Luke 18:18-23

(18-23) And a certain ruler asked him,... — See Notes on Matthew 19:16; Mark 10:17. St. Luke alone describes the inquirer as a “ruler.” As used without any defining genitive, and interpreted by Luke 23:13; Luke 23:35; John 3:1; John 7:26; John 7:48, et al., it seems to imply that he was a member of the Council or Sanhedrin. The term “youth,” in Matthew 19:20, is not at variance with this inference. It is defined by Philo as including the period between twenty-one and twenty-eight — an age at which a place in the Council was probably open to one who was commended both by his wealth and his devotion. St. Paul obviously occupied a position of great influence at a time when he is described as a “young man” (Acts 7:58).