Luke 16
1 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.
[Jesus] also said to his disciples, “Once there was a rich man who had a household manager. [One day] he was told {[someone] told him} that [the manager] was managing the rich man’s money badly.
2 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.
So he summoned [his manager] and said to him, ‘(It is terrible what they are saying about you [(sg)]!/Is it true what they are saying about you [(sg)] [RHQ]?) Give me a written account of [the funds] you have been managing, because you can no longer be my [household] manager!’
3 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.
Then the manager thought to himself, ‘My master is going to fire me, so (I do not know what to do./what shall I do [RHQ]?) I am not strong enough to [work by] digging ditches, and I am ashamed to beg [for money].’
4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
[Suddenly he had an idea]. ‘I know what I will do, so that people will take me into their houses [and provide for me] after I am dismissed {after my master dismisses me} from my work!’
5 So he called every one of his lord’s debtors [unto him], and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?
So [one by one] he summoned the people who owed his master money. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you [(sg)] owe my master?’
6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.
The man replied, ‘Eight hundred gallons of olive oil.’ The manager said to him, ‘Take your bill and sit down and quickly change it to 400 [gallons]!’
7 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.
He said to another man, ‘How much do you owe?’ The man replied, ‘A thousand bushels of wheat.’ The manager said to him, ‘Take your bill and change it to 800 [bushels]!’ [He did similar things for the others who owed his master money].
8 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. (aiōn g165)
When his master [heard what the manager had done], he admired the dishonest manager for the clever thing he had done. [The truth] is that the ungodly people in this world act more wisely toward other people than godly people [MET] act. (aiōn g165)
9 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. (aiōnios g166)
[So] I tell you [(pl)] this: Use the money that you have [here] on earth to help others so that they will become your friends. Then when [you die and] you cannot [take] any money with you, [God and his angels] will welcome you into a home [in heaven] that will last forever. (aiōnios g166)
10 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.
People who faithfully manage small [matters] will also faithfully manage important [matters]. People who are dishonest in [the way they handle] small [matters] will be dishonest [in the way they handle] important [matters].
11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true [riches]?
So if you have not faithfully handled the money that [God has given you here] on earth, (he will certainly not allow you to possess the true [spiritual] riches [in heaven!]/would he allow you to possess the true [spiritual] riches [in heaven]?) [RHQ]
12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?
And if you have not faithfully managed things that belong to other people, ([God] will certainly not allow you to receive [treasures in heaven that] would belong to you!/would God allow you to receive [treasures in heaven that] would belong to you?) [RHQ]
13 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.
No servant is able to serve two [different] bosses [at the same time. If he tried to do that], he would prefer one of them more than the other one; he would be loyal to one of them and despise the other one. [Similarly], you cannot [devote your life] to worshipping God and [worshipping] money and material goods [at the same time].”
14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
There were some Pharisees [there]. They loved [to acquire] money. When they heard Jesus say that, they ridiculed him.
15 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.
But he said to them, “You try to make other people think that you are righteous, but God knows your (inner beings/hearts). [So he will reject you. Keep in mind that many] things that people think are important, God thinks are detestable.
16 The law and the prophets [were] until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.
The laws that [God gave Moses] and what the prophets [MTY] [wrote] were ([in effect/what you needed to obey]) until John [the Baptizer] came. Since then [I] have been preaching about how God wants to [rule people’s lives in a new way], and many people are [accepting that message and] very eagerly asking God to control [their lives. But that does not mean that God has abolished the laws that he established previously].
17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.
[All of God’s] laws, [even those that seem] insignificant, are more permanent than heaven and earth.
18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from [her] husband committeth adultery.
[For example, because God considers that a marriage lasts until either the husband or the wife dies, he considers that] any man who divorces his wife and marries another woman is committing adultery. He also [considers that] any man who marries a woman who has been divorced by her husband {whose husband has divorced her} is [also] committing adultery.”
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
[Jesus also said] [MET], “Once there was a rich man who wore [expensive] purple linen [garments]. He ate luxuriously every day.
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
And every day a poor man whose name was Lazarus was laid {[some people also] laid a poor man whose name was Lazarus} at the gate of the rich man’s [house]. Lazarus’ body was covered with sores.
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
He [was so hungry that he] wanted to eat the scraps [of food] that fell from the table where the rich man [ate]. Furthermore, [to make things worse], dogs came and licked his sores.
22 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;
[Eventually] the poor man died. Then he was taken by the angels {the angels took him} to [start feasting] next to his [ancestor] Abraham. The rich man also died, and his body was buried {[some people] buried his body}.
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. (Hadēs g86)
In the place where dead people wait [for God to judge them], he was suffering great pain. He looked up and saw Abraham far away, and he saw Lazarus sitting close to Abraham. (Hadēs g86)
24 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.
So he shouted, ‘Father Abraham, I am suffering very much in this fire! So [please] pity me, and send Lazarus [here] so that he can dip his finger in water [and touch] my tongue to cool it!’
25 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.
But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that while you [(sg)] were alive [on earth] you enjoyed [many] good things. But Lazarus was miserable. Now [it is fair that] he is happy here, and you are suffering.
26 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.
Besides that, there is a huge ravine between you [(sg)] and us. So those who want to go from here to where you [(sg)] are, are not able to. Furthermore, no one can cross from there to where we [(exc)] are.’
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:
Then the rich man said, ‘If that is so, father [Abraham], I ask you [(sg)] to send [Lazarus] to my father’s house.
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
I have five brothers [who live there]. Tell him to warn them [to turn away from their sinful behavior so that] they do not also come to this place, where [we(exc)] suffer great pain!’
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
But Abraham replied, ‘[No, I will not do that, because your brothers] are able to [go to the Jewish meeting places where the priests] read what Moses and the prophets [wrote]. They should listen to what Moses and the prophets [MTY] [wrote]!’
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
But the rich man replied, ‘No, father Abraham, [that will not be enough] But if someone from those who have died goes back to them [and warns them], they will turn from their sinful behavior.’
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
[Abraham] said to him, ‘No! If they do not listen to [what] [MTY] Moses and the prophets [MTY] [wrote], even if someone would become alive again [and go and warn them], they would not be convinced {he could not convince them} [that they should turn from their sinful behavior].’”
