Sacred Text · The Analects
The Analects 4:16
Book 4, chapter 16 · the sayings of Confucius
Translation: James Legge, The Chinese Classics: Confucian Analects (1861, revised 1893), public domain, via Project Gutenberg (ebook 3330). Reproduced in full and in context; the sayings 15:23 (the negative Golden Rule), 6:28 (ren), 4:15 (the one thread) and 2:4 (the stages of life) were validated against the source before publishing. References follow Legge’s standard book:chapter numbering.
How this connects to Jesus
The mind of the superior person, Confucius said, is set on righteousness; the mind of the small person, on gain. Jesus put the same choice plainly: you cannot serve God and money (Matthew 6:24), and seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness (Matthew 6:33). Two voices calling the heart away from mere gain toward what is right.
Explore: The superior personWhy Jesus?Read the Gospel