Why do you call me good?

One of the more surprising sayings of Jesus is one recorded in all three Synoptic Gospels, in which he responded sharply to the apparent compliment of a rich young ruler who addressed him as “Good Teacher.” Mark’s account of the exchange reads thus:

 “As Jesus was starting on his way again, a man ran up, knelt before him, and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to receive eternal life?" "Why do you call me good?" Jesus asked him. "No one is good except God alone.” (Mark 10:17-18)

Robert H. Stein, in his recent commentary on Mark, identifies four possible interpretations of Jesus’ answer:

“Jesus’ response in 10:18, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone’ has troubled exegetes through the centuries.  The emphatic position of ‘me’ (Greek: me) in the sentence heightens the problem – [literally] ‘Why me do you call good?’...What Jesus objects to in the rich man’s address is unclear. (1) Is he objecting to the application of the designation ‘good’ in the sense of being ‘perfect’ to any human being, even himself (i.e., ultimate goodness and perfection belong to God the Father alone)?  In other words, is he seeking to have the man rethink the idea of goodness, since there is no one that is ultimately good/righteous (Romans 3:10) but God?  Is he saying that one should focus one’s attention upon God, without in any way implying that he (Jesus) himself is not good?  (2) Is he probing the sincerity of the man’s address?  (3) Is it possible that Jesus is denying that he is good, because like any other human he too has sinned and fallen short (Romans 3:23)?  (4) Or is Jesus, far from acknowledging that he is not good, pointing out that the logical conclusion of the man’s correct address is to acknowledge his own divine goodness?” (pp. 468-469)

We can follow Stein in readily ruling out interpretations (2) and (3).  Mark 10:21a shows us that Jesus acknowledged the man’s sincerity.  As for acknowledging his own sinfulness, this interpretation conflicts with the rest of the NT, which never attributes sin to Jesus (Stein cites 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 7:26; 1 Peter 1:19; 2:22 in support of this).

This leaves us with (1) and (4).  Of these, Stein prefers (1), stating that “Jesus is contrasting God’s absolute goodness to his own, which was subject to growth” (p. 469).

Before deciding on an interpretation, we can make a number of basic observations on the passage:

a.     The ruler addressed Jesus as “Good Teacher.”  There is no reason from the context to think that either the ruler’s form of address, or Jesus’ reply, had anything to do with Jesus’ human nature.

b.     The language Jesus used, “No one is good save one,” seems to reflect Psalm 14:1-3 (and 53:1-3) where the focus is on moral behaviour as opposed to moral nature – “There is none who does good, not even one.”

c.     Jesus questioned the rich young ruler’s reason for addressing him as good, but he did not say that the man was wrong in doing so!

The assertion that Jesus rejected the title “Good Teacher” is difficult to justify in light of other titles that he claimed for himself or accepted from others. If he objected to “Good Teacher,” how could he refer to himself as “Good Shepherd” (John 10:11), which amounts to the same?  Why did he resist the Pharisees’ urge to rebuke his disciples who proclaimed, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord” (Luke19:38)?  How could he permit his disciples to address him, “O Lord” (Matthew 15:22) and “the Holy One of God” (John 6:69)?  How could he fail to be mortified at being addressed directly by the Most High as “My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17)?

Besides the things that were said by and to Jesus during his ministry, we have remarkable things said about Jesus by his apostles after his resurrection. The disciples were present at the exchange with the rich young ruler (Mark 10:23).  Yet in Acts, the apostles referred to Jesus as “The Holy and Righteous One” (Acts 3:14) and “The Righteous One” (Acts 7:52; 22:14) – always with reference to the days of his flesh!  Stephen spoke of the coming of the Righteous One, implying that Jesus was the Righteous One intrinsically from his arrival on the scene, as opposed to earning this title over time through flawless conduct.  It is difficult to conceive of the apostles referring to the mortal Jesus in such terms if they understood him to have renounced the title ‘Good Teacher.’

So what then was Jesus getting at with his question to the rich young ruler? We will propose a suggested interpretation in the next blog.

For His Name's Sake

In modern Western society, names are often just labels. Parents often choose a name for their baby simply because they like the way it sounds, and in English speaking countries most people have names which have no meaning in English. Knowing someone’s name doesn’t tell you much about them. In my case, my name (Thomas) comes from an ancient Aramaic word meaning ‘twin.’ But most people don’t know that, and even if they did, it wouldn’t help – because I’m not a twin.

In the ancient Middle East, as in many cultures today, names were not just labels; they were far more expressive. They described something fundamental about one’s identity such as a distinctive attribute or a memorable event at the time of one’s birth, usually in one’s own native language. Take, for example, Esau and Jacob. Esau means ‘hairy,’ because he was hairy at birth; and Jacob means ‘heel catcher,’ because he was born hanging onto his twin brother’s heel. You can imagine their mother calling, “Hairy and Heel Catcher, it’s time for dinner!”

So what about God’s name? When Moses asked God his name in Exodus 3:13, he wasn’t just asking for a label to use when referring to God. He was asking God to describe his identity in a single word. And there is a very interesting phrase about God’s name that pops up over and over again in the Old Testament: ‘for his name’s sake.’ The phrase doesn’t resonate with the Western mind. We might say, “Do it for my sake,” but we wouldn’t say, “Do it for my name’s sake.” It sounds redundant. My name is just a label for me. But remember, God’s name is not just a label; it expresses who he is.

Here is a list of all (I think) Old Testament passages where the phrase occurs: 1 Samuel 12:22; 1 Kings 8:41; Psalm 23:3, 25:11, 31:3, 79:9, 106:8, 109:21, 143:11; Isaiah 48:9, 11, 66:5; Jeremiah 14:7, 21; Ezekiel 20:9, 14, 22, 44; 36:22. You may want to read all of these in context in your own time, but we’ll just focus on a few representative examples:

 “For your name's sake, O LORD, pardon my guilt, for it is great.” (Psalm 25:11)

 “Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name; deliver us, and atone for our sins, for your name's sake!” (Psalm 79:9)

 “Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at his word: "Your brothers who hate you and cast you out for my name's sake have said, 'Let the LORD be glorified, that we may see your joy'; but it is they who shall be put to shame.” (Isaiah 66:5)

“And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for my name's sake, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt deeds, O house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 20:44)

The above verses show us that God’s name expresses his distinctive character. His mercy and faithfulness so far exceed that of sinful human beings that they are like God’s signature.

The name of God, Yahweh, is a Hebrew word. When we come to the New Testament, which was written in Greek, this name is no longer used. But what we do find is very surprising. This phrase “for his name’s sake” is used, but with reference to Jesus, not God! A survey of passages to look at: Matthew 10:21-22, 19:29, 24:9 (par. Mark 13:13, Luke 21:12, 17); John 15:21; Acts 9:16; 1 John 2:12; 3 John 1:7; Revelation 2:3.

Here are two of the most striking:

“Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 10:21-22)

“I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.” (1 John 2:12)

Matthew 10:21-22 is an obvious reference to Isaiah 66:5, and 1 John 2:12 likely draws on the language of Psalm 25:11 and 79:9. So we can see that these verses parallel the “for his name’s sake” passages in the Old Testament. The difference is simply this: now, the name in question is not Yahweh, but Jesus! The New Testament seems to be equating the name of Jesus with the name of Yahweh.

Throughout the Old Testament God stringently protects the glory of his name against usurpers and blasphemers:

“You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.” (Exodus 20:7, the Third Commandment, NIV)

“I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.” (Isaiah 42:8)

“For you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (Ezekiel 34:14)

With this in mind it is astonishing how the New Testament describes Jesus, a human being, in language that the Old Testament reserved for Yahweh alone. This should cause us to reflect deeply on the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth.