Mark 12:29

“Jesus answered him, the first of all the commandments is, etc..] Christ replied at once, without taking any time to consider of it, that the chief and principal of all the commands of the law, and what is of the greatest importance is, hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. The Vulgate Latin, and Arabic versions read, “one God”; but the Syriac, and Ethiopic render it, “one Lord”; and that rightly, agreeably to the Greek text, and to (<050604>Deuteronomy 6:4), from whence this is taken. This passage of Scripture, to the end of the ninth verse, is the first of the sections which were put into their phylacteries; (see Gill on “<402305>Matthew 23:5”); and was repeated twice every day,…”

“See the notes at Matthew 22:34-40. Mark 12:28 Perceiving that he answered them well - That is, with wisdom, and with a proper understanding of the law. In this case the opinion of the Saviour corresponded with that of the Pharisees; and the question which this scribe put to him now seems to have been one of the very few candid inquiries of him by the Jews for the purpose of obtaining information. Jesus answered it in the spirit of kindness, and commended the conduct of the man. Mark 12:29 Hear, O Israel! - This was said to call the attention of the Jews to the great importance of the truth about to be proclaimed. See Deuteronomy 6:4-5. The Lord our God ... - Literally, “Yahweh, our God, is…”

“The Lord our God is one Lord - This is the foundation of the first commandment, yea, of all the commandments. The Lord our God, the Lord, the God of all men, is one God, essentially, though three persons. From this unity of God it follows, that we owe all our love to him alone. Deu 6:4. Mark 12:30”

“12:29-31 Jesus’ reply combined two widely separated commands from the Torah. • The first, Deut 6:4-5, was probably the best known passage in the Old Testament, for it was repeated twice daily by observant Jews. It is called the Shema because it begins with the word Listen (Hebrew shema‘). The first command corresponds to the first part of the Ten Commandments (Exod 20:2-11), which deals with a person’s relationship to God. • The oneness of God is foundational to Jewish and Christian monotheism and is the basis for the command to love God with all one’s heart (thinking and affection), soul (desire and feeling), mind (understanding), and strength (energy and power). • The second command is…”

“Hear: Mar 12:32, Mar 12:33; Deu 6:4, Deu 10:12, Deu 30:6; Pro 23:26; Mat 10:37; Luk 10:27; Ti1 1:5 Mark 12:31”