Lukas 16:1-2

The Parable of the Clever Steward

16:1 Jesus ¹  also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who was informed of accusations ²  that his manager ³  was wasting ⁴  his assets. 16:2 So ⁵  he called the manager ⁶  in and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? ⁷  Turn in the account of your administration, ⁸  because you can no longer be my manager.’

Lukas 16:10-12

16:10 “The one who is faithful in a very little ⁹  is also faithful in much, and the one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 16:11 If then you haven’t been trustworthy ¹⁰  in handling worldly wealth, ¹¹  who will entrust you with the true riches? ¹²  16:12 And if you haven’t been trustworthy ¹³  with someone else’s property, ¹⁴  who will give you your own ¹⁵ ?

[16:1]  ¹ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:1]  ² tn These are not formal legal charges, but reports from friends, acquaintances, etc.; Grk “A certain man was rich who had a manager, and this one was reported to him as wasting his property.”

[16:1]  ³ sn His manager was the steward in charge of managing the house. He could have been a slave trained for the role.

[16:1]  ⁴ tn Or “squandering.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).

[16:2]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the reports the man received about his manager.

[16:2]  ⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (the manager) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:2]  ⁷ sn Although phrased as a question, the charges were believed by the owner, as his dismissal of the manager implies.

[16:2]  ⁸ tn Or “stewardship”; the Greek word οἰκονομία (oikonomia) is cognate with the noun for the manager (οἰκονόμος, oikonomo").

[16:10]  ⁹ sn The point of the statement faithful in a very little is that character is shown in how little things are treated.

[16:11]  ¹⁰ tn Or “faithful.”

[16:11]  ¹¹ tn Grk “the unrighteous mammon.” See the note on the phrase “worldly wealth” in v. 9.

[16:11]  ¹² sn Entrust you with the true riches is a reference to future service for God. The idea is like 1 Cor 9:11, except there the imagery is reversed.

[16:12]  ¹³ tn Or “faithful.”

[16:12]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “have not been faithful with what is another’s.”

[16:12]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “what is your own.”