A Camel Through the Eye of a Needle?

The Rich Young Ruler and the Question of Eternal Life

Jesus once said that it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Now did he mean an actual camel and needle? Or were those terms to describe something else?

It's easy to find the answer when we understand the text. In Matthew 19, Mark 10, and Luke 18, we read the story of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus and asked, what must I do to have eternal life?

Jesus reminded him to keep the commandments. Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and your mother, and love your neighbor as yourself. All of these I have kept, the young ruler said.

What do I still lack? Now Jeremiah 17, 10 says that the Lord searches the heart and tests the mind, and Jesus knew the heart of this young man. Did you catch the command that Jesus left out? Do not covet.

Mark 10, 21 records that Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, you lack one thing. Go, sell all that you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.

The young ruler then walked away sad, for he had great possessions and didn't want to give them up. It's then that Jesus turned to his disciples and said, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.

Why the Camel and Needle Saying Is Not About a Small Gate

It's been said that this eye of a needle reference isn't literal but figurative. After all, Jesus wouldn't truly refer to something as incredible as a great big animal going through an actual needle's eye, would he?

That would be silly. Instead, as the interpretation often goes, the eye of a needle is a small door in the city gate. When night falls, the main gates are closed to keep raiders out of the city. The only way in or out is through a smaller door called the eye of a needle.

If a traveling merchant arrived late and didn't want to spend the night outside the protection of the city walls, he would have to completely unpack his camel, and the camel would have to squeeze through the gate door on its knees.

It's a picture of humility, the camel having to take all its stuff off, as the rich man had to get rid of his possessions, and entering on its knees through the narrow gate, which ties into another teaching of Jesus in Matthew 7, 13 -14.

Another interpretation is that there was a specific door in the wall of Jerusalem called the needle's eye. There's also a version that claims that the camel Jesus was talking about was actually a large rope.

However, all of these claims are bupkis. There is no evidence that a small door in the city gate is called the eye of a needle, or that there was a gate called the needle's eye, or that big ropes were called camels.

Jesus Uses Hyperbole to Expose Human Helplessness

Jesus often used hyperbole and other figures of speech to make a point, but in this case, he was specifically contrasting the largest living thing in Jerusalem with the smallest opening. To understand the audaciousness in his metaphor, squeezing a giant camel through a tiny needle's eye, just look at the disciples' reaction.

Mark 10, 26 says that they were exceedingly astonished. Matthew 19, 25 says greatly astonished, but you understand. And why wouldn't they be? Jesus had just referred to the impossible. They'd not have had such a reaction if Jesus was just talking about taking the stuff off a camel and getting the stubborn thing to crawl through a door, or if he was talking about a rope, you could just shred it and squeeze it through the needle a thread at a time.

Either one of these things, though tedious, is possible for any man to do by his own power. But you can't squeeze a camel through a needle's eye, given that you want the thing to still be alive on the other side.

Yet the disciples in their bewilderment asked, who then can be saved? Because if you have to get a camel through the eye of a needle and expect it to survive the trip, no one is going to get into heaven alive.

We have a problem with our powerlessness depicted in this word picture, so we turn to alternative explanations. Well, see, back in the ancient times, an eye of a needle was really a small door in the city gate, and camels were actually big ropes.

Salvation Is Impossible for Man but Possible with God

By doing so, we miss the point. Jesus' response to them was, with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. The point is that we can't do it on our own. It's not merely difficult for a man to be saved, it's impossible.

Only by the miraculous power of God, through faith in the work of Jesus Christ, can we have salvation. And that's what we learn about when we understand the text.