Faith First Media

The Parable of the Talents

by Matthew Elton

© 2010 Matthew Elton

matt@faithfirstmedia.com

Question:

In Matthew 13:12, Matthew 25:29, Mark 4:25, Luke 8:18, and Luke 19:26, Jesus says, “For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath."

Is Jesus saying that those who are less fortunate now will be treated even worse in the age to come?

Answer:

In a word, no. If you turn to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5, you’ll immediately find that the opposite is true:

And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

--Matthew 5:1-12

To review:

1) Those who are poor in spirit now will have the kingdom of heaven in the age to come.

2) Those who mourn now will be comforted in the age to come.

3) Those who are persecuted now will have the kingdom of heaven in the age to come.

4) Those who are persecuted now have great reward in heaven.

When Jesus said "Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him" he was not talking about people who are "more fortunate" or "less fortunate." He was directly quoting the Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25:14-30:

For the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

--Matthew 25:14-30

In this parable, Jesus tells the story of a master who was going away on a journey. He gave his best servant five talents (a talent was a huge coin worth about a thousand dollars), another servant he gave two talents, and another he gave one talent, "each according to his ability." While the master was away, the servant with five talents earned five more, and the servant with two talents earned two more. The master came back and said to them, "Well done!" But the servant with one talent hadn't earned any more talents, because he had buried his talent in the ground instead of using it to earn more talents. The master was displeased and took away the talent he had given to the servant. At the end of the parable, Jesus said, "Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him."

When we read these words of Jesus in the context of the parable which precedes them, we see that Jesus is not talking about fortunate versus unfortunate people, but rather, he's talking about people who use their resources to go to work for the Kingdom of God, verses people who don't. The story is symbolic. Jesus is the master, and Christians are the servants. Jesus is currently away, but he will be returning. Christians are supposed to use what Jesus has given them to further the Kingdom of God, especially by witnessing to other people in order to make new Christians (similar to earning more talents). A Christian who hides her or his faith and doesn’t do anything with it is like the servant who hid his talent in the ground. Jesus will disown that person.

This interpretation of the parable fits perfectly with what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:

"Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

--Matthew 5:14-16