Luke 16:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’

NIV: "Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’ " ‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied. "He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

NASB: Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ And he said, ‘A hundred kors of wheat.’ He *said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’

CSB: "Next he asked another, ‘How much do you owe?’ "‘A hundred measures of wheat,’ he said. "‘Take your invoice,’ he told him, ‘and write eighty.’

NLT: ‘And how much do you owe my employer?’ he asked the next man. ‘I owe him 1,000 bushels of wheat,’ was the reply. ‘Here,’ the manager said, ‘take the bill and change it to 800 bushels. ’

KJV: 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.

NKJV: Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’

The soon-to-be-fired manager of a wealthy man is scrambling. The rich employer has discovered that the manager has been mishandling property. This may have been corruption or simple incompetence. The manager needs to find another administrative position. He decides to change the financial records of his master's debtors, and to be sure those borrowers know he's done so (Luke 16:1–4).

First, the manager calls the debtors in and helps himself by reminding them how much they owe. Then he cuts their debts significantly (Luke 16:5–6). It's unclear how he can do this, but scholars have several ideas.

It's unlikely the steward forgives the principal of the debt: he did not pretend as if the men borrowed a different amount. That crime would be difficult for the owner to prosecute since the manager and the debtors had the only records, but it would not be impossible. And it wouldn't be easy for the manager to find another job if he was openly stealing from his employer.

It may be that the manager dropped interest from the total owed. Charging other Jews interest is against the Mosaic law (Deuteronomy 23:19). To get around the law, lenders often charged a "fee," claiming this was not "interest." The manager could have forgiven either the owner's fee or his own commission, which he may have been allowed to add for his own benefit.

The rich man praises the manager's shrewdness (Luke 16:8). That doesn't mean he approves of his actions, but he does recognize the cleverness involved. If the steward lost the rich man money, he is now within the law and looks charitable to those who owe him a significant debt. If the steward lost his own commission, he wouldn't have been able to collect it anyway, and he is now in the good graces of several other businessmen.

Jesus has a practice of using nearly unpayable amounts in His parables. Here, the amount of wheat owed is the equivalent of what could be harvested from one hundred acres. The happy debtor now only owes eighty acres worth.

Luke 16:1–8 is the parable of the dishonest manager. A wealthy man learns his money is being wasted by a hired supervisor. With no time to escape being fired, the manager calls on the owner's debtors. He tells them to decrease the amount they are expected to pay back. This favor earns the manager their approval and hopefully their help later. The owner notes that this was a clever ploy to make allies. Jesus uses this negative example to teach His followers a good lesson: to be equally sharp when interacting with the world.

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.