Luke 16:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.

NIV: The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg--

NASB: And the manager said to himself, ‘What am I to do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg.

CSB: "Then the manager said to himself, 'What will I do since my master is taking the management away from me? I'm not strong enough to dig; I'm ashamed to beg.

NLT: The manager thought to himself, ‘Now what? My boss has fired me. I don’t have the strength to dig ditches, and I’m too proud to beg.

KJV: Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.

NKJV: “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.

The parable of the dishonest manager continues. A rich man uses a manager to steward some of his assets. The manager may be a high-level slave or a freeman trained for administrative work. The rich man discovers the manager has been losing money in some way (Luke 16:1) although specifics are not given. The owner demands the manager turn in his records and prepare to be fired (Luke 16:2). The manager panics. He cannot stand thoughts of labor or poverty. He has little time before he will be fired. He plans to use that time to endear himself to other potential employers (Luke 16:4).

The Greek phrase ouk ischyō literally means "I lack the power" or "I am unable." This is much like the modern English phrase "I can't," which is often used to mean "I don't want to." The man is probably able to do something physical but hates the idea. And, either because of his lifestyle or ridicule over losing his job, he's embarrassed to ask others for charity.

Whatever else the manager does wrong, he makes the right choice here: to think. He stops, assesses his situation, considers the state of the world, and decides to act. Jesus will summarize, "For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light" (Luke 16:8). Too often, when faced with imminent hardship, Christians assume their fate is fixed unless God supernaturally acts—that they can and should do nothing. Jesus exhorts us to be wise about how the world works and then use that insight for the benefit of the kingdom. He doesn't want us to blindly accept whatever circumstances the world gives us.

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.