The disciples were even more astonished and were saying to one another, “Then who can be saved?”
The disciples are deeply astonished, because at that time many considered wealth to be a sign of God’s blessing and favor. If even the person who outwardly seemed moral, devout, and blessed with riches could enter the kingdom only with difficulty, then salvation is far more out of reach for a human being than they had thought. Their question, “Who can be saved?” leads in the right direction, because it brings a person face to face with his inability. This is the question that should rise in every heart when a person sees the measure of God’s holiness and his own attachments. Salvation is not the result of human strength; it requires God’s grace and His saving intervention.