Matthew 22:38 (DRB)

Passage

This is the greatest and the first commandment.

Nearby Context

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

Matthew 22:37 Jesus said to him: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul and with thy whole mind.

Matthew 22:38 This is the greatest and the first commandment.

Matthew 22:39 And the second is like to this: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

Matthew 22:40 On these two commandments dependeth the whole law and the prophets.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 37's "Jesus said to him Thou shalt love..." into verse 39's "And the second is like to this...", so "greatest" and "first" 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 "greatest" and "first" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.