Exegesis:

There is no evidence, either in the man’s statement, or in Jesus’ reply, that these words are an exaggeration or a falsehood (cf. Lagrange).

ephulaxamēn (only here in Mark) ‘I kept,’ ‘I guarded’: with reference to a commandment, as here, the verb means ‘observe,’ ‘follow.’

ek neotētos ‘from youth (up to now),’ ‘ever since I was young.’

Translation:

Said may need to be translated as ‘replied.’

For teacher see 2.13.

All these I have observed must be translated carefully, for obviously this must not be translated literally in the sense of ‘looked at,’ or ‘regarded.’ The meaning here is ‘I have obeyed these commandments.’ In some translations the rendering has been ‘have done all these things,’ with exactly the wrong meaning, for though the last commandment is a positive one, the previous ones are in negative form, and to say ‘I have done these’ might be entirely in error. Accordingly, one may translate in some cases as ‘I have done just what I should’ or ‘I have obeyed these words.’

Youth would imply approximately thirteen years of age, at which time Jewish boys were regarded as having reached the age of accountability and hence moral responsibility for their actions.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .