Observation
Setting. The same audience as Luke 15 — Jesus speaks “to the disciples” (v1) while the Pharisees, “lovers of money,” listen and scoff (v14). The chapter moves from a manager’s office (vv1–13) to the Pharisees’ sneer (vv14–18) to a rich man’s gate and the world beyond death (vv19–31).
Structure:
- vv1–8 — the shrewd manager: reported for squandering (v1); “Give an accounting” (v2); “I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg” (v3); “I know what I shall do” (v4); oil 100 → 50, wheat 100 → 80 (vv5–7); the master praises his shrewdness; sons of this age vs. sons of light (v8).
- vv9–13 — faithful with wealth: make friends by means of the wealth of unrighteousness — eternal dwellings (v9); faithful in a very little thing (v10); true riches, what is your own (vv11–12); no servant can serve two masters (v13).
- vv14–18 — the Pharisees and the Law: lovers of money scoffing (v14); justify yourselves before men, God knows your hearts (v15); the Law and the Prophets until John; the gospel of the kingdom (v16); not one stroke of the Law will fail (v17); divorce and adultery (v18).
- vv19–26 — the rich man and Lazarus: purple and fine linen; a poor man at the gate, sores, dogs (vv19–21); Lazarus carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom; the rich man buried (v22); Hades, torment, “have mercy on me” (vv23–24); “Child, remember” (v25); a great chasm fixed (v26).
- vv27–31 — the five brothers: send Lazarus to warn them (vv27–28); “They have Moses and the Prophets” (v29); “if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!” (v30); “they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead” (v31).
Repeated words, with counts:
- “manager / management” ×8 — vv1 (×2), 2 (×2), 3 (×2), 4, 8.
- “Abraham” ×6 — vv22, 23, 24, 25, 29, 30.
- “rich / riches” ×5 — vv1, 11, 19, 21, 22; “wealth” ×3 — vv9, 11, 13.
- “master(s)” ×5 — vv3, 5 (×2), 8, 13.
- “unrighteous / unrighteousness” ×5 — vv8, 9, 10 (×2), 11.
- “owe / bill / debtors” ×5 — vv5 (×2), 6, 7 (×2).
- “faithful” ×4 — vv10 (×2), 11, 12.
- “Lazarus” ×4 — vv20, 23, 24, 25; “father” ×4 — vv24, 27 (×2), 30.
- “torment / agony” ×4 — vv23, 24, 25, 28; “dead / died” ×4 — vv22 (×2), 30, 31.
- “Moses and the Prophets / the Law and the Prophets” ×3 — vv16, 29, 31; “Law” ×2 — vv16, 17.
- “serve / servant” ×3 — v13 (×3); “receive / welcome” ×3 — vv4, 9, 25.
- “shrewd / shrewdly” ×2 — v8 (×2); “commits adultery” ×2 — v18 (×2); “sight” ×2 — v15 (×2).
Contrasts: Squandering ⟷ shrewd (vv1, 8). Sons of this age ⟷ sons of light (v8). A very little thing ⟷ much; unrighteous wealth ⟷ true riches; another’s ⟷ your own (vv10–12). Hate ⟷ love; devoted ⟷ despise; God ⟷ wealth (v13). In the sight of men ⟷ in the sight of God (v15). Heaven and earth passing ⟷ the Law not failing (v17). Purple and fine linen ⟷ sores; the table ⟷ the gate (vv19–21). Carried by angels ⟷ buried (v22). Good things ⟷ bad things; comforted ⟷ agony (v25). Here ⟷ there, with a chasm between (v26). Moses and the Prophets ⟷ someone from the dead (vv29–31).
Shape of the chapter: two stories that each begin “There was a rich man” (vv1, 19), with the Pharisees’ sneer in between. The first rich man’s manager plans ahead; the second rich man never does. The chapter ends at the edge of the grave with the question of whether we will listen to God’s Word.
Chapter theme (my words): Money is a little thing God lends me to manage for eternity. Use it shrewdly for His kingdom, because I cannot serve it and God at the same time, and the choices I make with it now will be fixed forever.
Interpretation
Why does Jesus praise a dishonest man? He doesn’t praise the dishonesty. Sproul: “He did not praise the steward for his dishonesty.” Henry: the master commended him “not … because he had done falsely to his master, but because he had done wisely for himself.” Guzik: “God sometimes uses evil things that are familiar to us to illustrate a particular point.” The point is foresight — seeing the end and acting now.
What did the manager actually do? Teachers differ on the details. Sproul suggests he removed hidden interest charges; others think he cut his own commission, or simply cheated his master further. Either way, he used what was in his hands to make friends before he lost it. Luke ties him to the prodigal with the same verb, “squandering” (15:13; 16:1).
What does “make friends … by means of the wealth of unrighteousness” mean (v9)? Use money — which belongs to a passing, fallen world — for people and for God’s kingdom, so that when it “fails” (at death) there are friends to welcome you in eternity. Henry: “death shuts up the shop, seals up the hand.” This is not buying salvation. Sproul: “You can give all the money you have to the church, but it will not get you into heaven.” “Only Christ in His poverty can get you into heaven.”
Why is money called “a very little thing” and “another’s” (vv10–12)? Because it is small next to the true riches, and because it belongs to God. Sproul: “We do not own it; He does.” Faithfulness with the small and borrowed thing shows whether God can trust me with the great and lasting thing (Guzik, quoting Meyer).
What is verse 16 saying? The Law and the Prophets ran up to John; since then the kingdom has been preached. “Everyone is forcing his way into it” is hard. Sproul takes it as eager pressing — “The kingdom of God has never been a casual affair.” Guzik notes the revolutionaries who tried to force the kingdom by violence. I take it as Sproul does, and I hold verse 17 with both men: the Law is not cancelled — not one stroke will fail (Henry: it is “explained and enforced by the gospel”).
Why does divorce show up here (v18)? As one example of the Pharisees justifying themselves before men (v15) while emptying God’s Law. Sproul shows how their loose rules on divorce undermined the Law; Guzik reads the verse as God’s ideal for marriage while recognizing the exceptions Scripture gives elsewhere (Matt 19:9; 1 Cor 7:15).
Is the rich man and Lazarus a parable? Guzik thinks not — “in no other parable did Jesus actually name an individual” — and calls it “an actual case history.” Many others read it as a parable. Either way, Jesus does not tell stories that misrepresent eternity; the realities are true: conscious existence after death, comfort or torment, and a fixed chasm.
What is Hades, and what is Abraham’s bosom? Hades is the realm of the dead (Hebrew Sheol). Guzik: “Hades is technically not hell, or what is also known as the Lake of Fire.” At the final judgment death and Hades give up their dead and are thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 20:13–14). Abraham’s bosom is the place of honor and comfort beside Abraham. For a believer now, to be absent from the body is to be “at home with the Lord” (2 Cor 5:8).
Why was the rich man condemned? Not for being rich (Sproul: “This was not a judgment against wealth”). Henry: “his providing only for himself.” He stepped over Lazarus every day. And Abraham’s answer shows the root: he had not listened to Moses and the Prophets (vv29–31).
Why won’t a resurrection persuade them (v31)? Because unbelief is a matter of the will, not a shortage of evidence. Guzik quotes Spurgeon: “Infidelity would still cry for something more.” Jesus raised a man named Lazarus, and the chief priests planned to kill him too (John 12:10–11). Christ rose, and many still refuse (Sproul).
Word study (Greek):
- manager — oikonomos (G3623): a house-manager who runs another man’s estate (vv1, 3, 8).
- squandering — diaskorpizō (G1287): to scatter, waste; same verb as 15:13.
- shrewdly — phronimōs (G5430): with practical foresight; only here.
- wealth — mamōnas (G3126): Aramaic “mammon,” wealth as a rival master (vv9, 11, 13).
- faithful — pistos (G4103): trustworthy; ×4 in vv10–12.
- lovers of money — philargyroi (G5366): fond of silver (v14).
- scoffing — ekmyktērizō (G1592): to turn up the nose; only here and 23:35.
- detestable — bdelygma (G946): an abomination to God (v15).
- forcing his way — biazō (G971): to press or use force (v16).
- stroke — keraia (G2762): the tiny hook of a Hebrew letter (v17).
- Hades — hadēs (G86): the realm of the dead; torment — basanos (G931).
- bosom — kolpos (G2859): the place of honor at a meal (vv22–23).
- chasm — chasma (G5490): a gulf, fixed for good; only here.
- warn — diamartyromai (G1263): to testify solemnly (v28).
Key insights to carry (from the Deep Dive):
- Same verb, two wasters — diaskorpizō (15:13; 16:1).
- Praised for foresight, not fraud (Henry, Sproul).
- Everyone is a manager — “We do not own it; He does” (Sproul).
- Money is a little thing — and it belongs to another (vv10–12).
- Mammon wants to be a master — “you cannot” (v13).
- They turned up their noses — the same sneer as at the cross (23:35).
- God sees what men applaud (v15; Guzik).
- A beggar with a name — Lazarus, “God has helped.”
- A crumb and a drop (Henry).
- Scripture is enough (v31).
Cross-references: Dan 9:27; 12:2; Matt 5:17–18; 6:19–21, 24; 7:24; 19:9; 24:15; Luke 1:53; 6:20, 24; 12:15–21, 33–34, 42; 15:13; 19:8; 23:35; 24:25–27, 44; John 1:18; 11:43–44; 12:10–11; Acts 2:40; 20:21; 1 Cor 4:1; 7:15; 2 Cor 5:8, 10; 8:9; James 2:5; Rev 20:13–14.
Application
Truth to face — I am a manager, not an owner. My paycheck, my house, my truck, my time, my body — none of it is mine. Sproul: “We do not own it; He does.” One day I will hear, “Give an accounting of your management.” I would rather give that account to myself now, honestly, than be surprised then (Spurgeon: “Judge yourselves, that you be not judged!”).
Command to obey — be faithful in a very little thing. Small money, small promises, small jobs nobody sees. Many of the men I walk with lost everything through little unfaithfulness that grew. This week I will keep one small promise I have been putting off, pay one small debt, and give one gift nobody will know about.
Sin to confess — trying to serve two masters. I say God is first, but my worry, my envy and my bank statement tell the truth about who I am serving. I confess the love of money — and I remember that you don’t have to be rich to love it (Guzik). “You cannot serve God and wealth.”
Example to avoid — the man who stepped over Lazarus. The rich man never hit Lazarus; he just never saw him. Henry: “his providing only for himself.” I will look this week at who is lying at my gate — the man at the light, the inmate with no visitors, the neighbor who is alone — and do something with my hands and my money.
Promise to trust — the true riches, and a Savior who rose. God promises “the true riches” to the faithful (v11) and “eternal dwellings” (v9). And I have more than Moses and the Prophets — I have the One who rose from the dead. I don’t need a sign; I need to listen to the Word I already have.
Questions for the table (from the Deep Dive):
- The manager knew his job was ending and planned for it. If I knew my stewardship would end this year, what would I do differently with my money and time? (16:1–4; 2 Cor 5:10) Give an account of your stewardship, for you may no longer be steward (Spurgeon).
- Jesus says the sons of this age are more shrewd than the sons of light. Where do I put more planning into my career, hobby or habit than into eternity? (16:8–9) We are usually just the opposite of that in our actions as Christians (Sproul).
- How faithful am I in “a very little thing” — small amounts of money, small promises, small jobs nobody sees? (16:10–12) Faithful in little, faithful in much.
- Jesus said “you cannot” serve God and wealth. What signs in my spending, worry or envy show which master I am really serving? (16:13–15; Matt 6:24) We do not own it; He does (Sproul).
- Who is lying at my “gate” — the person I step around every day without seeing? (16:19–21; 1 John 3:17) The sin of this rich man was … his providing only for himself (Henry).
- The rich man wanted a miracle for his brothers; Abraham said they had the Scriptures. Who in my family needs me to point him to God’s Word while there is still time? (16:27–31; Luke 24:27) If you cry for mercy … after you are dead, it is too late (Sproul).
Worship. God owns everything and lends it to me. He knows my heart when men only see my outside. His Word will not fail by one stroke. He gives the true riches to the faithful, comforts the poor man who trusts Him, and has given me Moses, the Prophets — and His Son, who was rich and became poor for my sake, and rose from the dead.
Prayer. Lord, everything I have is Yours. Forgive me for serving money and calling it providing. Make me faithful in little things, shrewd for eternity, and open-handed toward the Lazarus at my gate. Open my ears to Moses and the Prophets, and to Jesus who rose, while there is still time — for me and for my brothers. In Jesus’ name, Amen.