Dear Explorer,
Here's another parable that Jesus taught during the last week of His earthly life.
It is somewhat like another parable that He had told earlier. We studied that one on Day 218. While there are some minor similarities, I believe that Jesus is teaching two entirely different things. Don't confuse the two! (I did as a young follower – then it gets REALLY confusing).
In the parable from Luke that we studied earlier, Jesus was talking about the gifts and blessings that He distributes to His followers. The parable that we are looking at today has a completely different meaning and application, so read carefully.
Read Matthew 25:14-30
Let's first get the story of the parable. There was a man going on a journey and he had 3 servants. He gave each one of them a different amount of gold. Some translations call it bags of gold; some call it talents of gold. Some scholars believe that 1 bag of gold or 1 talent would equal approximately 20 years' worth of wages for a typical worker. So, Jesus got the crowd's attention immediately. We're talking about lots of money! What determined how much they got? (see Matthew 25:15)
What did the man with 5 bags (talents) of gold gain?
What did the man with 2 bags (talents) of gold gain?
What did the man with 1 bag (talent) of gold gain?
Was the master pleased with the man who earned 5 bags?
Was the master pleased with the man who earned 2 bags?
Was the master pleased with the man who buried his bag of gold?
So now let's figure this one out. Who was the master who was going on a long trip?
Jesus. What did the gold represent?
God's blessings, His provision and bounty poured out on us.
Now, here's an example of a parable that is often taken out of context - then it gets very confusing. So, let's review. The first parable in this chapter is about both empty and filled people with the empty people being rejected at the end. The 3rd story, which we will look at tomorrow deals with both empty and filled people with the empty people being rejected at the end.
Keeping the parable in context, who do you think the characters represent?
Man with 5 bags:
Man with 2 bags:
Man with 1 bag: