And he said also unto the disciples, There was a certain rich man, who had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he was wasting his goods.
And he called him, and said unto him, What is this that I hear of thee? render the account of thy stewardship; for thou canst be no longer steward.
And the steward said within himself, What shall I do, seeing that my lord taketh away the stewardship from me? I have not strength to dig; to beg I am ashamed.
I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
And calling to him each one of his lord's debtors, he said to the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?
And he said, A hundred {Greek: baths, the bath being a Hebrew measure. See Ezekiel 45:10, 11, 14}measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy {Greek: writings.}bond, and sit down quickly and write fifty.
Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, A hundred {Greek: cors, the cor being a Hebrew measure. See Ezekiel 45:14.}measures of wheat. He saith unto him, Take thy {Greek: writings.}bond, and write fourscore.
And his lord commended {Greek: the stewart of unrightousness.}the unrighteous steward because he had done wisely: for the sons of this {Or, age}world are for their own generation wiser than the sons of the light.
And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends {Greek: out of.}by means of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when it shall fail, they may receive you into the eternal tabernacles.
He that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much: and he that is unrighteous in a very little is unrighteous also in much.
If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is {Some ancient authorities read your own.}your own?
No {Greek: household-servant.}servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
And the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things; and they scoffed at him.
And he said unto them, Ye are they that justify yourselves in the sight of men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
The law and the prophets were until John: from that time the {Or, good tidings: compare chapter 3:18.}gospel of the kingdom of God is preached, and every man entereth violently into it.
But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one tittle of the law to fall.
Every one that putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and he that marrieth one that is put away from a husband committeth adultery.
Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, {Or, living in mirth and splendor every day}faring sumptuously every day:
and a certain beggar named Lazarus was laid at his gate, full of sores,
and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table; yea, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels into Abraham's bosom: and the rich man also died, and was buried.
And in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.
But Abraham said, {Greek: Child.}Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things: but now here he is comforted, and thou art in anguish.
And {Or, in all these things}besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that they that would pass from hence to you may not be able, and that none may cross over from thence to us.
And he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house;
for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
But Abraham saith, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one go to them from the dead, they will repent.
And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, if one rise from the dead.
Querverweise zu Lukas 16,1 Lk 16,1
Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, who would make a reckoning with his {Greek: bondservants.}servants.
and Joanna the wife of Chuzas Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, who ministered unto {Many ancient authorities read him.}them of their substance.
Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, {Or, living in mirth and splendor every day}faring sumptuously every day:
And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, that owed him ten thousand {This talent was probably worth about £200 or $1000.}talents.
And the Lord said, Who then is {Or, the faithful steward, the wise man whom &c.}the faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall set over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season?
And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together and took his journey into a far country; and there he wasted his substance with riotous living.
For it is as when a man, going into another country, called his own {Greek: bondservants.}servants, and delivered unto them his goods.
And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to each according to his several ability; and he went on his journey.
Straightway he that received the five talents went and traded with them, and made other five talents.
In like manner he also that received the two gained other two.
But he that received the one went away and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.
Now after a long time the lord of those {Greek: bondservants.}servants cometh, and maketh a reckoning with them.
And he that received the five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: lo, I have gained other five talents.
His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful {Greek: bondservant.}servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
And he also that received the two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: lo, I have gained other two talents.
His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful {Greek: bondservant.}servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
And he also that had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art a hard man, reaping where thou didst not sow, and gathering where thou didst not scatter;
and I was afraid, and went away and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, thou hast thine own.
But his lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful {Greek: bondservant.}servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I did not scatter;
thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the bankers, and at my coming I should have received back mine own with interest.
Take ye away therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him that hath the ten talents.
For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken away.
And cast ye out the unprofitable {Greek: bondservant.}servant into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.
And Abram said, O Lord Jehovah, what wilt thou give me, seeing I {Or, go hence}go childless, and he that shall be possessor of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?
but when this thy son came, who hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou killedst for him the fatted calf.
And they came near to the steward of Joseph's house, and they spake unto him at the door of the house,
And {Greek: the other.}another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I kept laid up in a napkin:
And David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies that served the king by course, and the captains of thousands, and the captains of hundreds, and the rulers over all the substance and {Or, cattle}possessions of the king and of his sons, with the {Or, eunuchs}officers, and the mighty men, even all the mighty men of valor, unto Jerusalem.
He also that is slack in his workIs brother to him that is a destroyer.
Let a man so account of us, as of ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.
For she did not know that I gave her the grain, and the new wine, and the oil, and multiplied unto her silver and gold, which they {Or, made into the image of Baal}used for Baal.
Here, moreover, it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may spend it in your pleasures.
For the {Or, overseer}bishop must be blameless, as God's steward; not self-willed, not soon angry, {Or, not quarrelsome over wine.}no brawler, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre;
according as each hath received a gift, ministering it among yourselves, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God;