lawyer's answer; He turns the question back on him with a pointed challenge: "Do this, and you will live." This isn't just a statement of fact, but a powerful test, subtly revealing that the doing is the very thing the lawyer, and all of us, will struggle with, thereby exposing the gap between knowing the Law and living it.
Jesus has just been challenged by a lawyer who asked how to gain eternal life. Jesus turned the question back, asking what the law itself said, and the lawyer correctly identified loving God and loving neighbor as the core commands.
This scribe asked Jesus a question that seemed straightforward, aiming to test Him. But Jesus turned the tables, revealing a deeper challenge hidden in the answer.
The lawyer, a 'doctor of the law,' approached Jesus with a specific question: 'What must I do to inherit eternal life?' He was testing Jesus, trying to find fault with His teaching. Jesus, in His wisdom, didn't give a new rule but pointed back to the Law itself: 'What is written in the law? How do you read it?' The lawyer correctly summarized the core of the Law: 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart... and your neighbor as yourself.'
Jesus affirmed this answer as correct: 'You have answered correctly.' But then, He delivered the punchline, which was also the ultimate test: 'Do this, and you will live.' This wasn't just about knowing the right answer; it was about doing it. Jesus wasn't questioning the Law's truth but the lawyer's ability (and our ability!) to perfectly fulfill it.
Jesus' simple command, 'Do this,' is deceptively profound. It exposes the gap between knowing the truth and living it out.
When Jesus says, 'Do this, and you will live,' He’s doing more than just repeating the Law. He's revealing the essence of life – genuine, wholehearted love for God and others. The lawyer's question was about inheriting eternal life, implying a future reward. Jesus' answer points to life as a present reality, lived out through obedience to God's commands.
However, this command also highlights a critical problem. As one commentator noted, Jesus was 'sounding, and testing' the man, not necessarily because the man could perfectly do it, but to reveal what was lacking. The truth is, we can't perfectly 'do this.' Our 'flesh' makes perfect love impossible on our own. This is why Jesus immediately follows up the parable of the Good Samaritan, showing that true neighborly love requires compassion and action, even towards those we might consider enemies. Jesus' challenge isn't to earn salvation by perfect works (which is impossible), but to reveal that true life flows from a heart transformed by love, a transformation that ultimately comes through God's grace, not our own effort.
This passage directly states the principle Jesus affirmed: living according to God's statutes and rules leads to life, echoing the lawyer's correct answer about fulfilling the law.
Deuteronomy 6:5This foundational command, which the lawyer quoted, is the 'first and greatest commandment' that Jesus emphasizes, showing the core requirement for true life.
Matthew 22:37-40This parallel account shows Jesus summarizing the entire Law and the Prophets as resting on the two commandments of loving God and loving neighbor, reinforcing the lawyer's correct theoretical answer and Jesus' challenge to live it out.
Romans 10:5Paul quotes the principle of righteousness through the law here, mirroring Jesus' statement to the lawyer that acting out the law is the path to life, while also highlighting our inability to perfectly fulfill it.
Galatians 3:12This verse contrasts the law's demand for action with the path of faith, highlighting the impossible standard Jesus presented to the lawyer when He said, 'do this, and you will live,' underscoring why true life ultimately comes through grace.
calvinLuke 10:25-37: "And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
- But when the Pharisees heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they assembled together. 35. And one of them, a doctor of the law, put a question to him, tempting him, and saying, 36. Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37. Jesus saith to him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.…
pulpitLuke 10:28: "And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live."
Verse 28. - This do, and thou shalt live. The learned Jew was evidently confounded at the Galilaean Rabbi's first answer referring him to the sacred Mosaic Law. His perplexity is increased by the Lord's quiet repartee when he had rehearsed the two duties, to his God and his neighbour, "This do, and thou shalt live." It seems as though the clever, unfriendly critic of Jesus of Nazareth now forgot the host…
Jesus doesn't just affirm the lawyer's answer; He turns the question back on him with a pointed challenge: "Do this, and you will live." This isn't just a statement of fact, but a powerful test, subtly revealing that the doing is the very thing the lawyer, and all of us, will struggle with, thereby exposing the gap between knowing the Law and living it.
Jesus has just been challenged by a lawyer who asked how to gain eternal life. Jesus turned the question back, asking what the law itself said, and the lawyer correctly identified loving God and loving neighbor as the core commands.
Jesus has just been challenged by a lawyer who asked how to gain eternal life. Jesus turned the question back, asking what the law itself said, and the lawyer correctly identified loving God and loving neighbor as the core commands.
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"And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”" — Jesus doesn't just affirm the lawyer's answer; He turns the question back on him with a pointed challenge: "Do this, and you will live." This isn't just a statement of fact, but a powerful test, subt…
