What Does Matthew 19:16 Mean in the King James?
And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
He treats the life of the ages as a prize one good deed can secure, and the question leaves that assumption exposed.
THE MEANING
Your hunger for a life that lasts can meet the urge to secure it through one good act. “Eternal life” carries the sense of “life of the ages”: a life belonging to God’s age, not only endless duration. The question holds both desires open.
THE ROOT
αἰώνιον
aiōnion
GROWS FROM
αἰών (aiōn), stem αἰων-
Age, era, or order of time; αἰώνιον is an adjective formed from this word.
“Eternal” can make the phrase sound like it speaks only about duration. The word also carries the sense of life belonging to an age, opening the question of what kind of life this man seeks.
ALSO GROWS
aiōn: An age or era.
αἰών
This noun is the seed of the adjective in the verse, bringing the idea of an age into the phrase translated “eternal life.”
aiōnios: Of or belonging to an age; age-lasting.
αἰώνιος
This is the adjective behind “eternal”; here it describes a life that belongs to the ages.
THE PATTERN
Life is found in God’s presence and relationship, and is described as a gift rather than a human achievement.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.THE THREAD
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.John repeats the phrase ζωὴ αἰώνιος (zōē aiōnios, “life of the ages”) and describes it as knowing God and Jesus, whom God sends. That opens the man’s question beyond the search for one decisive deed: the life he seeks is also a life of relationship.
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