Mark 12:28

28 And one of the scribes came, having heard their dispute and knowing that he had given a good response unto them, asked him, Which is the principal commandment of all?

Mark 12:28 Meaning and Commentary

Mark 12:28

And one of the Scribes came
Matthew calls him a lawyer, ( Matthew 22:35 ) , an interpreter of the law, as a Scribe was:

and having heard them reasoning together;
being present at the dispute between Christ and the Sadducees, which he diligently attended to:

and perceiving that he had answered them well:
in a most beautiful manner. The Jews have adopted the very Greek word here used, and make use of it in the same sense as (Mwlaq hyl rma) ^F14, "he answered him well": or, as the gloss upon it, "praise worthily"; in a manner deserving praise; and is the same with (trmaq rypv) ^F15, "thou hast said well", or beautifully; and so the answer here was with great solidity, and judgment, and strength of argument, to their utter confusion and silence; whereby he understood he had considerable knowledge in the law, and yet was willing to try if he could not puzzle him with a question relating to it:

asked him, which is the first commandment of all?
of all the commandments in the law, moral and ceremonial.

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FOOTNOTES:

F14 T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 108. 1.
F15 Zohar in Lev. fol. 2. 3. & 15. 1.

Mark 12:28 In-Context

26 And regarding the dead who are to rise, have ye not read in the book of Moses how in the bush God spoke unto him, saying, I Am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob?

27 He is not God of the dead, but God of the living; ye therefore do greatly err.

28 And one of the scribes came, having heard their dispute and knowing that he had given a good response unto them, asked him, Which is the principal commandment of all?

29 And Jesus responded unto him, The principal of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is one;

30 and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy thought and with all thy strength: this is the principal commandment.