Lucas 16
Palabra de Dios para Todos
Historia del administrador astuto
16 Jesús les dijo a sus seguidores: «Había un hombre rico que tenía un administrador que había sido acusado de malgastar lo que el rico tenía. 2 Entonces el hombre rico lo llamó y le dijo: “¿Qué es esto que me dicen de ti? Dame un informe de lo que has hecho con mi dinero. No puedes seguir siendo mi administrador”. 3 Entonces el administrador se dijo a sí mismo: “¿Qué voy a hacer ahora? Porque mi patrón no me va a dejar seguir siendo su administrador. Ya no puedo hacer trabajos pesados y me da vergüenza pedir limosna. 4 Ya sé lo que voy a hacer para que cuando me quiten el trabajo de administrador, la gente me reciba en su casa”.
5 »Entonces llamó a cada uno de los que le debían dinero a su patrón, y le dijo al primero: “¿Cuánto le debes a mi patrón?” 6 Él le respondió: “100 barriles[a] de aceite”. Entonces el administrador le dijo: “Toma la cuenta, apúrate, siéntate y escribe una cantidad menor. Escribe 50”. 7 Entonces fue y le dijo al segundo: “Y tú, ¿cuánto le debes a mi patrón?” Él respondió: “100 bultos[b] de trigo”. El administrador le dijo: “Toma tu cuenta, puedes hacerla por menos. Escribe 80”.
8 »Más tarde, el patrón elogió al administrador deshonesto porque lo que había hecho era muy astuto. Sí, cuando se trata de negocios con sus semejantes, la gente mundana es más astuta que la gente espiritual. 9 Les digo que usen las riquezas deshonestas de una manera que les ayude a ganar la amistad de Dios, para que cuando las riquezas se acaben, sean bienvenidos en la casa eterna.
10 »Si alguien es de fiar en lo poco, será de fiar en lo mucho; si es deshonesto en lo poco, será deshonesto en lo mucho. 11 Si no se les pueden confiar las riquezas mundanas, ¿quién les confiará las riquezas verdaderas? 12 Si no se les puede confiar lo ajeno, ¿quién les dará lo que es de ustedes? 13 Ningún siervo puede servir a dos patrones al mismo tiempo. Odiará a uno y amará al otro, o se dedicará a uno y despreciará al otro. Ustedes no pueden servir a Dios y a las riquezas[c] al mismo tiempo».
La ley de Dios no se puede cambiar
(Mt 11:12-13)
14 Los fariseos, que eran amantes del dinero, escuchaban todo esto y se burlaban de Jesús. 15 Jesús les dijo: «Ustedes ante la gente aparentan ser justos, pero Dios conoce las intenciones de su corazón. Lo que la gente tiene en alta estima es despreciable para Dios.
16 »Dios siempre quiso que la gente viviera de acuerdo con la ley y los profetas. Entonces vino Juan.[d] Desde que él vino anunciando la buena noticia del reino de Dios están todos esforzándose por entrar en él. 17 Sin embargo es más fácil que el cielo y la tierra se acaben que cambiar una sola tilde de la ley.
Divorcio y matrimonio
18 »Todo aquel que se divorcia de su esposa y se casa con otra, comete adulterio. Todo aquel que se casa con una mujer divorciada, comete también adulterio.
El hombre rico y Lázaro
19 »Había un hombre tan rico que todos los días se divertía a sus anchas, vestía las ropas más finas y comía de la mejor comida. 20 Había también un hombre muy pobre llamado Lázaro, quien tenía el cuerpo cubierto de llagas y con frecuencia se sentaba a la puerta de la casa del hombre rico. 21 Quería tan sólo calmar su hambre comiendo las sobras que caían de la mesa del hombre rico. Los perros venían y lamían sus llagas.
22 »Tiempo después, Lázaro murió y los ángeles del cielo vinieron y lo pusieron en el mejor lugar en el banquete al lado de Abraham. El hombre rico también murió y fue enterrado. 23 El rico fue enviado al lugar donde están los muertos[e] y sufría mucho. Miró hacia arriba y vio muy lejos a Abraham y a Lázaro sentado a su lado. 24 El hombre rico gritó: “¡Padre Abraham, ten compasión de mí. Manda a Lázaro para que moje la punta de su dedo con agua y refresque mi lengua. Estoy sufriendo en este fuego!” 25 Pero Abraham le dijo: “Hijo mío, recuerda que mientras estabas vivo, la pasaste muy bien, pero Lázaro sufrió mucho. Ahora él recibe consuelo aquí mientras tú estás sufriendo. 26 Además, entre nosotros hay un abismo muy grande, para que nadie pueda pasar de aquí para allá, ni de allá para acá”.
27 »Entonces el hombre rico dijo: “Padre, te ruego que mandes a Lázaro a casa de mi papá. 28 Dile que les advierta a mis cinco hermanos y así ellos no tengan que venir también a este lugar de sufrimiento”. 29 Pero Abraham dijo: “Ellos tienen los escritos de Moisés y de los profetas. Que les presten atención y los obedezcan”. 30 El hombre rico dijo: “No, padre Abraham, pero si alguien va desde donde están los muertos y les avisa, ellos cambiarán su manera de pensar y de vivir”. 31 Abraham le dijo: “Si ellos no escuchan a Moisés y a los profetas, tampoco escucharán a alguien que regrese de entre los muertos”».
Footnotes
- 16:6 100 barriles Textualmente cien batos. El bato era una medida de líquidos. Ver tabla de pesas y medidas.
- 16:7 100 bultos Textualmente 100 coros. El coro era una medida de granos. Ver tabla de pesas y medidas.
- 16:13 riquezas Textualmente mamoná, palabra aramea que significa «Riqueza». Aquí se personifica como si fuera un dios.
- 16:16 Dios siempre […] vino Juan Textualmente La ley y los profetas eran hasta Juan.
- 16:23 lugar […] los muertos Textualmente el Hades. Ver Hades en el vocabulario.
Luke 16
EasyEnglish Bible
A story about a man who thought carefully
16 Jesus told another story to his disciples: ‘A rich man had a servant who worked for him. The servant took care of the money and things that belonged to the man. Then some people told the rich man that his servant was wasting his master's things. 2 So the master sent someone to bring his servant to him. He said to his servant, “I am hearing bad stories about you. So write down everything that you have done with my money and my things. Then you must stop working for me.”
3 “I must think about what I can do,” the servant said to himself. “My master will not let me work for him any longer. I am not strong enough to dig in the ground. I would be ashamed to ask other people for money. 4 I must stop working for my master. But I know what I can do so that people will then accept me into their homes.”
5 Many people had a debt that they had not paid back to the master. So the servant told those people to come to him. He asked the first man, “How big is your debt to my master?” 6 The man replied, “I have to give him 100 barrels of oil.”[a] The servant said to him, “Here is the paper with your debt written down on it. Take the paper. Sit down now and write 50 barrels there.”[b]
7 He asked the next man, “How big is your debt to my master?” The man replied, “I have to give him 100 baskets of wheat.” The servant replied, “Here is the paper with your debt written down on it. Take the paper and write 80 baskets.” ’[c]
8 Jesus then said, ‘The servant in the story was not honest. But his master spoke well about what he had done. It would help the servant later in his life. People that do not obey God think carefully. They know how to do well with people who are like themselves. But people who live in God's light often think less carefully. 9 So I tell you this. People may get money in wrong ways. But you should use it to do good to those who need help. Then they will be your friends. You will die, one day. Then those people will be happy to see you in that place where people live for all time.
10 If you can trust a person with a very small thing, you can also trust him with bigger things. And if you cannot trust a person with a very small thing, you cannot trust him with big things. 11 So if people cannot trust you with money in this world, nobody will trust you with really valuable things. 12 And if people cannot trust you with other people's things, nobody will give you things for yourself.
13 A slave cannot work for two masters at the same time. Maybe he will hate one of the masters, but he will love the other one. Or he will work well for one master, but he will think bad things about the other one. God and money are like different masters. You cannot work for both of them.’
14 The Pharisees heard all this. They loved money very much, so they laughed at Jesus. They said to him, ‘You are wrong.’ 15 Jesus replied, ‘You are happy when people like you. You want them to think that you are good people. But God sees inside you. He knows what you are thinking. The things that many people think are valuable are not valuable to God. He hates those things.’[d]
16 Jesus then said, ‘The books of God's Law and God's prophets spoke God's message until John the Baptist came. Since then, God's servants tell people the good news about the kingdom of God. Everyone is now trying very much to get into that kingdom. 17 But this does not mean that anyone can destroy God's Law. One day, the earth and the sky will finish. But until that time, nobody can remove even a small thing from God's Law.
18 A man must not send his wife away and then marry another woman. If he does that, it is the same as if he had sex with another man's wife. Also, if a woman has left her husband, another man must not marry her. That is the same as if he had sex with another man's wife.’
Jesus tells a story about a rich man and a poor man
19 Jesus then said, ‘At one time, there was a rich man who wore very expensive clothes. This rich man ate big meals every day. 20 There was also a poor man called Lazarus. He had sores all over his body. He lay outside the gate of the rich man. 21 He was very hungry. He wanted to eat the bits of food that the rich man threw away. Even the dogs came and they tasted the sores on his body. 22 Then Lazarus died and God's angels carried him away. They put him at the side of Abraham in heaven. The rich man then also died and his family buried him in the ground. 23 He went to Hades, the place for dead people. He was in a lot of pain there. He saw Abraham far away in heaven. He also saw Lazarus at Abraham's side. 24 So he shouted out, “Father Abraham, please be kind to me. Please send Lazarus here to help me. I am in great pain because I am in a fire that burns me. Let him put his finger into some water. Then he can use the water to make my mouth cool.”
25 Abraham replied, “My child, remember the time when you were alive on earth. Remember what happened then. You had many good things, and Lazarus had many bad things. Now I am taking care of Lazarus, and you are in pain. 26 But that is not everything. Between you and us, there is a big hole. It is wide and long and deep. There is a reason why that hole is there. Nobody can cross from here to where you are. And nobody can cross from where you are to come here.”
27 The rich man said, “If that is true, father Abraham, please send Lazarus to my family. 28 I have five brothers that are still alive. He can tell them not to do the same things as I did. Then they will not also come here when they die. They will not be in great pain, as I am.”
29 Abraham replied, “They have the books that Moses and God's prophets wrote. Your family should read them and do what they say.”[e]
30 The rich man said, “That is not enough, father Abraham. But if someone goes to them from among the dead people, they will listen. Then they will turn away from the wrong things that they do.”
31 But Abraham said to him, “They do not listen to what Moses and God's prophets have said. So they will not believe God's message even if someone comes back from among the dead people.” ’[f]
Footnotes
- 16:6 A barrel is like a large, round, wooden box that contains water or oil.
- 16:6 The man had a big debt to pay, but the servant made it only half.
- 16:7 The debt was large but the servant made it smaller.
- 16:15 People thought that the Pharisees were important people. They thought that the Pharisees were very good people. They thought that they obeyed God. But God knew that it was not true. They wanted people to think well of them. This was more important to them. But what God thought was not important to them.
- 16:29 The men of God wrote down the messages that they received. An officer read these messages aloud in their meeting places. They explained them to the people. If the people listened, they could understand them. And then they could obey God.
- 16:31 Jesus came back after he had died. But many of the Pharisees and the other people still did not believe.
Luke 16
King James Version
16 And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.
2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.
3 Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.
4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
5 So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?
6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.
7 Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.
8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.
9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.
10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?
13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.
17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.
18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
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