Book of Common Prayer

⁵ May the God of patience and consolation grant to every one of you to have such a mind towards one another, after the example of Christ Jesus, ⁶ in order that you all, in harmony together, may with one mouth praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus. ⁷ So then, receive one another as Christ received us, to the glory of God.

⁸ And I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers. ⁹ And let the Gentiles praise God for his mercy, as it is written: For this cause I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing in your name. ¹⁰ And again he says: Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people! ¹¹ And again: Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles, and laud him, all nations! ¹² And in another place Isaiah says: The root of Jesse is to come, he who will rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust. ¹³ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may be rich in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

¹¹ As the people listened to these things, he added a similitude, because he was nearing Jerusalem, and also because they thought that the kingdom of God would shortly appear. ¹² He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then to return. ¹³ And he called his ten servants and gave them ten minas, saying to them, Trade with these till I come. ¹⁴ But his citizens hated him and sent messengers after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.

¹⁵ And it came to pass, when the nobleman returned and had received his kingdom, he commanded those servants to whom he had given his money to be called to him, to find out how each had done. ¹⁶ Then came the first, saying, Lord, your mina has increased ten minas. ¹⁷ And he said to him, Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little thing, you shall have authority over ten cities. ¹⁸ And the other came, saying, Lord, your mina has increased five minas. ¹⁹ And to him he said, You also shall be over five cities.

²⁰ And the third came and said, Lord, here is your mina, which I have kept in a napkin. ²¹ For I feared you, because you are a hard man. You take where you did not invest, and reap what you did not sow.

²² And his lord said to him, By your own mouth I judge you, you evil servant. You knew that I am a hard man, taking where I did not invest and reaping what I did not sow? ²³ Why then didn’t you put my money into the bank, so that at my coming I could have claimed what is my own with profit?

²⁴ And he said to those who stood by, Take from him that mina, and give it the one who has ten minas. ²⁵ And they said to him, Lord, he has ten minas!

²⁶ I say to you that to all those who have, it will be given, and from him who has not, even that which he has will be taken from him. ²⁷ Moreover, those my enemies who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them before me.