161 Now He was also saying to the disciples , "There was a rich man who had a manager , and this manager was reported to him as squandering his possessions . 2 "And he called him and said to him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management , for you can no longer be manager .' 3 "The manager said to himself , 'What shall I do , since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig ; I am ashamed to beg . 4 'I know what I shall do , so that when I am removed from the management people will welcome me into their homes .' 5 "And he summoned each one of his master's debtors , and he began saying to the first , 'How much do you owe my master ?' 6 "And he said , 'A hundred measures of oil .' And he said to him, 'Take your bill , and sit down quickly and write fifty .' 7 "Then he said to another , 'And how much do you owe ?' And he said , 'A hundred measures of wheat .' He said to him, 'Take your bill , and write eighty .' 8 "And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly ; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light . 9 "And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness , so that when it fails , they will receive you into the eternal dwellings . 10 " He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much ; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much . 11 "Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth , who will entrust the true riches to you? 12 "And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another's , who will give you that which is your own? 13 " No servant can serve two masters ; for either he will hate the one and love the other , or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other . You cannot e serve God and wealth ."
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Luke 16:1-13
Commentary on Luke 16:1-12
(Read Luke 16:1-12)
Whatever we have, the property of it is God's; we have only the use of it, according to the direction of our great Lord, and for his honour. This steward wasted his lord's goods. And we are all liable to the same charge; we have not made due improvement of what God has trusted us with. The steward cannot deny it; he must make up his accounts, and be gone. This may teach us that death will come, and deprive us of the opportunities we now have. The steward will make friends of his lord's debtors or tenants, by striking off a considerable part of their debt to his lord. The lord referred to in this parable commended not the fraud, but the policy of the steward. In that respect alone is it so noticed. Worldly men, in the choice of their object, are foolish; but in their activity, and perseverance, they are often wiser than believers. The unjust steward is not set before us as an example in cheating his master, or to justify any dishonesty, but to point out the careful ways of worldly men. It would be well if the children of light would learn wisdom from the men of the world, and would as earnestly pursue their better object. The true riches signify spiritual blessings; and if a man spends upon himself, or hoards up what God has trusted to him, as to outward things, what evidence can he have, that he is an heir of God through Christ? The riches of this world are deceitful and uncertain. Let us be convinced that those are truly rich, and very rich, who are rich in faith, and rich toward God, rich in Christ, in the promises; let us then lay up our treasure in heaven, and expect our portion from thence.
Commentary on Luke 16:13-18
(Read Luke 16:13-18)
To this parable our Lord added a solemn warning. Ye cannot serve God and the world, so divided are the two interests. When our Lord spoke thus, the covetous Pharisees treated his instructions with contempt. But he warned them, that what they contended for as the law, was a wresting of its meaning: this our Lord showed in a case respecting divorce. There are many covetous sticklers for the forms of godliness, who are the bitterest enemies to its power, and try to set others against the truth.