New Living Translation

King James Bible

Parable of the Shrewd Manager

Jesus told this story to his disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a manager handling his affairs. One day a report came that the manager was wasting his employer’s money.

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The Parable of the Unrighteous Steward

And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.

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So the employer called him in and said, ‘What’s this I hear about you? Get your report in order, because you are going to be fired.’

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And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.

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“The manager thought to himself, ‘Now what? My boss has fired me. I don’t have the strength to dig ditches, and I’m too proud to beg.

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Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.

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Ah, I know how to ensure that I’ll have plenty of friends who will give me a home when I am fired.’

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I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.

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“So he invited each person who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you owe him?’

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So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?

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The man replied, ‘I owe him 800 gallons of olive oil.’ So the manager told him, ‘Take the bill and quickly change it to 400 gallons.a’

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And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.

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“‘And how much do you owe my employer?’ he asked the next man. ‘I owe him 1,000 bushels of wheat,’ was the reply. ‘Here,’ the manager said, ‘take the bill and change it to 800 bushels.b’

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Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.

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“The rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light.

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And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.

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Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.c

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And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

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“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.

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He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

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And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?

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If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

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And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?

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And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?

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“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”

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No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

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The Pharisees, who dearly loved their money, heard all this and scoffed at him.

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The Law and the Prophets

And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.

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Then he said to them, “You like to appear righteous in public, but God knows your hearts. What this world honors is detestable in the sight of God.

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And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

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“Until John the Baptist, the law of Moses and the messages of the prophets were your guides. But now the Good News of the Kingdom of God is preached, and everyone is eager to get in.d

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The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.

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But that doesn’t mean that the law has lost its force. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the smallest point of God’s law to be overturned.

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And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.

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“For example, a man who divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery. And anyone who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.”

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Divorce

Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.

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Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury.

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The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:

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At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores.

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And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,

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As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

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And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

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“Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet.e The rich man also died and was buried,

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And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;

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and he went to the place of the dead.f There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

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And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

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“The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

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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 tormented in this flame.

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“But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish.

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But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

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And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’

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And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

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“Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home.

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Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:

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For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

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For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

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“But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’

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Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

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“The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’

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And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

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“But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

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And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

Parallel

New Living Translation

King James Bible

Luke 16

Luke 16