Mark 12 · Verse 31

Mark 12:31

And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
Mark 12:31, King James Version

Mark 12:31 in other translations

BSBThe second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”
WEBThe second is like this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
ASVThe second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
YLTand the second is like it, this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself; --greater than these there is no other command.'
DARBYAnd a second like it is this: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is not another commandment greater than these.
BBEThe second is this, Have love for your neighbour as for yourself. There is no other law greater than these.
WebsterAnd the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: there is no other commandment greater than these.

What does Mark 12:31 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
31. And the second is like--"unto it" (Mt 22:39); as demanding the same affection, and only the extension of it, in its proper measure, to the creatures of Him whom we thus love--our brethren in the participation of the same nature, and neighbors, as connected with us by ties that render each dependent upon and necessary to the other. Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself--Now, as we are not to love ourselves supremely, this is virtually a command, in the first place, not to love our neighbor with all our heart and soul and mind and strength. And thus it is a condemnation of the idolatry of the creature. Our supreme and uttermost affection is to be reserved for God. But as sincerely as ourselves we are to love all mankind, and with the same readiness to do and suffer for them as we should reasonably desire them to show to us. The golden rule (Mt 7:12) is here our best interpreter of the nature and extent of these claims. There is none other commandment greater than these--or, as in Mt 22:40, "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets" (see on Mt 5:17). It is as if He had said, "This is all Scripture in a nutshell; the whole law of human duty in a portable, pocket form." Indeed, it is so simple that a child may understand it, so brief that all may remember it, so comprehensive as to embrace all possible cases. And from its very nature it is unchangeable. It is inconceivable that God should require from his rational creatures anything less, or in substance anything else, under any dispensation, in any world, at any period throughout eternal duration. He cannot but claim this--all this--alike in heaven, in earth, and in hell! And this incomparable summary of the divine law belonged to the Jewish religion! As it shines in its own self-evidencing splendor, so it reveals its own true source. The religion from which the world has received it could be none other than a God-given religion!

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 31.

(l) "Thou shalt love" Lev 19:18, Mt 22:39, Rom 13:9

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Mark 12:28-34

Those who sincerely desire to be taught their duty, Christ will guide in judgment, and teach his way. He tells the scribe that the great commandment, which indeed includes all, is, that of loving God with all our hearts. Wherever this is the ruling principle in the soul, there is a disposition to every other duty. Loving God with all our heart, will engage us to every thing by which he will be pleased. The…

Read the full comment on Mark 12:28-34 →

Mark 12:31 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

δευτέραdeutera[The] secondG1208
ὁμοίαhomoialikeG3664
αὕτη·hautēthis:G3778
ἀγαπήσειςagapēseisYou will loveG25
τὸνtontheG3588
πλησίονplēsionneighbourG4139
σουsouof youG4771
ὡςhōsasG5613
σεαυτόν.seautonyourself.’G4771
μείζωνmeizōnGreaterG3173
τούτωνtoutōnthan theseG3778
ἄλληallēanotherG243
ἐντολὴentolēcommandmentG1785
οὐκouknotG3756
ἔστιν.estinthere is.G1510

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Mark 12:31

  • Romans 13:8-9

    Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

  • Matthew 22:39

    And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

  • Leviticus 19:18

    Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

  • Luke 10:27

    And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

  • 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

    Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. …

  • Matthew 7:12

    Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

  • Galatians 5:14

    For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

  • 1 John 4:21

    And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.

  • 1 John 4:7-8

    Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

  • Matthew 19:18-19

    He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

  • James 2:8-13

    If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. …

  • Luke 10:36-37

    Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Thou.
Le 19:13; Mt 7:12; 19:18,19; 22:39; Lu 10:27,36,37; Ro 13:8,9
1Co 13:4-8; Ga 5:14; Jas 2:8-13; 1Jo 3:17-19; 4:7,8,21

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Mark 12:30

    And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

  • Mark 12:31

    And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

  • Mark 12:32

    And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

Read all of Mark 12

Mark 12:31 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y el segundo es semejante á él: Amarás á tu prójimo como á ti mismo. No hay otro mandamiento mayor que éstos.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et le second lui est semblable: « Tu aimeras ton prochain comme toi-même ». Il n’y a point d’autre commandement plus grand que ceux-ci.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und das zweite, ihm gleiche, ist dieses: "Du sollst deinen Nächsten lieben wie dich selbst". Größer als diese ist kein anderes Gebot.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Secundum autem simile est illi: Diliges proximum tuum tamquam teipsum. Majus horum aliud mandatum non est.