1 He also
said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man
who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was
wasting his goods. 2 So
he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account
of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’
3 “Then
the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the
stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 4 I
have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may
receive me into their houses.’ 5 “So
he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the
first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 And
he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and
sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then
he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures
of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8 So
the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the
sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light. 9 “And
I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you
fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home. 10 He
who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he
who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore
if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to
your trust the true riches? 12 And
if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what
is your own? 13 “No
servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the
other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot
serve God and mammon.”
Commentary (Preamble):
Having just contrasted the grace of God with the Pharisees uncharitable and unforgiving attitudes in the parable of the prodigal son. The Lord Jesus now tells another parable in which an apparent unjust steward is commended by his master for his foresight in making provisions for his future by being charitable down here.
Vs. 1-2 1 He also said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. 2 So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’
Now while Jesus’ parable/story of the prodigal son was sinking in amongst the scribes and Pharisees and especially the sinners who drew near Him, He also told another parable to His disciples now telling them of a certain rich man who had a steward who was found to be wasting his goods (vs. 1). And so, the master of the steward told him that he could no longer be steward of them (vs. 2). Now what is being loosely described here is God as the master and owner of all that we have, and so it is to Him alone whom we will all give an accounting of our stewardship of what He has entrusted us with.
Vs. 3-7 3 “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’ 5 “So he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
Realizing then that he was about to lose his stewardship, and that he was too weak for manual labor, and too afraid to now be seen as a beggar (vs. 3-4). The steward quickly devised a plan by which his master’s debtors would receive him into their homes, when he was put out of his stewardship. And so, he began to call his masters debtors saying to each one, how much do you owe? And one said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ ’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ vs. 6-7 Thus, one by one the soon to be put out steward reduced his master’s debtors’ debts, and by so doing was trying to endear himself to them all.
Vs. 8 “So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.”
Now when the master of the steward heard what he had done he commended him for his shrewdness, “For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.” Thus, Jesus point is not about the ethics of what transpired, but rather that the man seeing his future was going to a rough one if he didn’t make some provisions for himself now while he had the opportunity, went about and did so.
Vs. 9 “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home.”
Here then Jesus gets to the heart of matter, telling us all to make friends by the unrighteous mammon; that is with whatever goods and possessions and wealth that we also have been entrusted with, to use these to bless others or to reach others with, so that when we fail they too may receive us into everlasting habilitations. Thus, the time to make friends in heaven is not when ones is already gone, but when one is still amongst the living!
Vs. 10-12 10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?
And so, in saying that we are to be faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to us down here, Jesus now reveals that what we do with what we have down here not only reveals much about us, but also will decide what God will entrust to us in His Kingdom. That is the essence of what He is saying in verses ten through twelve when He says: 10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own? Thus if a person is unjust in the least of things, like the unrighteous mammon, they will also be unjust in greater things. Things that really matter, and last forever, like the spiritual riches and places of prominence that the Lord Jesus Christ will bestow upon all who faithfully follow Him. Therefore, let us all who believe be just and fair in all of our dealings with everyone, and do not be greedy, or covetous, or selfish, but let us all be generous and just towards all. For those who rob wage earners, or who exploit widows and orphans, who take financial advantage of others, or use or think the Gospel as a means of personal gain are of the lowest character, and should not be trusted with much of anything down here by us, because they will have nothing in heaven (Lev. 19:13; Prov. 11:1; Isaiah 58:3; Amos 2:6-7; Malachi 3:5; 1 Tim. 6:5-10; 2 Tim. 3:6; Titus 1:10, 15-16; James 5:1-4 etc., antithesis Micah 6:8; 2 Cor. 2:17; 1 Thess. 2:5 etc.).
Vs. 13 “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
In this one verse the Lord Jesus Christ debunks all the lies that people try to live by when they try to align serving God while they’re really just serving mammon. For many people have sadly lost their faith in God for their love of mammon, therefore be forewarned for only one will be your Lord and Master.
Scripture Quotations
Commentary (Preamble):
Having just contrasted the grace of God with the Pharisees uncharitable and unforgiving attitudes in the parable of the prodigal son. The Lord Jesus now tells another parable in which an apparent unjust steward is commended by his master for his foresight in making provisions for his future by being charitable down here.
Vs. 1-2 1 He also said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. 2 So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’
Now while Jesus’ parable/story of the prodigal son was sinking in amongst the scribes and Pharisees and especially the sinners who drew near Him, He also told another parable to His disciples now telling them of a certain rich man who had a steward who was found to be wasting his goods (vs. 1). And so, the master of the steward told him that he could no longer be steward of them (vs. 2). Now what is being loosely described here is God as the master and owner of all that we have, and so it is to Him alone whom we will all give an accounting of our stewardship of what He has entrusted us with.
Vs. 3-7 3 “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’ 5 “So he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
Realizing then that he was about to lose his stewardship, and that he was too weak for manual labor, and too afraid to now be seen as a beggar (vs. 3-4). The steward quickly devised a plan by which his master’s debtors would receive him into their homes, when he was put out of his stewardship. And so, he began to call his masters debtors saying to each one, how much do you owe? And one said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ ’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ vs. 6-7 Thus, one by one the soon to be put out steward reduced his master’s debtors’ debts, and by so doing was trying to endear himself to them all.
Vs. 8 “So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.”
Now when the master of the steward heard what he had done he commended him for his shrewdness, “For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.” Thus, Jesus point is not about the ethics of what transpired, but rather that the man seeing his future was going to a rough one if he didn’t make some provisions for himself now while he had the opportunity, went about and did so.
Vs. 9 “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home.”
Here then Jesus gets to the heart of matter, telling us all to make friends by the unrighteous mammon; that is with whatever goods and possessions and wealth that we also have been entrusted with, to use these to bless others or to reach others with, so that when we fail they too may receive us into everlasting habilitations. Thus, the time to make friends in heaven is not when ones is already gone, but when one is still amongst the living!
Vs. 10-12 10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?
And so, in saying that we are to be faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to us down here, Jesus now reveals that what we do with what we have down here not only reveals much about us, but also will decide what God will entrust to us in His Kingdom. That is the essence of what He is saying in verses ten through twelve when He says: 10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own? Thus if a person is unjust in the least of things, like the unrighteous mammon, they will also be unjust in greater things. Things that really matter, and last forever, like the spiritual riches and places of prominence that the Lord Jesus Christ will bestow upon all who faithfully follow Him. Therefore, let us all who believe be just and fair in all of our dealings with everyone, and do not be greedy, or covetous, or selfish, but let us all be generous and just towards all. For those who rob wage earners, or who exploit widows and orphans, who take financial advantage of others, or use or think the Gospel as a means of personal gain are of the lowest character, and should not be trusted with much of anything down here by us, because they will have nothing in heaven (Lev. 19:13; Prov. 11:1; Isaiah 58:3; Amos 2:6-7; Malachi 3:5; 1 Tim. 6:5-10; 2 Tim. 3:6; Titus 1:10, 15-16; James 5:1-4 etc., antithesis Micah 6:8; 2 Cor. 2:17; 1 Thess. 2:5 etc.).
Vs. 13 “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
In this one verse the Lord Jesus Christ debunks all the lies that people try to live by when they try to align serving God while they’re really just serving mammon. For many people have sadly lost their faith in God for their love of mammon, therefore be forewarned for only one will be your Lord and Master.
Scripture Quotations
New King James Version (1982): Thomas Nelson
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