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Luke 16:1-13

In this section on the gospels, I will take a specific passage that contains both a parable and some direct teaching and will use the methods we talked about earlier to interpret this passage. First, it’s best to get a good grasp on the book in which the passage is found.

The Gospel of Luke

The genre of the book of Luke is gospel, which is largely historical narrative. Luke’s emphasis is on Jesus’ compassion toward the marginalized (the poor, women, children, the sick, etc.). Jesus desires to cultivate in others, as Joel Green explains, an “unmitigated embrace of the gracious God. [His followers are those who] embody in their lives the beneficence of God, and who express openhanded mercy to others, especially toward those in need.”¹ One of Jesus’ major concerns in Luke is regarding the proper use of wealth and possessions, especially in relation to the poor and the needy. Luke writes a significant amount about money and the proper care of finances and possessions, which will be addressed later. Our passage contains one of Jesus’ parables—one found only in Luke’s gospel—and is instructive of how to handle money. Our passage is set within the larger context of Luke’s travel narrative.

The Travel Narrative

The central portion of Luke’s gospel takes place during Jesus’ travels toward Jerusalem. This begins with 9:51: “When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem.”² The travel narrative ends in chapter 19, though its exact end point is debated. Some of the main themes of the travel narrative are prayer, healing, money, and outcasts/sinners. Discipleship is a theme throughout, but is a sort of meta-theme, as the reason Jesus brings up many of these subjects is to instruct his disciples in how to act. He is aware that Jerusalem lies ahead, and has much to finish before his arrival there. On this journey, Bock points out, “Jesus began to complete his earthly mission, prepared his disciples for his death, challenged the Jewish leadership, and continued to move toward Jerusalem.”³ Green also speaks of “the Lukan concern with the formation of the disciples on the journey. Clearly,” he says, “a major purpose of the Jerusalem journey narrative is to prepare for the time following Jesus’ departure.”⁴ Jesus is training his disciples in the values of the kingdom, readying them for a time when he will not be physically present. We ought to pay close attention to Luke’s focus as Jesus journeys toward Jerusalem. A large portion of this material consists in sayings and parables. Most of Jesus’ parables in Luke fall within this section, and most of the material is not found in the other synoptic gospels. Because our passage is largely parable, it would be helpful to look more closely at the nature of parables before advancing further.

About Parables

Historically, parables have been allegorized. That is, nearly every element of a parable was given “hidden” or “additional” meaning that lay beyond the immediate parable. Extra meaning was then read into the parable through seeing relations between these added meanings. The trouble with allegorizing is that it is not required to understand Jesus’ meaning and, since the extra “connections” are “hidden,” any added layer of meaning is incredibly arbitrary. That said, this does not mean that parables are entirely non-allegorical. No parable is so straightforward that it has zero elements that stand for real-world counterparts, for such a story would be a factual account rather than a parable. Parables lie within a range of allegory. Some parables have only one main point that corresponds to the real world, several others have a few representative elements, and a few more are mostly representative.

Contrary to common thought, parables are not used to obscure, but to clarify. Snodgrass explains that “Jesus told parables to confront people with the character of God’s kingdom and to invite them to participate in it and to live in accordance with it.”⁵ The people who accepted this invitation were, by definition, Jesus’ disciples. Snodgrass also points out that parables were regularly directed toward the disciples, and that they were meant to move people to action. He says, “Even though some would respond with hardness of heart and lack of hearing, Jesus taught in parables to elicit hearing and obedient response.”⁶ Our specific parable talks about wealth. Any interpretation of that parable must take into account Jesus’ teachings on wealth in Luke, and must be consistent with those teachings.

Wealth, Possessions, and Generosity in Luke

Because the nature of wealth in the first-century world amounted to a zero-sum game, the wealthy often became wealthy at the expense of others. Though Jesus does not condemn wealth, he recognizes its potential to do harm. He warns against greed in 12:15, saying, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” In 6:24, Jesus says woe to the rich, because their riches provide them “comfort in full,” suggesting that they will not receive comfort from God after their death because of their misuse of wealth in this world, as 16:19-31 illustrates. In 12:16-21 he tells of a wealthy man who intended to selfishly hoard his wealth but died suddenly, summarizing the tale this way: “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” A line from Mary’s song in Luke 1 says that God “sen[ds] away the rich empty-handed.”

In contrast, the poor are portrayed positively throughout Luke. Jesus says, in 6:20, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” After being invited to dinner, he instructs his hosts not to invite those who can reciprocate the invite, but to “invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous” (14:12-14). In fact, Jesus has a great deal to say about hospitality and generosity.

Luke 21:1-4 covers a poor widow whom Jesus praised because of her generosity despite her poverty. He contrasts this with the wealthy who give, but only because they have a surplus. This episode was to be instructive for his disciples, but should have been a familiar theme, as Jesus had already told them such things as: “Give to everyone who asks of you” (6:30) and “Give, and it will be given to you. […] For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return” (6:38). Jesus’ teachings even caught on with those who had been dishonest with wealth, such as Zaccheus, who says, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much” (19:8). This is the kind of radical generosity that Jesus taught. Those who considered following Jesus were told: “none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions” (14:33). Those who were already his disciples were given the same instructions, but Jesus also mentioned the motivation behind this generosity: the fleeting nature of wealth and the ability we have now to create “heavenly wealth” of a sort. As Jesus said in 12:33, ”Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys.”

This generosity is reflective of God’s character. Jesus asks in 11:13, “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” God is gracious and abounding in good gifts. Elsewhere, Jesus comforted his disciples by saying, “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom” (12:32). God is the account-keeper when it comes to generosity and wealth-distribution. This teaching exists in the Old Testament as well, such as in Proverbs 19:17: “One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, And He will repay him for his good deed.” With the background of these teachings on the poor, the rich, and the way wealth is to be handled, we turn to Luke 16 and a closer look at our passage.

Luke 16

Luke spends all of chapter 16 focusing on the proper use of money and possessions. Jesus’ main thrust is toward his disciples, in keeping with his intention to train them in the values of the messianic kingdom, but the Pharisees and scribes are not entirely absent. The chapter contains two parables—the first a positive example of how to use resources, the second a negative example of the same—with a short passage in the middle addressed in part to the non-disciples present. Our passage includes a parable and some clarifying instruction, but the second parable is clearly linked to the first, as they both deal with the proper or improper use of money.

There is an explicit shift in audience in 16:1 from the Pharisees and scribes (15:1-3) to the disciples. Even though others were in hearing range, this pericope was addressed to the disciples explicitly, so our interpretation must make sense given that the parable and teaching is for Jesus-followers. Now, to turn to our immediate passage.

Luke 16:1-13

In our parable, the focus is on the manager, not the rich man. Tannehill says, “Interpretations of the parable, then, must be primarily reflections on the manager.”⁷ I would state the meaning of the passage this way: Jesus, by telling the parable of a crafty manager, highlights the shrewdness his followers ought to exhibit in their use of possessions, which should be shown by wise and extravagant giving in this world that reflects the values of the kingdom.

Early in the parable we are told that the manager is about to lose his job due to his mismanagement. We are not told that he stole from his manager, or what the “squandering” consisted of, only that he would lose his job because of it. Belaboring the discussion over why the manager is getting fired is fruitless. Similarly, the manager’s actions in verses 5-7 are not interpreted for us. We do not know whether he was restoring his illegally taken cut, countering the technically illegal practice of charging interest, or legally removing his earned commission.⁸ Though much ink has been spent on trying to deduce the correct route here, it is ultimately inconsequential. The manager is dishonest, that much we are told. As Bock puts it, “Regardless of which view is taken, the point of the steward’s action is to lessen the debtor’s burden and to create future goodwill toward him upon his release into the labor market.”⁹ The debts are still interesting, though, due to their size. Both were quite large, the first being over three years’ salary of a day-laborer and the second being 8-10 years’ salary of a day-laborer.¹⁰ Wealthy people became indebted to the manager at this point.

Now, the master praises the manager in verse 8a. Again, this raises questions about why the master would sing his manager’s praises if the manager had cheated him out of money (etc., as per each of the above options), but it is instructive to remember the master’s peripheral nature in this tale. We can accept the text’s testimony that the master’s praise was motivated by seeing the manager’s shrewdness. Tannehill expresses the importance of the commendation, “for otherwise [the manager] would appear to be a negative example. [...] a distinction is drawn between his dishonesty, which is not being commended, and his shrewdness, which is.”¹¹

At 8b, we have passed the end of the parable and entered into Jesus’ commentary. Jesus’ words here are vitally important to understanding the parable. Snodgrass explains why we should pay attention to the tail end of a parable: “The rule of end stress recognizes that the most important part of the parable is the conclusion where the parable often requires a decision or forces the hearer to reverse his or her way of thinking.”¹² Jesus draws a contrast between the sons of this age and the sons of light, where the former are more shrewd and the latter are less shrewd. He wants his disciples to be as shrewd with their resources as the manager was. He is not promoting dishonesty, but prudence. Barton says, “Jesus applauded the steward who had assessed the situation clearly, planned bold and decisive action that would benefit others, and executed the plan efficiently.”¹³ What Jesus expects from his followers is a parallel to the manager’s shrewdness, a wisdom that accounts for the age to come, not only this age.

This brings us to verse 9, difficult for Jesus’ encouragement to use “the wealth of unrighteousness” and the idea that the poor will “receive you into the eternal dwellings.” First, the former. Some have suggested that the wealth referred to was unrighteous because it was gained immorally, but this cannot be. This makes unsupported assumptions. Furthermore, Jesus does not give a “go and do likewise” to the manager’s actions, only his prudence. Blomberg is helpful in explaining that this phrase basically means “money of this world.” He says, “discoveries at Qumran [have] reinforced the view that ‘unrighteous mammon’ was simply a stock idiom for all money, much as one might today use the expression ‘filthy lucre.’”¹⁴ Now, the second phrase. Being welcomed into the eternal dwellings is not about gaining access to heaven. The poor do not make that decision, and Jesus is addressing those already “in.” Also, Green notes that counting on reciprocity from those to whom one has been kind is counter to Jesus’ other teachings, since he insisted “that giving be done freely, with no strings attached, without expectation of return.”¹⁵ But Jesus also taught that our generosity to those who cannot repay will be rewarded, as in Luke 14:14, which says, “you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” God is the one who rewards at the resurrection. He is the one who keeps an accounting of our deeds.

Verses 10-13 have a texture that lends to their easily being pulled from context as “timeless proverbs.” According to Green, “Luke records Jesus’ self-conscious elaboration of motifs raised in the parable, especially stewardship and wealth.”¹⁶ Faithfulness ultimately has to do with what our use of resources says about our commitments, whether we demonstrate ties to this passing age, or to the age to come, the age of the kingdom of the messiah. This is also true of verse 13’s dichotomy: it is about which age we choose to live for. Green puts it well in saying, “Given the world system he served, the manager had acted prudently, but even that world system is rejected in favor of the inbreaking kingdom.”¹⁷ Verse 14 is telling here, because it reveals the priorities of the Pharisees. Being lovers of money, their “concerns with the maintenance and advancement of social standing negate any impulses toward caring for the poor.”¹⁸ This is what Jesus does not want for his followers, and the second parable in Luke 16 vividly illustrates God’s displeasure on the hoarding of money and having closed fists toward the needy.

In summary, this section is about living in this world in light of the world to come, having a kingdom mindset and a willingness to hold loosely onto that which will not last, making wise and generous use of our resources for the benefit of others. As Blomberg puts it, “what more telling test of true discipleship than […] the use of our finances.”¹⁹

Endnotes

1. Green, 23.
2. All direct Scripture quotations are from the NASB.
3. Bock, 960.
4. Green, 397.
5. Snodgrass, 596-597.
6. Snodgrass, 597.
7. Tannehill, 245.
8. Tannehill, 246. He cites: Kloppenborg, John. 1989. “The Dishonoured Master.” Biblica 70:479-95. See pp 479-86.
9. Bock, 1330.
10. Bock, 1331.
11. Tannehill, 247.
12. Snodgrass, 599.
13. Barton, 384.
14. Blomber, 246.
15. Green, 594.
16. Green, 595.
17. Green, 597.
18. Green, 601.
19. Blomberg, 247.

Bibliography

Barton, Bruce. Life Application Bible Commentary: Luke. Wheaton: Tyndale, 1998.

Blomberg, Craig. Interpreting the Parables. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 1990.

Bock, Darrell L. Luke: 9:51-24:53. Baker exegetical commentary on the New Testament, 3. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Books, 1994.

Green, Joel B. The Gospel of Luke. The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, Mich: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co, 1997.

Snodgrass, K. “Parable,” in Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 1992, pp. 591-601.

Tannehill, Robert. Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: Luke. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996.

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