Matthew 22:35 (DBY)

Passage

And one of them, a lawyer, demanded, tempting him, and saying,

Nearby Context

Matthew 22:33 And when the crowds heard [it] they were astonished at his doctrine.

Matthew 22:34 But the Pharisees, having heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, were gathered together.

Matthew 22:35 And one of them, a lawyer, demanded, tempting him, and saying,

Matthew 22:36 Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?

Matthew 22:37 And he said to him, Thou shalt love [the] Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy understanding.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lawyer", "demanded", "tempting", and "saying". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lawyer" and "demanded", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 34's "But the Pharisees having heard that he..." into verse 36's "Teacher which is the great commandment in...", so "lawyer" and "demanded" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lawyer" and "demanded" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.