Matthew 25
New Living Translation
Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids
25 “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids[a] who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, 4 but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil. 5 When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’
7 “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps. 8 Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’
9 “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. 11 Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’
12 “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’
13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
Parable of the Three Servants
14 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. 15 He gave five bags of silver[b] to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.
16 “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. 17 The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. 18 But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.
19 “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. 20 The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’
21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together![c]’
22 “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’
23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. 25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’
26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, 27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’
28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. 29 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. 30 Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The Final Judgment
31 “But when the Son of Man[d] comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations[e] will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters,[f] you were doing it to me!’
41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.[g] 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
Footnotes
- 25:1 Or virgins; also in 25:7, 11.
- 25:15 Greek talents; also throughout the story. A talent is equal to 75 pounds or 34 kilograms.
- 25:21 Greek Enter into the joy of your master [or your Lord]; also in 25:23.
- 25:31 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.
- 25:32 Or peoples.
- 25:40 Greek my brothers.
- 25:41 Greek his angels.
Matthew 25
New English Translation
The Parable of the Ten Virgins
25 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five[a] of the virgins[b] were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When[c] the foolish ones took their lamps, they did not take extra[d] olive oil[e] with them. 4 But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps. 5 When[f] the bridegroom was delayed a long time, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is here! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The[g] foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ 9 ‘No,’ they replied.[h] ‘There won’t be enough for you and for us. Go instead to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 But while they had gone to buy it, the bridegroom arrived, and those who were ready went inside with him to the wedding banquet. Then[i] the door was shut. 11 Later,[j] the other virgins came too, saying, ‘Lord, lord! Let us in!’[k] 12 But he replied,[l] ‘I tell you the truth,[m] I do not know you!’ 13 Therefore stay alert, because you do not know the day or the hour.[n]
The Parable of the Talents
14 “For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves[o] and entrusted his property to them. 15 To[p] one he gave five talents,[q] to another two, and to another one, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work[r] and gained five more. 17 In the same way, the one who had two gained two more. 18 But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money in it. 19 After[s] a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them. 20 The[t] one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, ‘Sir,[u] you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 His master answered,[v] ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 The[w] one with the two talents also came and said, ‘Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.’ 23 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so[x] I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered,[y] ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers,[z] and on my return I would have received my money back with interest![aa] 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten.[ab] 29 For the one who has will be given more,[ac] and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.[ad] 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness,[ae] where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The Judgment
31 “When[af] the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All[ag] the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He[ah] will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him,[ai] ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When[aj] did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? 39 When[ak] did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the king will answer them,[al] ‘I tell you the truth,[am] just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters[an] of mine, you did it for me.’
41 “Then he will say[ao] to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. 43 I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they too will answer,[ap] ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?’ 45 Then he will answer them,[aq] ‘I tell you the truth,[ar] just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’ 46 And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”[as]
Footnotes
- Matthew 25:2 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:2 tn Grk “Five of them.”
- Matthew 25:3 tn Grk “For when.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:3 tn The word “extra” is not in the Greek text but is implied. The point is that the five foolish virgins had only the oil in their lamps, but took along no extra supply from which to replenish them. This is clear from v. 8, where the lamps of the foolish virgins are going out because they are running out of oil.
- Matthew 25:3 tn On the use of olive oil in lamps, see L&N 6.202.
- Matthew 25:5 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:8 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:9 tn Grk “The wise answered, saying, ‘No.’”
- Matthew 25:10 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
- Matthew 25:11 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:11 tn Grk “Open to us.”
- Matthew 25:12 tn Grk “But answering, he said.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
- Matthew 25:12 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amēn), I say to you.”
- Matthew 25:13 tc Most later mss (C3 Γ ƒ13 1241 1424c M) add here “in which the Son of Man is coming” (ἐν ᾗ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἔρχεται, en |ē ho huios tou anthrōpou erchetai), reproducing almost verbatim the last line of Matt 24:44. The longer reading thus appears to be an explanatory expansion and should not be considered authentic. The earlier and better witnesses (P35 א A B C* D L W Δ Θ ƒ1 33 565 892 1424* al lat co) lack this phrase.
- Matthew 25:14 tn See the note on the word “slave” in 8:9.
- Matthew 25:15 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:15 sn A talent was equal to 6000 denarii. See the note on this term in 18:24.
- Matthew 25:16 tn Grk “traded with them.”
- Matthew 25:19 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:20 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:20 tn Grk Or “Lord; or “Master” (and so throughout this paragraph).
- Matthew 25:21 tn Grk “His master said to him.”
- Matthew 25:22 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:25 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:26 tn Grk “But answering, his master said to him.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
- Matthew 25:27 tn For the translation “deposited my money with the bankers,” see L&N 57.216.
- Matthew 25:27 sn That is, “If you really feared me you should have done a minimum to get what I asked for.”
- Matthew 25:28 tn Grk “the ten talents.”
- Matthew 25:29 tn Grk “to everyone who has, he will be given more.”sn The one who has will be given more. Faithfulness yields great reward (see Matt 13:12; also Mark 4:25; Luke 8:18; 19:26).
- Matthew 25:29 sn The one who has nothing has even what he seems to have taken from him, ending up with no reward at all (see also Luke 8:18). The exact force of this is left ambiguous, but there is no comfort here for those who are pictured by the third slave as being totally unmoved by the master. Though not an outright enemy, there is no relationship to the master either.
- Matthew 25:30 tn The Greek term translated “darkness” (σκότος) is associated with Tartarus in Aeschylus, Eumenides 72; other references to the darkness of death and the underworld can be found throughout the classical literature as far back as Homer. BDAG 932 s.v. σκότος 1 states: “Of the darkness of the place of punishment far removed fr. the heavenly kingdom (Philo, Exsecr. 152 βαθὺ σκότος. Cf. Wsd 17:20; PsSol 14:9.—σκ. κ. βόρβορος ‘gloom and muck’ await those who are untrue to the Eleusinian Mysteries, Ael. Aristid. 22, 10 K.=19 p. 421 D. Of the darkness of death and the underworld in Hom. and the Trag. As the domain of evil spirits PGM 36, 138; Theoph. Ant. 2, 7 [p. 110, 5]) τὸ σκ. τὸ ἐξώτερον the darkness outside Mt 8:12; 22:13; 25:30.”
- Matthew 25:31 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:32 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:33 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:37 tn Grk “answer him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:38 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:39 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:40 tn Grk “answering, the king will say to them.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
- Matthew 25:40 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amēn), I say to you.”
- Matthew 25:40 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelphoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). In this context Jesus is ultimately speaking of his “followers” (whether men or women, adults or children), but the familial connotation of “brothers and sisters” is also important to retain here.
- Matthew 25:41 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:44 tn Grk “Then they will answer, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:45 tn Grk “answer them, saying.” The participle λέγων (legōn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
- Matthew 25:45 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amēn), I say to you.”
- Matthew 25:46 sn Here the ultimate destination of the righteous is eternal life. In several places Matthew uses “life” or “eternal life” in proximity with “the kingdom of heaven” or merely “the kingdom,” suggesting a close relationship between the two concepts (compare Matt 25:34 with v. 46; Matt 19:16, 17, 29 with vv. 23, 24). Matthew consistently portrays “eternal life” as something a person enters in the world to come, whereas the Gospel of John sees “eternal life” as beginning in the present and continuing into the future (cf. John 5:24).
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