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Luke 18:22
ESV When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."
NIV When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
NASB Now when Jesus heard this, He said to him, 'One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.'
CSB When Jesus heard this, he told him, "You still lack one thing: Sell all you have and distribute it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
NLT When Jesus heard his answer, he said, 'There is still one thing you haven’t done. Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'
KJV Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
NKJV So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

What does Luke 18:22 mean?

The question of eternal life was posed, to Jesus, by a young and very wealthy man. That he was wealthy and powerful in his community would have been seen, in that culture, as signals of God's blessing. In addition to earthly success, he devoutly follows the Mosaic law (Luke 18:18–21). Although his deeds are honorable, Jesus presents him with one more challenge.

This verse is commonly misinterpreted. Jesus isn't saying that it is wrong to be wealthy. Nor does this mean that all Christians, everywhere, must give away all their money. He's answering a specific man's question: "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 18:18). The man looks like a shoo-in. His wealth and power seem to be blessings from God for being a good person. He follows the Law, particularly by being kind to other people. What else does he need?

The rich ruler's predicament is a real-life application of Jesus' earlier parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9–14). We can't earn our place in God's kingdom like the Pharisee assumes; we must humbly request an invitation like the tax collector. Like the children who come to Jesus, we're obligated to complete dependence (Luke 18:16–17). Jesus isn't giving the man one last work he must do to be worthy; He's inviting the man to stop relying on works and trust God for eternal life.

Jesus does not consider this young man to be an adversary. His questions are sincere and he sincerely wants to know what Jesus has to say. Mark says, "And Jesus, looking at him, loved him" (Mark 10:21). Sadly, the man's reaction shows that he's not ready to put God at the very top of his priorities.
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