Matthew 22:37-39
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Jesus didn't just quote a rule; he emphasized total devotion by listing "heart, soul, and mind." This highlights that loving God isn't just a feeling or an intellectual exercise, but an all-encompassing commitment of our entire being. It’s easy to compartmentalize our faith, but Jesus calls for its integration into every part of who we are.
A Pharisee, a lawyer by profession, attempts to trap Jesus by asking about the greatest commandment in the Law. This question comes after Jesus has silenced the Sadducees and other challengers, so the Pharisees are gathered together, likely hoping to discredit him. Jesus' response, quoting from Deuteronomy, identifies loving God with one's whole being as the foremost command.
Jesus doesn't just give a rule; He reveals the core of true devotion. But what does it really mean to love God 'with all your heart, soul, and mind'?
Jesus identifies the greatest commandment: loving God. This isn't just a suggestion; it's the foundation upon which everything else rests.
A Total Love
This love isn't a casual feeling. It's meant to encompass our entire being:
When Jesus says 'all,' He means nothing less than our complete, undivided devotion. It's a love that permeates every aspect of our identity and experience.
The Pharisees were experts in the Law, but Jesus exposed a deeper truth. Discover why 'loving God' is the very essence of true righteousness.
The context of this commandment is crucial. Jesus isn't just adding another item to a checklist. He's defining the root of all obedience.
The Foundation of Faith
Understand the original words
agapaō · Greek Verb
In a biblical context, refers to a commitment of the will, mind, and emotions that results in sacrificial action. It is the defining characteristic of the believer's relationship with God and others.
kardia · Greek Noun
Often considered the seat of the intellect, will, and inner self. Biblically, it is the center of human personality and the place where decisions for or against God are made.
psychē · Greek Noun
The vital, animating principle of human life. It refers to the individual person, their life-breath, and their existence before God.
dianoia · Greek Noun
Refers to the faculty of understanding, reasoning, and cognition. Loving God with the mind involves dedicating one's intellectual capacities and thoughts to His glory.
This is the original source of Jesus' command, highlighting that loving God with all your being is a foundational principle established early in Israel's covenant relationship with God.
Luke 10:27This passage reiterates the same core command, emphasizing the inseparable connection between loving God and loving one's neighbor as an expression of that love.
Romans 12:1-2Paul calls believers to 'present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,' which is a practical outworking of dedicating all your faculties – heart, soul, and mind – to God's service.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7This passage describes the characteristics of love (agape), showing what it looks like in action, which is the fruit of truly loving God with all our being.
1 John 4:19-20John connects loving God with loving others, stating that we love Him because He first loved us, reinforcing that our love for God is a response and fuels our love for humanity.
calvinMatthew 22:34-40: "But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together."
- 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. 38. Th…
henryMatthew 22:34-40: "But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together."
22:34-40 An interpreter of the law asked our Lord a question, to try, not so much his knowledge, as his judgment. The love of God is the first and great commandment, and the sum of all the commands of the first table. Our love of God must be sincere, not in word and tongue only. All our love is too little to bestow upon him, therefore all the powers of the soul must be eng…
Jesus didn't just quote a rule; he emphasized total devotion by listing "heart, soul, and mind." This highlights that loving God isn't just a feeling or an intellectual exercise, but an all-encompassing commitment of our entire being. It’s easy to compartmentalize our faith, but Jesus calls for its integration into every part of who we are.
A Pharisee, a lawyer by profession, attempts to trap Jesus by asking about the greatest commandment in the Law. This question comes after Jesus has silenced the Sadducees and other challengers, so the Pharisees are gathered together, likely hoping to discredit him. Jesus' response, quoting from Deuteronomy, identifies loving God with one's whole being as the foremost command.
A Pharisee, a lawyer by profession, attempts to trap Jesus by asking about the greatest commandment in the Law. This question comes after Jesus has silenced the Sadducees and other challengers, so the Pharisees are gathered together, likely hoping to discredit him. Jesus' response, quoting from Deuteronomy, identifies loving God with one's whole being as the foremost command.
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plēsion · Greek Noun
Any other person, particularly those within the community of faith, but in Jesus' teaching, it extends to all people, including enemies. It signifies the object of one's duty of care and love.
"And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself." — Jesus didn't just quote a rule; he emphasized total devotion by listing "heart, soul, and mind." This highlights that loving God isn't just a feeling or an intellectual exercise, but an all-encompa…
