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Luke 16 :: Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Unjust Steward (Manager)

Luk 16:1

Now Jesus was also saying to the disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a manager [of his estate], and accusations [against this man] were brought to him, that this man was squandering his [master’s] possessions.

Luk 16:2“So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management [of my affairs], for you can no longer be [my] manager.’
Luk 16:3“The manager [of the estate] said to himself, ‘What will I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig [for a living], and I am ashamed to beg.
Luk 16:4‘I know what I will do, so that when I am removed from the management, people [who are my master’s debtors] will welcome me into their homes.’
Luk 16:5“So he summoned his master’s debtors one by one, and he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
Luk 16:6“He said, ‘A hundred [fn]measures of [olive] oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write [fn]fifty.’
Luk 16:7“Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred [fn]measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
Luk 16:8“And his master commended the unjust manager [not for his misdeeds, but] because he had acted shrewdly [by preparing for his future unemployment]; for the sons of this age [the non-believers] are shrewder in relation to their own kind [that is, to the ways of the secular world] than are the sons of light [the believers].
Luk 16:9“And I tell you [learn from this], make friends for yourselves [for eternity] by means of the [fn]wealth of unrighteousness [that is, use material resources as a way to further the work of God], so that when it runs out, they will welcome you into the eternal dwellings.
Luk 16:10

“He who is faithful in a very little thing is also faithful in much; and he who is dishonest in a very little thing is also dishonest in much.

Luk 16:11“Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of earthly wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you?
Luk 16:12“And if you have not been faithful in the use of that [earthly wealth] which belongs to another [whether God or man, and of which you are a trustee], who will give you that which is your own?
Luk 16:13“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand devotedly by the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon [that is, your earthly possessions or anything else you trust in and rely on instead of God].”
Luk 16:14

Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were sneering and ridiculing Him.

Luk 16:15So He said to them, “You are the ones who declare yourselves just and upright in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts [your thoughts, your desires, your secrets]; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.
Luk 16:16

“The Law and the [writings of the] Prophets were proclaimed until John; since then the gospel of the kingdom of God has been and continues to be preached, and everyone tries forcefully to go into it.

Luk 16:17“Yet it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for a single stroke of a letter of the Law to fail and become void.
Luk 16:18

“Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries one who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.

The Rich Man and Lazarus

Luk 16:19

“Now there was a certain rich man who was habitually dressed in expensive purple and fine linen, and celebrated and lived joyously in splendor every day.

Luk 16:20“And a poor man named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, covered with sores.
Luk 16:21“He [eagerly] longed to eat the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.
Luk 16:22“Now it happened that the poor man died and his spirit was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s [fn]bosom (paradise); and the rich man also died and was buried.
Luk 16:23“In Hades (the realm of the dead), being in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom (paradise).
Luk 16:24“And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in severe agony in this flame.’
Luk 16:25“But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things [all the comforts and delights], and Lazarus likewise bad things [all the discomforts and distresses]; but now he is comforted here [in paradise], while you are in severe agony.
Luk 16:26‘And besides all this, between us and you [people] a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to come over from here to you will not be able, and none may cross over from there to us.’
Luk 16:27“So the rich man said, ‘Then, father [Abraham], I beg you to send Lazarus to my father’s house—
Luk 16:28for I have five brothers—in order that he may solemnly warn them and witness to them, so that they too will not come to this place of torment.’
Luk 16:29“But Abraham said, ‘They have [the Scriptures given by] Moses and the [writings of the] Prophets; let them listen to them.’
Luk 16:30“He replied, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent [they will change their old way of thinking and seek God and His righteousness].’
Luk 16:31“And he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to [the messages of] Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
AMP Footnotes
Gr baths, a Hebrew unit of measure equaling about 7-8 gal.
It is possible that the manager was releasing the debtors from unlawful interest he was charging them (cf v 2)
Gr kors, one kor equals 10-12 bushels.
Gr mamona, from Aram mammon, signifying riches, wealth, etc., personified as an object of worship.
Or lap. The Greek word basically means a fold, and could refer either to the fold of a robe over the chest or to the fold of a lap, formed when the legs are placed together. In either case, being “in Abraham’s bosom” (v 23) is an image reflecting a blissful place of comfort and security.
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