ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for Luk 16

Luke 16:1 The audience for the parable of the dishonest manager (vv. 1–8a) included Christ’s disciples (v. 1) and also the Pharisees (v. 14). The manager is a trusted servant with responsibility for household goods. wasting his possessions. The manager is clearly guilty as charged, because when the master fired him (v. 2), the manager made no attempt to defend himself (v. 3).

Luke 16:4–7 The reduction of both bills would have amounted to about 500 denarii (about 20 months’ wages).

Luke 16:8 The master commended the dishonest manager. Various explanations have been suggested for this seemingly undeserved commendation. The main point is that the manager was smart to anticipate his financial needs after his dismissal, so he used his financial expertise to make friends for himself.

Luke 16:9 Unrighteous wealth probably refers to the way in which the pursuit of money may often involve (1) taking advantage of others; (2) using wealth for selfish purposes; and (3) the corrupting influence of wealth that often leads to unrighteousness. so that when it fails. Wealth will fail to satisfy and to provide for eternal needs. they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. “They” probably refers to the friends who have been helped by such generous giving. God will give eternal rewards to believers who are generous in using the resources he has entrusted to them.

Luke 16:11 True riches means spiritual responsibility in God’s kingdom, and heavenly reward as well (see 12:33; Matt. 6:19–21).

Luke 16:12 Not . . . faithful in that which is another’s means not faithful with the worldly possessions that God entrusts to his people for their stewardship during their lifetime (see 19:11–27). Your own refers back to the “true riches” of 16:11.

Luke 16:13 You cannot serve God and money. See note on Matt. 6:24. “Money” is personified here in parallel with “God,” indicating that money can often be an idol.

Luke 16:14 For the Pharisees as lovers of money, see 11:39; 20:46–47.

Luke 16:16 The Law and the Prophets. The OT. until John. The ministry of John the Baptist concluded a long history of OT prophecy that promised the coming of the messianic kingdom. Everyone forces his way into it is a puzzling statement. It may suggest that the faith that brings one into the kingdom involves a kind of holy “violence” toward oneself in the form of repentance and self-denial.

Luke 16:17 But suggests that Jesus is seeking to correct a possible misunderstanding of v. 16a, that the OT moral law will become void (see also 21:33).

Luke 16:18 Everyone who divorces . . . and marries another commits adultery. No exception is mentioned in Mark or Luke. Matthew adds “except on the ground of sexual immorality” (Matt. 5:32; 19:9) and Paul allows for divorce in the case of desertion by an unbelieving partner (1 Cor. 7:10–11). For more on divorce and remarriage, see notes on Matt. 5:31–32; 19:3; 19:6; 19:8; 19:9; Mark 10:10–11; 10:12; 1 Cor. 7:15.

Luke 16:19–20 clothed in purple. Dressed in luxurious clothes.

Luke 16:21 There is no indication that the rich man gave Lazarus anything. dogs came and licked his sores. The reference here is not to friendly household pets but to dogs that ran wild in the streets.

Luke 16:22–23 carried . . . to Abraham’s side. Lazarus was welcomed into the fellowship of other believers already in heaven, particularly Abraham, the father of the Jewish people. Hades. The place of the wicked, the dead, or “hell,” described as a place of torment. It is unclear how literally the details of the story should be taken. It does seem to teach that, immediately after death, both believers and unbelievers have a conscious awareness of their eternal status and enter at once into either suffering or blessing.

Luke 16:24 send Lazarus. The rich man knows Lazarus’s name and thus knew of his difficulties, though in life he had ignored him. One should probably not draw too much doctrinal significance from the conversation between the rich man and Abraham, for nowhere else does Scripture suggest that there will be personal communication between those in heaven and those in hell.

Luke 16:25 Although physically a “child of Abraham,” the rich man was not one of Abraham’s true offspring (see John 8:39) because he lacked Abraham’s faith (see Rom. 9:6–8; Gal. 3:29). good . . . bad . . . but now. For this great reversal, see Introduction: Key Themes.

Luke 16:26 A great chasm has been fixed by God between heaven and hell. The fate of the dead is unchangeable.

Luke 16:27–31 Luke will later point out that Moses and the Prophets all testify to Jesus as the true Messiah (24:27).