The Parable of the Dishonest Manager

16 He also said to the disciples: “There was a rich^(A) man who received an accusation that his manager^(B) was squandering^(C) his possessions. ² So he called the manager in and asked, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management,^(D) because you can no longer be my manager.’

³ “Then the manager said to himself, ‘What should I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I’m not strong enough to dig; I’m ashamed to beg. ⁴ I know what I’ll do so that when I’m removed from management, people will welcome me into their homes.’

⁵ “So he summoned each one of his master’s debtors. ‘How much do you owe my master?’ he asked the first one.

⁶ “‘A hundred measures of olive oil,’ he said.

“‘Take your invoice,’ he told him, ‘sit down quickly, and write 50.’

⁷ “Next he asked another, ‘How much do you owe?’

“‘A hundred measures of wheat,’ he said.

“‘Take your invoice,’ he told him, ‘and write 80.’

⁸ “The master praised the unrighteous manager^(E) because he had acted astutely. For the sons of this age^(F) are more astute than the sons of light^(G) in dealing with their own people.^{[a] 9} And I tell you, make friends^(H) for yourselves by means of the unrighteous money^(I) so that when it fails,^[b] they may welcome you into eternal dwellings. ¹⁰ Whoever is faithful^(J) in very little^(K) is also faithful in much, and whoever is unrighteous in very little is also unrighteous in much. ¹¹ So if you have not been faithful with the unrighteous money, who will trust you with what is genuine? ¹² And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to someone else, who will give you what is your own? ¹³ No^(L) household slave can be the slave of two masters, since either he will hate^(M) one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can’t be slaves to both God and money.”

Kingdom Values

¹⁴ The Pharisees, who were lovers of money,^(N) were listening to all these things and scoffing^(O) at Him. ¹⁵ And He told them: “You are the ones who justify^(P) yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts.^(Q) For what is highly admired by people is revolting^(R) in God’s sight.

¹⁶ “The^(S) Law and the Prophets^(T) were^[c] until John; since then, the good news of the kingdom of God^(U) has been proclaimed, and everyone is strongly urged to enter it.^{[d] 17} But it is easier^(V) for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter in the law to drop out.

¹⁸ “Everyone^(W) who divorces^(X) his wife and marries another woman commits adultery,^(Y) and everyone who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

The Rich Man and Lazarus

¹⁹ “There was a rich man who would dress in purple and fine linen,^(Z) feasting lavishly every day. ²⁰ But a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, was left at his gate.^{(AA) 21} He longed to be filled^(AB) with what fell from the rich man’s table,^(AC) but instead the dogs^(AD) would come and lick his sores. ²² One day the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s side.^[e](AE) The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And being in torment^(AF) in Hades,^(AG) he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off, with Lazarus at his side. ²⁴ ‘Father Abraham!’^(AH) he called out, ‘Have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony^(AI) in this flame!’

²⁵ “‘Son,’^[f] Abraham said, ‘remember that during your life you received your good things,^(AJ) just as Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here,^(AK) while you are in agony. ²⁶ Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.’

²⁷ “‘Father,’ he said, ‘then I beg you to send him to my father’s house— ²⁸ because I have five brothers—to warn^(AL) them, so they won’t also come to this place of torment.’

²⁹ “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets;^(AM) they should listen to them.’

³⁰ “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

³¹ “But he told him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’”^(AN)