Bible Strands
Matthew 19:21
Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jesus speaks to the rich young man immediately after the man's declaration that he has kept all the commandments and his question, "What do I still lack?" (Matthew 19:20).
The words — τελείος (teleios) is rendered "perfect" but carries the sense of "complete" or "mature," not moral flawlessness. The conditional θέλεις (theleis), "you desire," frames the entire command as contingent on the man's own will.
The thread — Mark 10:21 and Luke 18:22 preserve the same exchange; Luke 12:33 applies the principle more broadly to all who hear it.
Why it lands — The verse does not offer a general principle about generosity but a specific, singular demand: one man must choose between his wealth and following Jesus, and the choice is his alone.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
Cross-references
- Mark 10:21 Jesus looked at him, loved him, and said to him, “There is one thing you lack: Go, sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
- Luke 18:22 On hearing this, Jesus told him, “You still lack one thing: Sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
- Luke 12:33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
- Luke 14:33 In the same way, any one of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple.
- Acts 2:45 Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need.
- Matthew 5:48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
- Luke 9:23 Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.
- John 10:27 My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.
- John 12:26 If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, My servant will be as well. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
- 1 Timothy 6:17 Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us to enjoy.