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Matthew 24:43-25:13
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
43 (A)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.[a] 45 (B)“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?[b] 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 [c]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 (C)and will punish him severely[d] and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Chapter 25
The Parable of the Ten Virgins.[e] 1 “Then[f] the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 [g]Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, 4 but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 6 At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. 11 [h](D)Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ 12 But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 (E)Therefore, stay awake,[i] for you know neither the day nor the hour.
The Parable of the Talents.[j]
Footnotes
- 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.
- 25:1–13 Peculiar to Matthew.
- 25:1 Then: at the time of the parousia. Kingdom…will be like: see note on Mt 13:24–30.
- 25:2–4 Foolish…wise: cf. the contrasted “wise man” and “fool” of Mt 7:24, 26 where the two are distinguished by good deeds and lack of them, and such deeds may be signified by the oil of this parable.
- 25:11–12 Lord, Lord: cf. Mt 7:21. I do not know you: cf. Mt 7:23 where the Greek verb is different but synonymous.
- 25:13 Stay awake: some scholars see this command as an addition to the original parable of Matthew’s traditional material, since in Mt 25:5 all the virgins, wise and foolish, fall asleep. But the wise virgins are adequately equipped for their task, and stay awake may mean no more than to be prepared; cf. Mt 24:42, 44.
- 25:14–30 Cf. Lk 19:12–27.
Matthew 24:43-25:13
Good News Translation
Matthew 24:43-25:13
Good News Translation
43 (A)If the owner of a house knew the time when the thief would come, you can be sure that he would stay awake and not let the thief break into his house. 44 So then, you also must always be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you are not expecting him.
The Faithful or the Unfaithful Servant(B)
45 “Who, then, is a faithful and wise servant? It is the one that his master has placed in charge of the other servants to give them their food at the proper time. 46 How happy that servant is if his master finds him doing this when he comes home! 47 Indeed, I tell you, the master will put that servant in charge of all his property. 48 But if he is a bad servant, he will tell himself that his master will not come back for a long time, 49 and he will begin to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50 Then that servant's master will come back one day when the servant does not expect him and at a time he does not know. 51 The master will cut him in pieces[a] and make him share the fate of the hypocrites. There he will cry and gnash his teeth.
The Parable of the Ten Young Women
25 (C)“At that time the Kingdom of heaven will be like this. Once there were ten young women who took their oil lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and the other five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any extra oil with them, 4 while the wise ones took containers full of oil for their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was late in coming, so they began to nod and fall asleep.
6 “It was already midnight when the cry rang out, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come and meet him!’ 7 The ten young women woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 Then the foolish ones said to the wise ones, ‘Let us have some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ 9 ‘No, indeed,’ the wise ones answered, ‘there is not enough for you and for us. Go to the store and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 So the foolish ones went off to buy some oil; and while they were gone, the bridegroom arrived. The five who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was closed.
11 (D)“Later the others arrived. ‘Sir, sir! Let us in!’ they cried out. 12 ‘Certainly not! I don't know you,’ the bridegroom answered.”
13 And Jesus concluded, “Watch out, then, because you do not know the day or the hour.
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:51 cut him in pieces; or throw him out.
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
43 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
The Faithful or the Unfaithful Slave
45 “Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves[a] their allowance of food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. 47 Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked slave says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49 and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards, 50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know. 51 He will cut him in pieces[b] and put him with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids
25 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids[c] took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.[d] 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those bridesmaids[e] got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. 11 Later the other bridesmaids[f] came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ 13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.[g]
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:45 Gk to give them
- Matthew 24:51 Or cut him off
- Matthew 25:1 Gk virgins
- Matthew 25:1 Other ancient authorities add and the bride
- Matthew 25:7 Gk virgins
- Matthew 25:11 Gk virgins
- Matthew 25:13 Other ancient authorities add in which the Son of Man is coming
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New American Standard Bible
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New American Standard Bible
43 But [a]be sure of this, that (A)if the head of the house had known (B)at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. 44 For this reason (C)you must be ready as well; for (D)the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.
45 “(E)Who then is the (F)faithful and (G)sensible slave whom his [b]master (H)put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that slave whom his [c]master finds so doing when he comes. 47 Truly I say to you that (I)he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My [d]master [e]is not coming for a long time,’ 49 and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk; 50 then the [f]master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, 51 and he will [g]cut him in two and assign [h]him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be (J)weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Parable of Ten Virgins
25 “Then (K)the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their (L)lamps and went out to meet the groom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were (M)prudent. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they did not take extra oil with them; 4 but the (N)prudent ones took oil in flasks with their lamps. 5 Now while the groom was delaying, they all became drowsy and began to sleep. 6 But at midnight [i]there finally was a shout: ‘Behold, the groom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 But the foolish virgins said to the prudent ones, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ 9 However, the (O)prudent ones answered, ‘No, there most certainly would not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 But while they were [j]on their way to buy the oil, the groom came, and those who were (P)ready went in with him to (Q)the wedding feast; and (R)the door was shut. 11 Yet later, the other virgins also came, saying, ‘(S)Lord, lord, open up for us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 (T)Be on the alert then, because you do not know the day nor the hour.
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:43 Lit know that
- Matthew 24:45 Or lord
- Matthew 24:46 Or lord
- Matthew 24:48 Or lord
- Matthew 24:48 Lit lingers
- Matthew 24:50 Or lord
- Matthew 24:51 Possibly referring to other extreme punishment
- Matthew 24:51 Lit his portion with
- Matthew 25:6 Lit a shout has occurred
- Matthew 25:10 Lit departing
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New International Version
Matthew 24:43-25:13
New International Version
43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming,(A) he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready,(B) 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,(C) 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.(D) 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.(E) 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.(F) 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.(G)
The Parable of the Ten Virgins
25 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like(H) ten virgins who took their lamps(I) and went out to meet the bridegroom.(J) 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise.(K) 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.(L)
6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
7 “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’(M)
9 “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet.(N) And the door was shut.
11 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’(O)
13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.(P)
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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