Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
Parallel translations
- KJV Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
- BSB Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
- NKJV Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
- NASB 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.’
- NLT Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus answers that the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. Wholehearted love for God is humanity's first duty.
Overview
Quoting the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:5), Jesus identifies total, undivided love for God as the supreme commandment. This love engages the whole person, the affections, will, and understanding. It expresses the very purpose for which humans were made and the heart of true obedience that only grace can produce.
Cross-references & the web
Quotation
- Deut 6:5You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.
Cross-references · 9
- Mark 12:29–30Jesus answered, “The greatest is, ‘Hear, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one:
- Luke 10:27He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”
- Deut 6:5You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.
- Deut 10:12Now, Israel, what does Yahweh your God require of you, but to fear Yahweh your God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
- Mark 12:33and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
- Deut 30:6Yahweh your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your offspring, to love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, that you may live.
- 1 Jn 5:2–5By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep his commandments.
- Heb 10:16–17“This is the covenant that I will make with them: ‘After those days,’ says the Lord, ‘I will put my laws on their heart, I will also write them on their mind;’” then he says,
- Rom 8:7because the mind of the flesh is hostile towards God; for it is not subject to God’s law, neither indeed can it be.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 22:37 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.