THE SHREWD MANAGER

Passage: Luke 16:1-12

Key verse: 10

NIV

The Parable of the Shrewd Manager

16 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions.(A) 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

3 “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— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6 “‘Nine hundred gallons[a] of olive oil,’ he replied.

“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’

7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’

“‘A thousand bushels[b] of wheat,’ he replied.

“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world(B) are more shrewd(C) in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.(D) 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth(E) to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.(F)

10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much,(G) and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth,(H) who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

Read full chapter
Footnotes
  1. Luke 16:6 Or about 3,000 liters
  2. Luke 16:7 Or about 30 tons
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

The Parable of the Dishonest Manager

16 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had (A)a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your (B)management, for you can no longer be manager.’ 3 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. 4 I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He said, ‘A hundred measures[a] of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures[b] of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his (C)shrewdness. For (D)the sons of this world[c] are (E)more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than (F)the sons of light. 9 And I tell you, (G)make friends for yourselves by means of (H)unrighteous wealth,[d] so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.

10 (I)“One who is (J)faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in (K)that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own?

Read full chapter
Footnotes
  1. Luke 16:6 About 875 gallons or 3,200 liters
  2. Luke 16:7 Between 1,000 and 1,200 bushels or 37,000 to 45,000 liters
  3. Luke 16:8 Greek age
  4. Luke 16:9 Greek mammon, a Semitic word for money or possessions; also verse 11; rendered money in verse 13
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

1. Prepare for eternity (1-9)

A certain manager was called in by his boss to account for his wastefulness. He decided that he was too weak to dig and too proud to beg, so when his boss gave him notice, he suddenly became diligent. Before he left his job, he prepared for his future survival by making some friends who would be indebted to him. Jesus challenges us, the people of light, to be as wise as this man of darkness and use our time on this earth to prepare for eternity.

2. Trustworthy stewardship (1

-12)

We must be faithful stewards of the money, time and opportunities entrusted to us by God. The shrewd manager lost his job because he was not honest. If we are faithful with the little that God has entrusted to us, then God will entrust us with true riches--eternal life and a room in his eternal dwelling. We must be faithful in small things. And we must be diligent stewards of the lives God has given us.

Prayer: Lord, help me to use my time, money and opportunities to prepare for eternity.

One Word: Be faithful in small things