Matthew XXV
1. Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
2. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
4. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
6. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom Cometh; go ye out to meet him.
7. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
8. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
9. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
10. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
1 1. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
12. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
13. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
The common interpretation of this parable may be set aside for a few moments, that less known renderings of its meaning may have greater prominence. Chrysostom says that the whole of the parables contained in this chapter are designed to stir up to almsgiving, and to live to the benefit of one another. With regard to this particular parable, he says the Bridegroom is Christ, the sleep of the virgins is death, Christ comes at midnight to show that He will appear when He is least expected, and that the cry heard is the sound of the last trumpet. His interpretation of the passage is novel: the foolish, he says, want oil, for nothing is so foolish as to gather money here and to depart naked; the wise deny them oil, not through inhumanity, but to show that if we lose the time of doing good works it will never return; “them that sell” are the needy, but when Christ comes it will be too late to procure oil by giving the poor alms which they no longer need.
Jerome is more fanciful in his interpretation. He says that the five senses in the wise hasten towards the heavenly kingdom, especially the sight, the hearing, and the touch; they who have oil are those who join good works to faith, and they who have no oil are those which seem to have faith but have no good works.
Augustine is still more fanciful. The virgins, he says, are such as are called by the name of Christ, for how can infidels be said to prepare to go out to meet Him? They are all virgins because they are called to continency, and they are five because of the five senses whose desires are to be controlled. There are two sorts of continency: the wise keeping continency before God, and the foolish only before men. On the expression, “lest there be not enough for us and you,” Augustine well says: “The testimony of one man will not then profit another, and the best shall find testimony little enough from his own conscience for his comfort.”
Origen says that the virgins are the senses of all those who have received the word, because they have departed from the worship of idols to the worship of God. He further says that the lamps are the organs of the body, together with the mind; the oil is the word of God, feeding the mind and cherishing it: the wise receive enough of the doctrine of this word, so that, though the Bridegroom tarries, there is no want of oil; but the foolish, being negligent in receiving it, are altogether without oil at His coming.
Hilary says the lamps are bright souls, the oil is the fruit of good works, the five wise and five foolish are the faithful and the unfaithful, the marriage is the assumption of immortality.
So much for the testimony of learned ancients. As the parable relates to a marriage, it should be borne in mind that the marriages of the Jews were celebrated in the evening, when the bridegroom led his new bride to his home in procession; and that she might be received in a suitable manner, his female friends of the younger sort were invited to come and wait with lamps the arrival of the bridegroom. When they arrived they conducted them into the house, and were themselves afterwards invited to join in the bridal festivity. — (Valpy.)
Looked at in relation to the whole life of humanity, the parable appears to proceed upon a recognition of four facts: —
I. That human life is marked by the most solemn distinctions. Of these virgins it is said “five of them were wise, and five were foolish;” a terrible difference when viewed morally! To be morally “foolish” is to stand towards God in the relation of an alien. An uneducated brain is constantly feeling its disadvantage; it cannot cope with the trained mind, it is ignominiously worsted by the disciplined powers of men who from childhood have been drilled in intellectual exercises; its processes are slow, involved, cumbrous; it drags in the far rear, while the agile mind of the trained athlete is on the foremost lines of progress. But what shall be said of a foolish heart? A temple defiled by unclean beasts, — an altar darkened, and strewn with cold white ashes! A foolish heart has thrown away God’s statute-book, and dismissed God Himself from its counsels. The fool hath said in his heart there is no God. To narrow the universe until it is measurable by our own span; to exalt ourselves until we overshadow all rivals; to silence all voices with the thunder of our self-congratulations, is to show how far we can get from God, how foolish, how mad is moral apostasy.
The presence of this word “foolish” in the story of human life is a witness against man. How did the word force itself into existence? It was not born of music, for it is most harsh and dissonant; it did not come of beauty, for every line is a hideous deformity. How came it? We are thrown back upon our own consciousness, and back upon the gloomy record of human life; and there we find how we have rebelled against God, and gone from Him as if He had wronged our souls. We have heard that five were wise, but where are they? Will any man say that his moral course has been one of wisdom? Is not our very wisdom but a flattering phase of our folly? Comparing ourselves with ourselves, we may claim wisdom; but, looking at the Divine standard, we may truly say with the Psalmist, “So foolish am I and ignorant, I am as a beast before thee.”
“The kingdom of heaven” is the great dividing force, according to which men stand or fall. There are innumerable subjects upon which they may differ with impunity; but upon this subject they must be agreed, or the stone will fall upon them and grind them to powder.
II. That those distinctions will be made manifest at the coming of Jesus Christ. When the bridegroom came “the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.” As they went out to meet the bridegroom in the first instance, who could have told which of them were wise and which foolish? As they all slumbered and slept, who could have judged them accurately? Then comes the revealing hour! The light will strike every man, and show exactly what he is! (Sincere: hypocritical: misunderstood: diligent: slothful: all!) I. Think of every man getting his due reward! Who is prepared to be pronounced a fool, and to be carried away by the whirlwind from the presence of God? 2. What changes will take place in human relations, what depositions,, what elevations! The first last, &c.
III. That at the coming of Jesus Christ no man
WILL FIND HIMSELF IN POSSESSION OF SUPERFLUOUS GRACE.
The righteous may scarcely be saved! If this be so, then: — 1. Personal growth is the law of the Christian life. 2. Continuous personal growth is the privilege of the Christian spirit. 3. The realisation of continuous personal growth is the chief joy of the Christian heart.
IV. That while no man will find himself in possession OF superfluous grace, the ill-provided will
BE COMPELLED TO CONFESS THEIR DESTITUTION. Job said,
“How oft is the candle of the wicked put out! “and now the virgins say,” Our lamps are gone out. 1. A result which might have been avoided. 2. A humiliation the most ignominious. 3. A destitution which cannot be repaired. Men (who might have been living in the heavenly light) standing, groping, falling, in the final darkness! 1. Darkness a prison. 2. Darkness a terror.
Whatever difficulty may attend an exposition of some of the phrases in this parable, four things are clear: — 1. That the coming of the Bridegroom will be sudden and unexpected. 2. That the wise will enjoy His fellowship for ever. 3. That the foolish will be doomed to utter desolation. 4. That vigilance is the duty of all.
The ancient expositions given at the beginning find a counterpart in modern suggestions. Eustace Conder says: “The great lesson of the parable is faithfulness with our own hearts, lest we deceive ourselves.” Referring to the lamps, he says: “The lamps are that light of holy character, example, truth, and usefulness, which we are to let shine before men; or, if we distinguish between the lamp and the light, the lamp (and the carrying of it) corresponds to the knowledge, capacities, and outward privileges, by means of which, if rightly used, our light may be caused to shine in deeds of love and duty. The oil is the well-known emblem in Scripture of the grace of the Holy Spirit.... The wise virgins are the true members of Christ’s Church; the foolish are those who are members by outward standing and profession, i.e., the avowed belief of Christian truth and outward practice of Christian duty — who are foolishly content with that which is external in religion,” &c. In Bengel’s Gnomon (English adaptation) we find the following opinion: “Ten — There is mystery in this number (comp. Luke xix. 13), which is divided into two equal parts. [Either because the number on each side will be equal, or because their inequality will not appear. — V. Ger.] It was thought fitting that a bride should have at least ten bridesmaids.” [And generally, at all events among the Jews, ten was looked on as the number necessary for a congregation. — V. Ger.] Neander says: “The parable of the virgins was designed to set vividly before the disciples the necessity of constant preparation for the uncertain time of Christ’s second advent, without at all clearing up the uncertainty of the time itself; thus harmonising exactly with all His teachings on the subject. It is certainly, also, the representation (so often made by Christ) of the idea of Christian virtue under the form of prudence; and illustrates the connection between Christian prudence and that ever-vigilant presence of mind which springs from one constant and predominant aim of life. But we must distinguish between the fundamental thought of the parable and its supplementary features. It may be that one of these latter is the fruitless application of the foolish virgins to the wise for a supply which they might have secured for themselves by adequate care and forethought; yet perhaps Christ, piercing the recesses of the human heart, and seeing its tendency to trust in the vicarious services and merits of others, may have intended, by this feature of the parable, to warn His disciples against such a fatal error.” Burkitt says: “By the kingdom of heaven is meant the state of the visible Church on earth; it cannot be understood of the kingdom of glory, for there are no foolish virgins in that kingdom; nor yet of the invisible kingdom of grace, for therein are no foolish virgins neither. But in the visible Church there ever has been a mixture of wise and unwise, of saints and hypocrites.”
14. For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.
15. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
16. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.
17. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. iS. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid
his lord’s money.
/ 19. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth
with them.
20. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.
21. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
22. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, 1 have gained two other talents beside them.
23. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
24. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:
25. And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.
26. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that 1 reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
27. Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.
28. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
29. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall haveabundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
30. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Most of the practical truths taught by this parable maybe classified under two heads: — 1. Distribution, — gave to every man according to his several ability. 2. Examination, — the lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with them.. Take the point of Distribution, as indicating some of the principles of the Divine government of human society.
I. The great principle of sovereignty is affirmed. The king called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods. There was no consultation, the act was personal and sovereign; the king called whom he would, and distributed as he pleased. This is a hint of God’s position, and if we overlook it we shall leave behind a light which would relieve the darkness of many a mystery. There can be but one Sovereign: to attempt a division of His sovereignty is to repeat the first crime in human history. An acceptance of the doctrine of Divine sovereignty gives the heart very deep repose. Certainly at the centre gives steadiness to all the lines which radiate from it. “The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished that it cannot be moved.” (Ps. xciii. 1.) This is a great rock on which men may build securely; — whatever is doubtful, this at least is certain; wherever there may be darkness, here is a full and constant light.
II. The true relation of men to God is defined. They are servants. Ambition for mastery was, as just said, the first crime in human history. The man who devoutly accepts this relation, and works according to its claims, falls into God’s order, and fulfils his calling with confidence, simplicity, and success. He is not the law-maker; he is not the source of the counsels by which he walks; he looks to the Strong for strength, and to the Wise for wisdom. How this simplifies human life! A servant may be happy; but a servant striving to be king must always be miserable; he overstrains himself, he is without legitimate sympathy, and all the laws of the universe are fighting against him. Order is a prime condition of peace. A man’s capacity is the limit of his power; when he seeks to transcend it he practically disputes God’s wisdom, and challenges God’s power.
III. The fact of individual endowment is asserted. The king did not give to one or two only, he gave “to every man according to his several ability.” The question is not, How many talents ought He to have given me? but, How many talents has He given me? God has set the members of the body every one of them as it hath pleased Him, and so He has distributed human talents. Every responsible man has something to begin with, some gift that is his own, an endowment which he may double if he will. This is a peculiarity of Divine gifts, — they are seeds, or germs; they will grow and bear fruit. To what perfection have some men trained their muscular power! To what splendour have others brought their imagination! To what magnificence have others educated their moral nature! They did not create, they developed their powers; and for the development alone they are held responsible.
A man may find fault with his endowment; but he does so at the expense of God’s sovereignty: he may say, I shall not work, because I have not this gift or that; but he thereby impugns the wisdom of the relation which God has established. See the apostle’s rebuke of the schismatic spirit in 1 Cor. xii. 14-27.
II. Examination. “After a long time the lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with them.” The judicial principle has the fullest sanction even of human reason. It is operative in all the arrangements of associated life. Society itself is founded upon a judicial basis. We need not, therefore, pause to argue the reasonableness of this examination. The parable justifies four conclusions respecting the final “reckoning.”
I. That every man will have to render his own personal account. “He that had received the five talents came;” “he that had received the two talents came;” “he which had received the one talent came.” Every man has his turn! Though the king be a long time away, yet the writing does not fade, all the original entries are perfect in clearness and legibility, — you had five, — you had two, — and even you had one! “We shall all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ;” “every one of us shall give account of himself to God;” “we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” As there was something to begin with, so there is something to look forward to.
II. That those who have worked in their Lord’s interest will meet Him with joy. This they will do for three reasons: — i. They have worked withies gifts; 2. They have enjoyed the satisfaction which always attends fidelity; 3. They have not only done their duty, but they have secured substantial results.
III. That those who have not worked with their Lord shall be dispossessed and cast out of His presence. About “the unprofitable servant” three things are remarkable: — 1. Though he had little, he was expected to employ it; 2. Though he had an excuse, he had no reason; 3. Though he had not done anything, he was a wicked and slothful servant, — the negative becomes the positive. Not to work with God, is to serve the devil.
IV. That the profitable servants will be enriched with the forfeited talents of the unprofitable — ver. 28, 29. I. A redistribution will take place; 2. Nothing will be lost; 3. Every one of God’s talents is valuable; 4. The one despised talent is worthy to be numbered with the talents which have been doubled. The difference is not in quality, only in number.
The whole spirit of the parable is intensely practical, yet one or two points of special application may be urged.
1. The man with many talents should never undervalue the man with few, — what hast thou that thou hast not received?
2. Every man should study his own gifts, and work according to the Divine appointment, — “whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation.” (Rom. xii. 6-8.) 3. Men should consider the reasonableness of God’s judgment of the unprofitable servant; it is precisely what we do ourselves in business, in public appointments, in domestic service, — the unprofitable servant is always “cast out.”
“The man travelling afar off is Christ going up into heaven; the five talents are the five senses; the two talents are the intellectual and operative faculties; the one talent the intellectual faculty only.” — (Gregory.) “The five talents are the gift of understanding the Scriptures so as to bring all sensible things of the Scriptures to more Divine senses; the two talents, the gift of understanding the Scriptures in the two Testaments according to the literal sense; the one talent is not to be able to understand so much, yet a talent not contemptible, coming from so great a Lord.” — (Origen.) “The servant receiving five talents sets forth the believing Jew, whose gift is doubled when to the obedience of the law he adds the faith of the Gospel. The servant with two talents is the believing: Gentile. The evil servant with one talent is the Jew persisting in the law, hiding his talent by detracting from the Gospel, in regard of the Lord’s suffering.” — (Hilary.) In his Harmony of the Evangelists, Calvin says: “The number of the servants and talents is not so much to be stumbled at: Luke says that he delivered to every one a talent, that is a gift according to the which he would have him exercise; and Matthew sets forth somewhat more, that there are diversities of gifts given unto men, according to which it is required that they should do; where God delivers more talents He gives a faculty of using them. The occupying is communicating one with another to the glory of God; the talent taken away from the unprofitable servant, and given to him with ten talents, shows that the sloth and negligence of the evil shall redound to the greater praise and glory of the faithful.”
31. When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32. And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35. For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36. Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38. When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39. Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40. And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42. For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43. I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45. Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
This paragraph presents a series of contrasts: — I. The grandeur of the scene, and the apparent insignificance of the proceedings: on the one hand there is the Son of man in His glory, sitting upon the throne of His glory, and all the holy angels with Him; on the other hand there is a dialogue about acts of kindness. An apparent disproportion! Incidentally we thus see that the simplest goodness transcends in value the most splendid glory. 2. A magnificent aggregation, and a final dispersion; — “all nations,” yet “separated one from another.” Proximity is not unity. The breaking up of a world! This breaking up is (a) heart-rending, (b) final, (c) but not inevitable, — there is a way of mercy. 3. Physical service directed by spiritual considerations, — bread was given, but it was given out of regard for Jesus Christ; the motive is the measure of the deed. 4. A private act, and a public recognition, — done to “one of the least of these,” and acknowledged before “all nations.” 5. An election and a reprobation, — Come, Depart. Nothing can so effectually separate men as moral considerations.
The paragraph may be taken as expressing the philanthropic side of Christian truth. 1. This is not a merely impulsive generosity; 2. It is generosity to man, arising out of love to Jesus Christ; 3. It is generosity displayed under circumstances unfavourable to personal vanity, — done to “one of the least of these my brethren.” On the dark
u aspect of the parable it may be remarked: — I. That merely external service to Jesus Christ is not valued; — those on the left hand would have been givers had they only known I
2. Giving that is regulated by selfish calculation is lost.
3. Those who are doing most to keep their lives are most effectually losing them, — everlasting punishment is the natural consummation of everlasting selfishness.
The paragraph may be discussed as showing the relation of Jesus Christ to the human family: — 1. Jesus Christ represents Himself as the Brother of redeemed men; 2. Jesus Christ represents Himself as in necessitous circumstances; 3. Jesus Christ represents Himself as the Observer of all human actions; 4. Jesus Christ represents Himself as the Judge of human life.
11 Ye blessed of my Father.” “It is not said of the other sort, Ye cursed of my Father, because though God be the Author of blessing, yet men are the authors of cursing unto themselves.” — (Origen.) “Herein is set forth the fountain of our happiness, the free favour of God.... Christ being about to set forth the salvation of the faithful, begins with the free love of God, out of which they were predestinated to life which, by the Spirit guiding, aspire unto righteousness.” — (Calvin.) “A prince deals one way in punishing a citizen offending, and another way against an enemy rebelling: against the one he proceeds according to law; against the other by war, not respecting any proceedings appointed by law. Some men say that a fault having end ought not to be punished world without end; I answer, this were true, if God looked only to the fact, not to the heart: but it is just that they should never be without punishment whose minds are never without a will to sin.” — (Gregory.)