The Parable of the Shrewd Manager

16 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions.(A)

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42 The Lord(A) answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time?

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10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others,(A) as faithful(B) stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

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The Nature of True Apostleship

This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants(A) of Christ and as those entrusted(B) with the mysteries(C) God has revealed. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.

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30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property(A) with prostitutes(B) comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

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13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth(A) in wild living.

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The Parable of the Bags of Gold(A)

14 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey,(B) who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. 15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag,[a] each according to his ability.(C) Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. 17 So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. 18 But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

19 “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.(D) 20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’

21 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.(E) Come and share your master’s happiness!’

22 “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’

23 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.(F) Come and share your master’s happiness!’

24 “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

26 “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

28 “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. 29 For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.(G) 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’(H)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 25:15 Greek five talents … two talents … one talent; also throughout this parable; a talent was worth about 20 years of a day laborer’s wage.

When you ask, you do not receive,(A) because you ask with wrong motives,(B) that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

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Since an overseer(A) manages God’s household,(B) he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain.(C)

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20 “Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth.

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23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like(A) a king who wanted to settle accounts(B) with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold[a] was brought to him.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 18:24 Greek ten thousand talents; a talent was worth about 20 years of a day laborer’s wages.

One who is slack in his work
    is brother to one who destroys.(A)

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The Rich Man and Lazarus

19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.(A)

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Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s(A) household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.

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She has not acknowledged(A) that I was the one
    who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,(B)
who lavished on her the silver and gold(C)
    which they used for Baal.(D)

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David’s Plans for the Temple

28 David summoned(A) all the officials(B) of Israel to assemble at Jerusalem: the officers over the tribes, the commanders of the divisions in the service of the king, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of all the property and livestock belonging to the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the warriors and all the brave fighting men.

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19 So they went up to Joseph’s steward(A) and spoke to him at the entrance to the house.

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But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord,(A) what can you give me since I remain childless(B) and the one who will inherit[a] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?(C)

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 15:2 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.

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