Jesus Christ compared a rich man’s difficulty in getting into the Kingdom with a camel that is trying to get through a needle’s eye. Did Jesus have in mind a literal camel and a real sewing needle?

Two of the three Scriptural quotations of this statement are quite similar. According to Matthew’s account, Jesus said: “It is easier for a camel to get through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to get into the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:24) Similarly, Mark 10:25 reads: “It is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”


Some reference works suggest that the “needle’s eye” was a small gate in one of Jerusalem’s large gates. If the big gate was closed at night, the small one could be opened. It is held that a camel could fit through it. Is this what Jesus had in mind?


Evidently it is not. Jesus apparently was referring to a sewing needle. Since both bone and metal needles of ancient origin have been found in that region, they must have been common household items. Luke 18:25 removes any uncertainty about Jesus’ words, for it quotes him as saying: “It is easier, in fact, for a camel to get through the eye of a sewing needle than for a rich man to get into the kingdom of God.”


Various lexicographers agree with the rendering “sewing needle” as found in the New World Translation. The Greek word for ‘needle’ at Matthew 19:24 and Mark 10:25 (rha‧phis′) is drawn from a verb meaning “sew.” And the Greek term found at Luke 18:25 (be‧lo′ne) is used to refer to a literal surgical needle. Says Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: “The idea of applying ‘the needle’s eye’ to small gates seems to be a modern one; there is no ancient trace of it. The Lord’s object in the statement is to express human impossibility and there is no need to endeavour to soften the difficulty by taking the needle to mean anything more than the ordinary instrument.”—1981, Volume 3, page 106.


Some suggest that in these verses “camel” should be rendered “rope.” The Greek words for rope (ka′mi‧los) and camel (ka′me‧los) are similar. However, the Greek word for “camel” rather than the one for “rope” appears at Matthew 19:24 in the oldest extant Greek manuscripts of Matthew’s Gospel (the Sinaitic, the Vatican No. 1209, and the Alexandrine). Reportedly, Matthew originally wrote his Gospel in Hebrew and may personally have translated it into Greek. He knew exactly what Jesus said and therefore used the proper word.


So, then, Jesus meant a literal sewing needle and a real camel. He was using these to emphasize the impossibility of something. But did Jesus mean that no rich man could ever get into the Kingdom? No, for Jesus’ statement was not meant to be taken literally. He was using hyperbole to illustrate that just as a literal camel cannot go through the eye of an actual sewing needle, it is impossible for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom if he continues to cling to his riches and does not put Jehovah first in his life.—Luke 13:24; 1 Timothy 6:17-19.


Jesus made this statement just after a rich young ruler turned down the grand privilege of becoming Jesus’ follower. (Luke 18:18-24) A wealthy individual having greater love for his possessions than for spiritual things cannot expect to gain everlasting life in the Kingdom arrangement. Yet, certain rich people did become Jesus’ disciples. (Matthew 27:57; Luke 19:2, 9) So a rich person who is conscious of his spiritual need and who seeks divine help can receive God-given salvation.—Matthew 5:3; 19:16-26.