The phrase “Camel through the eye of a needle” appears in Matthew 19:24, but it is also in Mark 10:25 and Luke 18:25. It is used to compare the easiness of a rich man going to the realm of God to the easiness of a camel going through the eye of a needle, the latter being easier. Jade Weston, a blogger, writes “One cannot drive a camel through the eye of a needle. So we have to find some other means. The only way is to come back to the sheer simplicity of examining ourselves. That brings us to the practice of meditation.” She uses the bible phrase to express her opinion on how we should simplify our lives and relax by meditating. The rapper Shad has song titled “Remember to remember”. This song is about the hardships in his life, and part of it goes “This camel struggle to squeeze, through the eye of a needle, some eyes struggle to see, but we all struggle for freedom”. Here he uses the allusion to explain how his struggles and everyone’s struggles can almost seem like a camel trying to fit through a needle. Vladimir Kush depicts many bible scenes in his paintings, one of which is titled “Eye of the needle” (pictured above left). I like this painting a lot, and to me this painting is showing how if we are all united, and we give up greed and resentment, we can all get through the eye of the needle and enter the realm of God. In the poem “A Gloss on the Gospels, Concerning the Rich”, Henry George Fischer writes “With all of their boodle, the rich cannot wheedle, a camel to steal through the eye of a needle”. In this poem, Fischer is backing up the idea that it is harder for the rich to get into heaven. This allusion in general is depicted seriously but comically at the same time. It is depicted seriously because of the pondering of going or not going to heaven, but comically because it is almost funny to think about attempting to put a camel through the eye of a needle when comparing it to a rich man getting into heaven. BK
Hi had read the different assertions as to the meaning of the “eye of the needle” below is an excerpt from my website that might be helpful to you. On the website there are drawings that will help illustrate the meaning.
ReplyDeleteLink to the study:
http://michaelidarecis.com/eye-means-i/
The verses dealing with the “eye of the needle” have been looked at for centuries and yet the clarity has been lacking. We can infer as a parable that it is impossible for the rich man to enter by his will. However that is not the same understanding as the “I” understanding we will explore now. Immediately in verse 23 it is evident that the “reign of the heavens” is “reign of God” which is the focus of verse 23 & 24. Therefore this is about the “reign of God” where there is no inflated ego of the “I” of man’s will. Reign of God means God is controlling and not man.
Matthew 19:23 “23 and Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Verily I say to you, that hardly shall a rich man enter into the reign of the heavens;”
Now we read the verse and look at “eye” as it being “I”. The image below will make this clearer. It is not that the camel has to go through the center of the opening of the needle that is called an eye. Rather it is giving us proportional size difference of the “i” of camel compared to the Inflated ego “I” of the rich man. It is easier for the “i” (camel) to be reigned over by God than the enormous inflated ego “I” of the rich man. The eye of the needle which is the “i” of the camel is representation of a simple man that can have God ringing over them. In the preceding verses the rich young ruler wanted to justify his own will and use have “life age-during” (we omitted those verses to keep this simpler).
Matthew 19:24 “24 and again I say to you, it is easier for a camel through the eye of a needle to go, than for a rich man to enter into the reign of God.’”
Praise I AM,
Michael Idarecis