Luke 16:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?

NIV: So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?

NASB: Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true wealth to you?

CSB: So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will trust you with what is genuine?

NLT: And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?

KJV: If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

NKJV: Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

The disciples are being told the spiritual consequences of the parable of the dishonest manager (Luke 16:1–9). Jesus has explained that "one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much" (Luke 16:10). That is, the fact that the steward mismanaged his master's resources makes it no surprise that, when frightened, he cost his master a great deal of money. If he had been faithful with what his master entrusted him with, he probably would have been given more responsibility.

In Luke 16:9, Jesus urged His disciples to use "unrighteous wealth" to bless others who will perhaps come to know God through their love or who would later act as witnesses to the disciples' love of others, which is a demonstration of their commitment to God. The remark about "unrighteous wealth" seems to note that worldly people earn and spend wealth in ungodly ways. Here, Jesus may be referring to either the interest or fees the steward cut from what his master's debtors owed (Luke 16:5–7). The Mosaic law prohibited charging other Jews interest (Deuteronomy 23:19–20); to get around that, people in Jesus' time tended to charge "fees," instead. Both were against the letter or the spirit of the law and could clearly be called "unrighteous wealth."

The steward was unfaithful with unrighteous wealth in a few different ways. He mismanaged his master's assets, showing unfaithfulness to his master. If he set the high interest or exorbitant fees, he was unfaithful to his master by misrepresenting his master's integrity and he was unfaithful to God's commands. If he erased the interest or fees that his master set, then he was unfaithful to his master. In all ways, the steward was unfaithful with unrighteous wealth. The text suggests his master's debtors will hire him out of gratitude, but who will give him "true riches"? It's unlikely his new employer will trust him with a great amount of autonomy and responsibility—he's proven himself to be dishonest.

More than that, the steward's actions show he is not on the path to the true riches of salvation. Like the rich fool, he has spent his time and effort trying to accumulate wealth for himself and "is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:21). His ungodly attitude toward money is a sign of his overall ungodly character. God will not give him true spiritual riches because he proves he is not a citizen of God's kingdom.

Luke 16:9–13 provides spiritual applications for the parable of the dishonest manager. Facing unemployment because he mismanaged another's property, the manager schemes to secure himself a new job. What he does is not likely illegal, but it's unethical and sneaky. Jesus-followers are to take a good lesson from that bad example. Insight into how the world works leaves room to add responsibility, fidelity, and faithfulness to God. Next, Jesus explains the relationship between one's heart, the Mosaic law, and the kingdom of God with an application relating to marriage and divorce (Luke 16:14–18).

Teaching His disciples and confronting the Pharisees, Jesus offers several lessons about wealth and devotion to God. The first is a parable about a dishonest manager. This illustrates the value of being careful and clever with earthly resources. Jesus then uses remarks about the Law and marriage to introduce the story of the rich man and Lazarus. This not only highlights the dangers of greed, but it also debunks the common claim that a non-believer would submit to God if only they saw "a little more evidence" or a miracle.

The prior chapter included Jesus' teachings centered on lost things: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son. Luke 16 includes several of Jesus' lessons about living in the kingdom of God compared to the world system, beginning and ending with parables (Luke 16:1—17:10). Chapter 16 includes the parable of the dishonest manager, Jesus' teaching on how money reveals faith, and the story of the rich man and Lazarus. Luke 17:1–10 teaches about whether Christ-followers bear responsibility for others' sin, lessons about faith, and the parable of the unworthy servants.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.