New Testament Commentary - Luke 16

by Don R. Hender

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]	Commentary & Explanation	Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
CHAPTER 16 Jesus gives the parable of the unjust steward—He teaches of service and condemns divorce—He gives the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.
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 ^awasted his goods. 2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an ^aaccount of thy ^bstewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.		1^a D&C 128:20; 2^a Mark 9:2 (2-13); Luke 9:29 (28-36); John 1:14; 2 Pet. 1:16 (16-19); TG Jesus Christ, Glory of;
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. 4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.		1^a D&C 128:20; 2^a Mark 9:2 (2-13); Luke 9:29 (28-36); John 1:14; 2 Pet. 1:16 (16-19); TG Jesus Christ, Glory of;
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? 6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. 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.		1^a D&C 128:20; 2^a Mark 9:2 (2-13); Luke 9:29 (28-36); John 1:14; 2 Pet. 1:16 (16-19); TG Jesus Christ, Glory of;
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 ^achildren of ^blight. 9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the ^amammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.		1^a D&C 128:20; 2^a Mark 9:2 (2-13); Luke 9:29 (28-36); John 1:14; 2 Pet. 1:16 (16-19); TG Jesus Christ, Glory of;
10 He that is ^afaithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. 11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your ^atrust the true ^briches? 12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?
13 ¶ No servant can serve two ^amasters: 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.
14 And the Pharisees also, who were ^acovetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. 15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which ^ajustify yourselves before men; but God ^bknoweth your ^chearts: for that which is highly esteemed among ^dmen is ^eabomination in the sight of God.
16 ^aThe law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. 17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the ^alaw to fail. 18 Whosoever ^aputteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.
19 ¶ There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: 20 And there was a certain beggar named ^aLazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of 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.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the ^aangels into ^bAbraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; 23 And in ^ahell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 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.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime ^areceivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great ^agulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him 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. 29 Abraham saith unto him, They have ^aMoses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the ^adead, they will repent. 31 And he said unto him, If they ^ahear not Moses and the ^bprophets, neither will they be ^cpersuaded, though one rose from the dead^a.	31^a If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead We often think that great measures will result in great conversion. This is not the case. Laman and Lemuel saw an angel of God, heard the very voice of God and felt of his power to shock them, yet with such witnesses they repented not but did continue in their course toward evil. Thus it was with the Jews, though Jesus and many others rose from the grave and trafficed in the city, yet the hardness of the hearts of the 'Jews' was such that they remained of the mind to reject Jesus. They had seen him perform miracles that no man could perform but that he was sent by God and they rejected him. Thus it is, that the simplest means are given such as the written word the scriptures and if a man will not accept them, the words of the prophets, he will not accept even the greatest of signs from heaven. Thus it is that God giveth signs enough and provides men no sign from heaven that will convert them. But he give the spirit within man and that spirit's quite workings to the honest in heart is enough unto conversion and exaltation. Consider the sacramental covenant, all that God gives to man is 'his spirit to always be with him'. Nothing else is promised or given. And thus it is that man is enable to exercise his full agency and by his own choice according to that spirit which he listeth to, he either walks in the path of God unto perfection or in the ways of sin unto eternal damnation.