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Matthew 24:42-51
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Matthew 24:42-51
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
42 [a](A)Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. 43 (B)Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. 44 So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.
The Faithful or the Unfaithful Servant.[b] 45 (C)“Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household to distribute to them their food at the proper time?[c] 46 Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so. 47 Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property. 48 [d]But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is long delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with drunkards, 50 the servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour 51 (D)and will punish him severely[e] and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 24:42–44 Cf. Lk 12:39–40. The theme of vigilance and readiness is continued with the bold comparison of the Son of Man to a thief who comes to break into a house.
- 24:45–51 The second part of the discourse (see note on Mt 24:1–25:46) begins with this parable of the faithful or unfaithful servant; cf. Lk 12:41–46. It is addressed to the leaders of Matthew’s church; the servant has been put in charge of his master’s household (Mt 24:45) even though that household is composed of those who are his fellow servants (Mt 24:49).
- 24:45 To distribute…proper time: readiness for the master’s return means a vigilance that is accompanied by faithful performance of the duty assigned.
- 24:48 My master…delayed: the note of delay is found also in the other parables of this section; cf. Mt 25:5, 19.
- 24:51 Punish him severely: the Greek verb, found in the New Testament only here and in the Lucan parallel (Lk 12:46), means, literally, “cut in two.” With the hypocrites: see note on Mt 6:2. Matthew classes the unfaithful Christian leader with the unbelieving leaders of Judaism. Wailing and grinding of teeth: see note on Mt 8:11–12.
Matthew 24:42-51
New International Version
Matthew 24:42-51
New International Version
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.(A) 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming,(B) he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready,(C) because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant,(D) whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.(E) 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.(F) 48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.(G) 50 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.(H)
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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