PARABLES OF THE SECOND COMING

GROUP V

If we were to attempt to select the most important group of

all the parables we might not be far wrong to choose those that

deal with the Second Coming. These parables speak of events

which occur at the time Christ returns to earth. They are marked

with a warning to be watching and waiting and in readiness for

the Lord’s coming.

In the Parable of the Evil Servant we are made to know that

there are some who claim to be followers of Christ who will

actually teach that the Lord delays His coming, perhaps even

question whether He will return at all. Their destiny is to be

appointed a portion with the hypocrites.

The Lord follows this up with the Parable of the Five Wise

and Five Foolish Virgins. That parable clearly teaches that of

those who look for His coming only half will be ready to meet

the Bridegroom.

The Parable of the Pounds shows that the Lord’s return was

not immediately after His going away. In the meantime His

disciples were to “occupy till I come.” As each servant was

active to the limit of his ability at the time of his Lord’s coming,

so one received authority over ten cities, another five. There

were varying degrees of reward. The reward was enlarged

service. The unfaithful servant who failed to use what was given

him, instead of receiving a reward, lost even that which he had.

Included in this set of parables is the one of the Rich Fool. It

is not exactly a parable relating to Christ’s Second Coming, but

rather at death he went out to meet God and was unprepared.

(The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus which shows the

nature of life after death, requires considerable space and is the

subject to Volume XXIII, which appeared earlier under the title

Hades: The Abode of the Unrighteous Dead.)

(Original oil painting of Christ on the Cover by Mrs. Vivian Page

Wheeler)

THE PARABLES OF CHRIST SERIES

VOLUME XXII

Parable of the Second

Coming

by Gordon Lindsay

Published By

Christ For The Nations Publishing Co.

Box 24910

Dallas, Texas 75224

The Year 1971

Contents

Parable 27

The Parable of the Faithful and the Evil Servant. .................5

Parable 28

The Parable of the Ten Virgins. ............................................9

Parable 29

The Parable of the Pounds. .................................................21

Parable 30

The Parable of the Talents. .................................................31

Parable 31

The Parable of the Rich Fool. .............................................41

Parable 27

The Parable of the Faithful and the Evil

1

Servant

Christ was speaking about His return to earth (Matt. 24:27-

31). He had been telling the disciples of various signs that

should appear at that time. He noted the moral conditions that

will exist, declaring that they will parallel those of the days of

Noah (Matt. 24:37-39). He spoke of the salvation and

preservation of the righteous, as prefigured by Noah and his

family, and the destruction of the wicked in the judgment of the

flood.

He spoke of one person’s being taken and the other left. It

was a warning for people to be ready, for they know not what

hour Christ will come:

Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken,

and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the

mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch

therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth

come.

Matt. 24:40-42

He spoke of the goodman of the house, who if he had known

what hour the thief would come, would have watched and not

suffered the thief to invade his house and steal his goods. He

was showing that as the thief comes at a most unlikely hour, so

Christ will come and take many by surprise. Then Jesus gave to

them a Parable of the Faithful and the Evil Servant:

Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord

hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in

due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he

cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he

shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil

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Parable of the Second Coming

servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and

drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall

come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour

that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and

appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be

weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matt. 24:45-51

In this parable Jesus spoke of the faithful minister and

teacher of the Word of God. The household referred to is the

house of God, and those belonging to the household are His

people. The Lord wills that they receive the meat of the Word of

God in due season. The Word is important. Many ministers

today—instead of teaching the Scriptures—preach social

reform, philosophy, politics, book reviews, and everything but

the Word of God. The servant who is faithful in all his house

will receive the Lord’s blessing. Yea, he will be given a rich

reward. He shall be made ruler over all the Lord’s goods.

The point is faithfulness. The reward of faithfulness is

promotion to service in a higher sphere. Our service to God does

not terminate with our life on earth. It continues in the world to

come. God has an exalted plan for those who are faithful in His

service. It will involve His great program of the ages of ages to

come.

The scene then shifts to another man whom Christ mentions

as the evil servant. He is a spurious minister of the Gospel, a

professor of religion who possesses nothing. This servant took

on himself the name of Christ, but he was a hypocrite. He

professed to believe the Scriptures and its teachings, but in fact

he denied them. For one thing, he was skeptical that Christ

would return. In his heart he said, “My lord delayeth his

coming.” This is a real clue to his downfall. He doubted the

truth of the Lord’s return. He had many glib explanations that

quite satisfied him as to what the Lord meant when He said He

would come again. He especially took issue with those who

believed literally the Lord’s warning “in such an hour as ye

think not the Son of man cometh.”

6

The Parable of the Faithful and the Evil Servant

Some teach that Christ returned in A. D. 70 at the

destruction of Jerusalem, confusing the two events as set forth in

Luke 21:20-28. Others declared that Jesus returned on the Day

of Pentecost, whereas the Lord plainly said that the Holy Spirit

was another Comforter who would come if He went away (John

16:7).

Still others teach that the Lord’s Second Coming is His

coming into a person’s life, or as formal churches teach, when a

man is baptized or professes religion. In all these cases there is

no earnest watching or expectancy of the Lord’s return.

Everyone goes about his business, seemingly expecting all

things to continue as they are forever. Eventually some reach the

place where they scoff at the doctrine of the Lord’s return, even

as II Peter 3:3-4 declares:

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last

days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying,

Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers

fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the

beginning of the creation.

The abandonment of the truth of the Lord’s imminent return

results in apostasy. Little by little the false servant departs from

the faith. He lives a life of indulgence, eating and drinking with

the drunken. He may actually become a slave to the vices of the

wicked. These things lead into further sin until he fulfills the

picture against which the Lord has warned. The evil servant may

assume a place of authority over the brethren. This deadly spirit

of ecclesiasticism seeks to enforce its will upon others. Men are

told what they must do, where they must go; they are taught to

lean upon the arm of flesh rather than upon God. This is the

situation in much of the nominal church today. Those in power

lust for more power. And thus is God’s plan for the headship of

Christ made of non-effect.

Denial of the truth of Christ’s Second Coming gradually

results in the corruption of doctrine and practice. What finally

happens to this evil servant? We are told that the Lord comes in

a day when he looketh not for him and he is cut asunder and his

7

Parable of the Second Coming

portion is with the hypocrites. In other words he is lost forever.

The parable ends with that servant’s terrible awakening, and his

fruitless remorse. “There shall be weeping and gnashing of

teeth.”

8

Parable 28

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

2

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten

virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the

bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were

foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took

no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with

their lamps.

Matt. 25:1-4

The parable opens with the word “then.” Thus it connects

with the previous verses which all deal with events occurring at

the time of Christ’s coming. It concerns ten virgins of a bridal

party who took their lamps and went forth to meet the

bridegroom. There is no mistaking who the bridegroom is, for he

plainly represents Christ.

The dominant question, which has resulted in much

controversy, is just what part of the visible church do the ten

virgins represent. We know that in Scripture symbolism the

number ten signifies completeness. The ten virgins therefore

represent the Church of Christ as it exists today, and the

portrayal is the final scene, or the event that occurs at the very

coming of the Lord.

But do the ten virgins represent the good and evil in the

Kingdom of Heaven? Do they represent the righteous and the

wicked, the wheat and the tares, the good fishes and the bad?

There are several reasons why we cannot accept this view. In the

preceding parable the faithful and evil servants are all included.

The circumstance that specially marked the evil servant was that

he said, “My lord delayeth his coming.” And having taken that

view, he consorted with those who spent their time in drinking

and gluttony. He also resorted to dominating his fellow-servants

and to usurping authority over them. He was altogether a

9

Parable of the Second Coming

hypocrite, a spurious Christian, a blind leader of the blind, to

whom is reserved swift judgment at the coming of the Lord.

On the other hand, the ten virgins all looked forward to the

imminent return of the bridegroom, anticipating it before the

time. We must understand that these virgins represent quite a

different company from the preceding knave who masqueraded

as a servant of Christ, but who actually was an apostate from the

faith.

The term “virgins” has a distinctive application in the

Scriptures. Paul speaks of the believer as “a chaste virgin”

separated unto Christ.

For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I

have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you

as a chaste virgin to Christ.

II Cor. 11:2

Again the word virgins as used in Revelation 14:4

designates the firstfruits unto God in whom there is no guile:

These are they which were not defiled with women;

for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb

whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among

men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb. And

in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without

fault before the throne of God.

Rev. 15:4-5

Psalms 45 portrays a scene of Christ’s coming forth from

ivory palaces to meet His bride—“the king’s daughter is all

glorious within” —and who is followed by “the virgins her

companions” (Psa. 45:6-15).

If we follow the imagery employed by the Scriptures, we

must conclude that a virgin represents a believer who has

separated himself from the world. It does not have reference to

sex or to the married state as such. A “virgin” as the term is

symbolically used in the Scriptures is a follower of Christ who is

not defiled with spiritual fornication or adultery such as James

alludes to in the fourth chapter and fourth verse:

10

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the

friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever

therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

Professing Christians who flirt with the world are guilty of

spiritual harlotry and cannot be considered to be “a virgin” in

the Scriptural sense.

The term “ten virgins” must be understood to include all true

believers within the Church visible. The number ten prefigures

the Church’s many organizations, groups, nationalities, and

forms of service that are in existence at the end of the

dispensation. They answer to the “good seed” and the “good

fish” of the other parables.

We are told that the ten virgins took their lamps and went

forth to meet the bridegroom. What are the lamps? “Thy word

is a lamp unto my feet,” says the psalmist. It was by means of

the lamp that they were enabled to go out into the darkness of

the night to meet the bridegroom. It is by means of the Word of

God that the Lord’s people are enabled to know and understand

the glorious truth of the coming of Christ. In a symbolic sense

the Word which was made flesh became the Light of the world

(John 1:1-14). It is because of the Light which came to all men

that we can bear witness to that Light (John 1:6-9). In a certain

sense all believers in Christ are the light of the world (Matt.

5:14).

Until this point the ten virgins appear as one united band

sharing the same expectations and having a common interest in

the same event. But a difference appears, and it is manifest in

the preparations that were made. Five were wise and five were

foolish. In the case of five, their preparations were insufficient.

Although all the virgins carried a bright shining lamp in their

right hand, only half of them carried a store of sufficient oil

along with them to replenish the lamp during the long night

watches. As to the meaning of the oil, there is general

agreement. The oil is the standard symbol for the Holy Spirit.

God intends His people to be anointed with that oil, even as

Christ was anointed.

11

Parable of the Second Coming

Jesus received His baptism of the Spirit at the river Jordan

(Luke 3:21-22). Being full of the Spirit, He was led of the Spirit

to be tempted in the wilderness (Luke 4:1). When the

temptations were finished, He returned in the power of the Spirit

(Luke 4:14), and when He began His ministry, He declared that

the Lord had anointed Him to preach the Word of deliverance.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath

anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent

me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the

captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at

liberty them that are bruised.

Luke 4:18

When the apostle Peter preached to the house of Cornelius,

he spoke of God’s anointing Jesus of Nazareth for His ministry

(Acts 10:38).

John the apostle declares that Christ’s disciples are anointed

by this same Spirit (I John 2:20, 27). “But the anointing which

ye have received of him abideth in you.”

We have another picture of the presence of the Holy Spirit

in the command to the elders to pray for the sick. The elders

were to anoint with oil, which was a symbol of the Spirit’s

presence and power to heal (James 5:14).

The next point of the parable that we notice is that all the ten

virgins had some oil in their lamps at the beginning. For lamps

will not burn at all without some oil. Neither can lamps go out as

mentioned in Verse 8 unless they have first been burning. And

certainly the virgins could not have ventured out into the

darkness of the night if their lamps were not burning at all. This

is a point that is often missed. If we allow that the oil represents

the Holy Spirit, then we must concede that all the virgins had

some oil.

Where then was the difference between the wise virgins and

the foolish virgins? We are told plainly that the foolish “took no

oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their

lamps.” They took oil in their vessels. They carried an extra

12

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

supply. Paul tells us we carry this treasure in earthen vessels, our

bodies, and this power shines forth “to give the light of the

knowledge of the glory of God.”

For God, who commanded the light to shine out of

darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the

knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the

excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

II Cor. 4:6-7

Every believer has a measure of the Holy Spirit. As the

apostle says, “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ,

he is none of his” (Rom. 8:9). Indeed “no man can say that

Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost” (I Cor. 12:3).

Nevertheless, there are measures of the Spirit. Christ received

the Spirit without measure (John 3:34). It is Christ’s purpose

that we should receive the baptism of the Spirit as rivers of

living water:

In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood

and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me,

and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath

said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But

this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him

should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given;

because that Jesus was not yet glorified).

John 7:37-39

And this pouring out of the Spirit upon all flesh is the

preeminent message of the Book of Acts. Although the disciples

had received the Holy Spirit by measure (John 20:22), they were

to receive the mighty baptism of the Holy Ghost as promised by

Jesus (Acts 1:4-5). After the Day of Pentecost the apostles were

insistent that all disciples should receive the baptism of the

Spirit (Acts 8:14-16; 19:1-6). Thus the Spirit would not only be

with them, but should dwell in them (John 14:17).

It is evident that this full measure of the Spirit is what the

foolish virgins lacked. They had the Spirit in a measure, for no

man can say Jesus is Lord save by the Spirit (John 3:3-5; I Cor.

13

Parable of the Second Coming

12:3). But this is different from being filled with the Spirit. Our

bodies or “vessels” are none other than the temple of the Holy

Ghost (I Cor. 6:19). To fulfill God’s purpose in our lives and to

be ready to meet the bridegroom, we need to be filled with the

Holy Ghost.

The parable informs us that there was an unexpected delay.

“While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and

slept” (Matt. 25:5). The group of maidens had gone a

considerable distance to a prearranged gathering place where

they were to await signal of the bridegroom’s approach. But as

the night advanced and the ordinary time of repose had passed,

conversation began to lag and drowsiness set in. Finally the

virgins fell into deep slumber.

The introduction of the element of sleep suggests an interval

of time in which apparently the bridegroom delayed his coming.

It also suggests something else—that because of the long delay,

many who watched for the coming would fall asleep in Jesus. At

the coming of Christ these would awaken and join those still

alive.

There is a spiritual sleep, however, that Paul warns us

against. “Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us

watch and be sober” (I Thes. 5:6).

Sleep speaks of inactivity. When people are asleep they are

unconscious of what goes on around them. Danger may be

nearby, but they are unaware of it. The house may be on fire,

imperiling the whole family; but while people sleep they know

nothing of it.

The sleep of the virgins perhaps indicates other things. It

illustrates the abandonment of the Church in the middle

centuries to the hope of the Second Coming. For a time the Early

Church like the ten virgins of the parable, was in eager

expectation of the Lord’s return. Slowly the Church lost that

hope. Due to the long delay of the return of the Lord, the truth of

the Lord’s coming was gradually forgotten. Along with the

waning of that hope was a decline of spiritual life in the Church.

Christians became indifferent and apathetic.

14

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

But suddenly at midnight a cry was made:

And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the

bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all the

virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

Matt. 25:6-7

Midnight was the hour when the bridegroom was least

expected. There are two ways in which we can understand this.

We can assume that was the actual moment when the

bridegroom came, or else take it as the time when the cry

anticipating his coming was made. Let us consider the very first

as betokening the awakening of the Church to the great truth of

the Second Coming.

The warning to watch is in the last verse of the parable,

“For ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son

of man cometh” (Matt. 25:13). There are four periods of time

suggested by the parable. In ancient reckoning the night was

divided into four watches: six to nine, nine to midnight,

midnight to three, three to six.

1) There was the first period when the ten virgins readied their

lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. This answers

to the period of the Early Church. Christians in that day

eagerly looked forward to the return of Christ. It was a time

in which the Church was alert and active in the work of their

Lord.

2) Then there was a period—because of the bridegroom’s delay

—that the virgins who were weary with watching fell into

deep slumber. How long they slept we do not know. During

this time the Church lost, or became only dimly aware of the

hope of Christ’s Second Coming. It was a period of moral

and spiritual apathy in the Church. This period answers to

the second watch.

3) Then came the midnight hour and the beginning of the third

watch. The virgins were awakened with the cry, “Behold,

the bridegroom cometh: go ye out to meet him.” This cry

awakened the virgins, and they arose and began to trim their

15

Parable of the Second Coming

lamps. There never has been a time in the present century

when there has been such a heralding of the message of the

Second Coming throughout the earth.

4) Finally there came the moment when the bridegroom

actually came, which answers to the fourth watch. We are

verily in that period now. The nearness of His coming is

changing from imminency to immediacy.

While the parable suggests this picture of the changing

attitude of the Church at various periods toward the Second

Coming, it seems evident that the main purpose of the parable is

to focus attention in particular on events occurring at the very

time of the coming of the bridegroom—that the midnight hour,

the darkest hour of the night, is the very time when the

bridegroom comes. It was the midnight hour when the first-born

of Egypt was slain, and a mighty cry of anguish went up unto

God in that land (Exod. 12:29).

It is a general view even among secular observers of the

significance of events happening in the world, that we are living

in the eleventh hour of the history of the world. It has been

pointed out as a curious fact, the strange coincidence—if it be

coincidence—involved in World War I, a war which ushered in

this unprecedented hour in history. The war came to an end at:

The eleventh hour of

The eleventh day of

The eleventh month of the year 1918,

Eleven months after General Allenby entered Jerusalem on

the Eleventh day of December, 1917.

There has been a saying which has had wide circulation,

especially since the appearance of the atomic bomb; the saying

is, “It is later than you think.” Often a clock is pictured with the

hands pointing suggestively to ten minutes, seven minutes, or

even two minutes to twelve. It is generally recognized by both

Christians and nominal Christians that the world has entered into

the eleventh hour of its history, and the striking of the midnight

hour cannot be afar off:

16

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for

our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not

so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye

rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

Matt. 25:7-9

With the cry, all the virgins arose and began trimming their

lamps. It was at this moment that the folly of the five foolish

virgins became evident. Due to the long delay of the bridegroom

the oil supply had run low, and their lamps were flickering,

ready to go out (margin). They were not yet ready to admit that

their cause was desperate. They went to work trimming and

cutting away the carbon from the wicks which hindered the

bright shining of their lamps. But to no avail, for wick-trimming

is not enough if there is a lack of oil. The foolish virgins turned

to their companions, if perchance they had exceeded their

requirements and were able to lend them a sufficient supply of

oil. But their appeal was in vain. It would not have done for all

the lamps to go out, for none would have been able to meet the

bridegroom.

One thing that this part of the parable teaches seems very

clear. There will be a great dismay among a certain part of the

Church at the Coming of Christ. We speak not of those who

deny His coming altogether, such as the unfaithful servant, but

those who truly look for His coming—who will have a terrible

realization that they are unprepared to meet the Bridegroom.

They have indeed looked forward to the event, and now the

awful truth comes to them that they are not ready. What is

wrong? They do not have oil in their vessels with their lamps. In

the parable they were advised to go to them that sold oil, and

obtain a supply.

The question may be asked whether it is possible to “buy”

the Holy Spirit? We must remember that this parable and other

parables use the expression of buying and selling, such as in the

Parable of the Merchantman and His Pearls. In a certain sense

we are told to “buy the truth and sell it not.” Indeed the Lord

has instructed the lukewarm Laodicean church to “buy of me

17

Parable of the Second Coming

gold tried in the fire” and “white raiment.”

I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that

thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest

be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not

appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou

mayest see.

Rev. 3:18

It is to be noticed that the latter warning was given in

connection with Christ’s standing outside the door. In the matter

of actual dollars and cents, of course the Holy Spirit cannot be

bought (Acts 8:20). Nevertheless, in a true sense the treasures of

God must be purchased at a price, at a sacrifice. Jesus said, “If

any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take

up his cross, and follow me” (Matt. 16:24). In the Parable of

the Tower, Jesus taught that a man should sit down and count the

cost before he decides to embark on an undertaking that he may

not be able to finish (Luke 14:28-30).

And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came;

and they that were ready went in with him to the

marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the

other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he

answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour

wherein the Son of man cometh.

Matt. 25:10-13

In the meantime, the foolish virgins had gone to those who

sold and replenished their oil supply. While they were gone the

bridegroom came; and they that were ready went into the

marriage and the door was shut, When the foolish virgins finally

arrived, they knocked on the door and said, “Lord, Lord, open

to us.”

But the shutting of the door has a solemn significance. It

means that a substantial number of Christians who are looking

forward to the coming of the Lord, and who are anticipating the

joy of the marriage feast, are going to be left out.

What bitter thoughts of self-reproach must have overtaken

18

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

the foolish virgins! There were those long hours while the

bridegroom delayed, when they could have made good their

oversight. But they had permitted the golden opportunity to pass

them by, and this apparently is the picture of a large part of the

professing church.

It is to be noted that the bridegroom did not say, “I never

knew you,” as Christ did to the workers of iniquity in Matthew

7:21-23. He said to them, “I know you not.” That is, I cannot

recognize you as members of the bridal party. They had missed

God’s best. Bitter tears of remorse could not change the fact.

There is a teaching abroad that everyone who is saved will

participate in the rapture of the Church. The Scriptures,

however, teach just the opposite. Jesus Himself said, “Watch ye

therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted

worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and

to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:36). “One shall be

taken and the other shall be left.”

And what about the bride? Although the bride plays a most

important role in any wedding, she is not mentioned by name

here. The five wise virgins were not the bride. They were the

attendants of the bride. Who and where was the bride?

In a certain sense, the whole Church is the bride of Christ. In

a particular sense, it appears that there is a group within the

group that makes up the bride of Christ, the firstfruits unto God.

The bride is altogether like unto the bridegroom. She has entered

into His sufferings, His death, and into His glorious resurrection.

While the virgins slept, she was awake all the time. It is hardly

appropriate that the bride be asleep at the time of her wedding!

She was waiting expectantly. Her lamp was always ready. And

when at last the bridegroom and his party were heard

approaching in the distance, was it not her voice that cried,

“Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him” ?

We have made a previous reference to Psalm 45 in which

the bridegroom and the bride and the virgins are seen. In

bringing this study of the parable to a close, we quote from its

words. Notice particularly Verse 10 and what follows. It is the

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Parable of the Second Coming

call of the bride. She was brought unto the king, and it was “the

virgins her companions that follow her.”

All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia,

out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee

glad. Kings’ daughters were among thy honourable

women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of

Ophir. Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline

thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s

house; So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is

thy Lord; and worship thou him. And the daughter of

Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the

people shall intreat thy favour. The king’s daughter is all

glorious within; her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall

be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the

virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought

unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be

brought: they shall enter into the king’s palace.

Psa. 45:8-15

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Parable 29

The Parable of the Pounds

3

And as they heard these things, he added and spake a

parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because

they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately

appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a

far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to

return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them

ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

Luke 19:11-13

As Jesus left the city of Jericho and drew nigh to Jerusalem

He saw the spirit of expectancy that had taken possession of the

multitude. They were about to acclaim Him King. Indeed the

multitude would shortly be crying out to the people of

Jerusalem, “Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of

the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke

19:38). They little realized that within a few days their King

would be hanging on a cruel cross, and the joyful multitude

would be scattered and gone.

Jesus, therefore, felt it was necessary to disabuse the minds

of the people of this delusion in which they supposed that the

Kingdom of God was about to appear. He had to show both the

multitude and His disciples that He was not then going up to

Jerusalem to sit on a throne. In order to correct their

expectations, He gave them the Parable of the Pounds, which

assured them that the Kingdom of God would come, though the

time was not immediately. Many events were to transpire before

the kingdom would be outwardly manifested.

In the meantime the Kingdom would be on earth, but it

would be in mystery form. During that time His disciples would

be going about their business working for the Lord. The parable

was given to teach them that they had to restrain their

21

Parable of the Second Coming

impatience and follow the plan that the Lord had for them.

The story began with a nobleman who was going into a far

country to receive a kingdom. Before he took his departure, he

called his servants to him and made each one a steward of a

pound of money, which would be, according to some estimates,

about thirty-five dollars. Then he instructed them to “occupy till

I come.” After a considerable space of time the nobleman

received the kingdom and returned. He called together his

servants to whom he had committed the money to see how they

had prospered in their trading. One man’s pound had gained ten.

Another’s had increased to five. Each was given a reward for

faithful service. But another had taken his talent and wrapped it

up in a napkin. He was punished for his slothfulness, and the

citizens who were his enemies were destroyed. Let us look at the

parable and its meaning:

The nobleman is without doubt Christ. Being born of the

Spirit of God of a virgin, He was of noble rank. As Son of the

Most High, He was claimant of the crown. As the Son of David

through Mary, He was to sit on the throne of David and reign

forever (Luke 1:32-33). This Kingdom was to be received from

the Father, rather than from human hands. In fact, when men

tried to give the crown to Him, He rejected it (John 6:15). This

rejection of the Kingdom from the hands of men implied that the

Lord was to return to heaven, the “far country,” with the

possibility that He would be gone a long time.

The smallness of the sum given the servants is also

significant. While Christ was inheritor of all power in heaven

and in earth, at the time He left the world He was in a condition

of deep poverty and humiliation. He could not, therefore, shower

upon His disciples great amounts of wealth. In the nobleman’s

going into a far country, we see portrayed the death, burial,

resurrection, and ascension of Christ.

The illustration that the Lord gave was familiar to the minds

of the people. Jesus related the parable near Jericho, where a few

years previous to that, Archelaus, whose palace was in Jericho,

went to far-off Rome to be invested with his royal authority. In

22

The Parable of the Pounds

this connection it is interesting to note that an opposition party

sent a deputation to Rome to protest against Archelaus’ reigning

over them.

In Christ’s ascension to the right hand of the Father, He

went into the far country to receive the Kingdom. Thus in the

parable Christ made it clear that He would have to depart this

world and be gone for a considerable period. Then He would

return to earth, not as a prince expecting a kingdom, but as a

king to set up His throne. While He was absent His servants

were to use the capital with which He had entrusted them and to

increase it by trading. In the meantime, His enemies would rage

and struggle in rebellion against His imminent rule.

The picture of Christ’s receiving the Kingdom is aptly set

forth in the fifth chapter of Revelation. Christ alone was found

worthy to open the book sealed with seven seals, which will

contain the title deed of the earth. In this book we have a

foreview of events showing the Lion of the Tribe of Judah’s

assuming dominion over the earth. He will take the book out of

the hand of the Father who sits on the throne, and then proceed

to open it. Therefore, Christ even yet is not actually king, but

waits in expectation of a throne. He will assume this throne upon

His return to earth.

It will be noticed that the number of servants to whom the

nobleman gave the pounds was ten. Ten is the ordinal number of

perfection. It is a number symbolizing completeness. The beast

of Revelation had ten horns. There were Ten Commandments,

ten lost tribes of Israel, and ten virgins in the Parable of the

Coming of the Bridegroom.

Therefore, the number ten indicated all of the servants of the

nobleman. All of his servants were given a responsibility. The

gifts were the same in each case and might be considered to be

of small value. The lord himself said that a pound was only “a

very little” (Verse 17).

What does this pound represent? Some say it speaks of

eternal life. But eternal life is not increased by trading. The

pound undoubtedly represents the commission which Jesus

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Parable of the Second Coming

committed to His disciples ere He departed from them. The

disciples were to go forth and bear fruit, and that fruit was to

remain.

The disciples’ task of carrying the word of their testimony

does not seem great in the eyes of the world. In fact, the pound

appeared to be very small. But though witnessing is a small

thing in the world’s sight, it is the means of obtaining something

infinitely great.

But we notice another truth imparted by the parable. The

enemies of the nobleman during his absence started a rebellion

in an attempt to frustrate his purpose in becoming king over the

land:

But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after

him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.

Luke 19:14

Who are these citizens who sent this message? It is, of

course the Jews who rejected Him. Christ came of the tribe of

Judah, and is in that sense a Jew. It is a sad fact that the

Scripture records that “He came unto his own, and his own

received him not” (John 1:11). The hatred of the Jews for

Christ is seen not only in their crucifixion of the Lord, but in

their hatred for His servants, in their persecution beginning with

the death of Stephen and countless other disciples of the Lord

whom they martyred. It was as they cried to Pilate, “We have

no king but Caesar.”

Not only Jews but Gentiles have refused to acknowledge the

right of Christ to rule. The world powers will not have Him to be

their king. The prince of the power of the air, even Satan, who

inspires the hearts of men and women to rebel against His

authority claims the kingdoms of this world (Luke 4:5-6).

The time came at last for the king to return. Having received

the kingdom, he then took an account of his servants:

And it came to pass, that when he was returned,

having received the kingdom, then he commanded these

servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the

24

The Parable of the Pounds

money, that he might know how much every man had

gained by trading.

Luke 19:15

It is to be noted that the same nobleman who went away in

person returned in person. So it is with Christ. “This same

Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come

in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts

1:11). So declared the two men in white. He went away visibly.

He will return visibly.

But we note that the absence of the Lord was to be for a

considerable period of time. One servant who excelled in his

work had time for his pound to gain ten pounds. The long delay

was to have a varied effect upon the servants. Some used the

time to the very best advantage, to increase their stewardship.

Others were careless in carrying out their responsibility. But

whether they were prepared or unprepared to give a good

accounting, they all had to come into the presence of the king, at

the time of his return. And here we see that the rewards of God’s

people are not given out at their death, but at the coming of

Christ.

The first man to come before the king could say, “Thy

pound hath gained ten pounds.” The master then replied in

words of praise, “Well, thou good servant: because thou hast

been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten

cities” (Luke 19:17). This man represents that class of followers

of Christ who receive the highest reward. He was active and

faithful to the very limit of his ability. He can be reckoned

among the 100-fold Christians, and he will rule and reign with

Christ during the millennium.

There was a second servant who was called forward and he

said, “Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.” The Lord

said to him, “Be thou also over five cities.” This man was a

good man, though he did not attain unto the first. He was content

with the smaller achievements. He had not put the same zeal and

sacrifice into his work as the first had done. He did not receive

the same praise the first had received; nevertheless, he received

25

Parable of the Second Coming

a reward in proportion to his efforts.

Of the ten servants, only two were represented as receiving

rewards. But between the two are many variations. There are

seven servants of whom no mention is made. But in every case

we may understand that the reward is in proportion to the

service. Different degrees of faithfulness will receive varying

degrees of reward.

Yet it is to be noticed that the reward is not spoken of as

some material gain or as some possession to be received by the

servant, or certain property to be henceforth held as exclusively

his own, but rather the reward consists of enlarged service.

Those who are faithful will participate in the rule of an empire,

the increase of which shall know no end. This is one of the great

revelations of Christ. The end of service in this age will not

mean a dreamy unrealistic paradise of the future, but a service

vastly extended in the great Kingdom of God, which is shortly to

be revealed. The Lord is developing a royal priesthood; He is

choosing kings (Rev. 1:6) who will rule and reign with Him in

the age to come (Rev. 2:26-27; 20:6).

We see, therefore, that the Christian’s work, aside from its

value to the Lord at the present time, is a sort of training school

to give experience for much greater things to come. When our

work is finished here, we shall be transferred to a new Kingdom

to take part in the administration of the affairs of the world to

come. We can only speculate about the glory of that great work.

We know that the enlarged scope of our service to God will

mean that we shall be given a vastly increased faculty to work.

Satan will be bound and conflict with evil will have been ended.

The servant will truly enter into the joy of the Lord.

But against this wonderful prospect there is set over against

it the darkness and woe of a rejected servant who has refused to

serve God:

Since so much space is given to this third servant, we ought

to notice the circumstances carefully. It will be noticed that the

man addressed the returning king as “lord,” which meant that he

acknowledged him as master and sovereign. The unfaithful

26

The Parable of the Pounds

servant was orthodox and proper in his salutation. He handed the

lord his pound done up in a napkin. The napkin had the same

purpose as a handkerchief, and one of its uses was to wipe away

the sweat of hard labor from the brow. Since the man was not

using the napkin, it is evident that he had not been working. This

man told the lord he had kept his pound tied up in a napkin, that

is he had hidden his testimony and had given himself over to a

life of idleness and ease. The proper investment of the lord’s

pound required industry, wisdom, zeal, and activity. But the

servant had been indolent, and to justify himself of his idleness

he said to his lord: “I feared thee, because thou art an austere

man: thou takest up that thou layest not down, and reapest

that thou didst not sow.”

It would seem that the man had a very unjust conception of

his lord. Yet that is exactly the view held by thousands of

professed believers today. They profess Christianity only

through fear. Their conception of the Master is that of an

exacting and demanding person. They are given to much

questioning. They wonder about the justice of God. Why should

Christians be required to give up the world? Why should there

be a judgment? Why does God permit this to happen or that to

happen to His people? These kinds of thoughts cause their souls

to be filled with darkness and dread and paralyze their will for

service.

There are thousands of professed believers in the church

today who fit the above description. They are so filled with fear

that they are utterly useless in the church. They contribute

nothing to the cause of Christ and are a stumbling block to new

converts. Their testimony for Christ is never heard, for they do

not believe that it will do any good, and indeed in the spirit they

are in it would not do any good.

This disobedient servant was without excuse. He could have

at least given his money to the bankers and allowed it to draw

interest. If he did not have faith and initiative to work by

himself, he should have cooperated and helped someone who

was stronger in the service. But since the man had wrapped up

27

Parable of the Second Coming

his pound in a napkin and lived in idleness, he lost his reward.

He was stripped of all he had and it was given to him who had

ten pounds. What terrible thoughts there will be in eternity to

recall the missed opportunity. Oh, the deceitfulness of sin! How

it deludes men until they not only become enemies of God, but

enemies to themselves. At the coming of Christ the state and

position of a man is fixed forever. There is no prospect for this

slothful man of a greater sphere of activity, or a greater joy in

the future. The sentence passed was a solemn one. “For I say

unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given;

and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken

away from him.”

So it is even in this life. Talents which are used grow in

value and usefulness. That which is not used deteriorates and

decays.

We must add this final thought. It appears that many people

feel that what they have is small and insignificant. Therefore,

they do nothing. They neglect what seems to them the small

opportunities that are all around them. When asked to perform a

service in the church, they think it is of such little value that they

turn it down. Alas for them! What a rude awakening they will

have on that day when they must give an accounting to the

Master.

There is the final class, spoken of as citizens who said, “We

will not have this man reign over us.” Vengeance overtakes

the openly defiant and rebellious. Though Christ is a loving and

merciful Saviour, He faithfully depicts the doom of the wicked.

It was Christ who warned men to fear not “them that kill the

body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I

will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after

he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto

you, Fear him” (Luke 12:4-5). The words of Christ have

reference to the great day of God’s wrath.

We shall not dwell on the doom of the wicked. There is

nothing in the words of Jesus to give a single ray of hope for this

class. There will be a terrible and irrevocable separation of the

28

The Parable of the Pounds

righteous from the wicked.

Who are those that the king calls in to slay the wicked? They

are, of course, the angels who are the appointed executioners

and to whom is committed the task of administering judgment to

the disobedient. Those who will not be ruled by grace must

ultimately feel the wrath of God.

Yet even as the parable gives a fearsome warning to the

disobedient, it at the same time gives words of encouragement to

the faithful that in due time a reward awaits them. As the apostle

Paul says, “Every man shall receive his own reward

according to his own labour” (I Cor. 3:8).

29

Parable 30

The Parable of the Talents

4

For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into

a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered

unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to

another two, and to another one; to every man according

to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.

Matt. 25:14-15

A superficial reading might give the impression that the

parable of the Talents and the Parable of the Pounds were

almost the same, or at least teach the same thing. It is true that

there are several points of similarity, but a close reading shows

that the Parable of the Talents has much that is not touched

upon by the first. Let us notice some of the points of difference:

1) The two parables were spoken at different times. The first

was told to both disciples and enemies; the second was told

only to disciples.

2) In the first, the servants were given pounds; in the second

they received talents.

3) The value of the first was small—only a few dollars. The

talents, however, were worth thousands of dollars.

4) In the first parable, the one who gave the pounds was a

nobleman. In the second, the one who gave the talents was

spoken of as a man who travelled into a far country.

5) In the first, each servant received a pound; in the second the

servants received talents according to their several ability.

6) In the first, each was rewarded according to the number that

his pounds had increased. In the second, they were rewarded

on the basis of faithfulness.

7) In the first, the parable dealt with both rebels and servants.

31

Parable of the Second Coming

In the second, only servants are mentioned.

There are other points of difference; but we have mentioned

enough to show that although in some respects the parables have

a resemblance, there is also a considerable difference in them.

Actually one parable supplements the other.

The Parable of the Talents, as we have noted was, in

contrast to the one of the Pounds spoken exclusively to

disciples. Jesus was in Jerusalem and had been rejected. The

disciples standing about the temple drew His attention to the

beauty of its stones. The Lord replied to their inquiry by saying

that Jerusalem would soon be destroyed and the temple thrown

down, an event that took place 40 years later. The disciples

confused this event with His Second Coming, as some still do

today. Christ’s statement led the disciples to ask three questions:

one, as to the time of His coming, and the others as to the signs

of His coming. Jesus replied to all the questions. The giving of

the parable was a partial answer to the time.

As we have noted, there are some things taught in the

Parable of the Talents which are also portrayed in the Parable

of the Pounds. We shall try to avoid repetition as far as possible.

There is one special point that belongs to both parables

which Jesus obviously sought to call to their attention—that

there was to be a long lapse of time between His First Coming

and His Second Coming. This was brought out in two

statements. First, the man was to travel into a far country; and

second, He was to be gone a long time (Verse 19). At our point

of vantage we know that Christ has been gone a long time—over

1900 years. Had those of the Early Church carefully studied the

parable, they would have known that Christ’s coming was not

immediate, as many of them supposed (II Thess. 2:1-2).

The man in this parable, like the one in the Parable of the

Pounds, without question is Jesus Christ. He went into a far

country which answers to heaven, where He was seated at the

right hand of God. Before leaving, He called His servants to

Him and “delivered unto them his goods” —to one five talents,

to another two talents, and to another one, to each according to

32

The Parable of the Talents

his several abilities. Then the servants took the talents and began

to put them to work. The first with his five talents, gained five

more. The second with two talents gained two more, while the

third took his talent and buried it in the earth.

Then he that had received the five talents went and

traded with the same, and made them other five talents.

And likewise he that had received two, he also gained

another two. But he that had received one went and digged

in the earth and hid his lord’s money.

Matt. 25:16-18

While the pounds represented only a few dollars, the talents

had a value of many thousands of dollars, which would indicate

the master was a man of wealth. Thus in the Parable of the

Pounds Christ is seen in His earthly poverty, having nothing to

give His disciples but His Word which they were to carry into

the world. But the Word without the heavenly treasure (the Holy

Spirit) is not complete. After Christ returned to heaven, He

resumed His riches and wealth. He received the Spirit from the

Father and gave gifts unto men (Acts 2:33; Ephes. 4:7-8). The

talents, therefore, represent the power and gifts of the ministry

that Christ gave to His Church.

It is important to note that these talents have reference to

supernatural impartation rather than the human abilities—

although it is to be noted that the talents were given in

proportion to “his several ability.” Everyday observation and

experience shows us that while God gives His gifts to His

humblest servants, individual capacity is involved in their

reception. Human ability by itself, manifested in pride, can make

impossible the proper use of the gifts. Nevertheless, sanctified

human ability working in cooperation with the Spirit of God

accomplishes the greatest good. Paul’s remarkable natural

endowments after he was anointed with the power of the Holy

Ghost made him the greatest figure in the New Testament next

to Christ Himself.

And thus we see that Christ delivered His talents to His

disciples in varying measures according to their “several ability

33

Parable of the Second Coming

(ies).” That is the law both of the spiritual and of the natural

world. Moreover, if we do not develop what abilities and talents

we have in the service of the Lord in this life, we shall not be

competent to discharge the added responsibilities in the world to

come. Yet in a real sense, we cannot take pride in our own

abilities. As the apostle Paul said, “What hast thou that thou

didst not receive?” Natural abilities come from God even as

spiritual gifts do. But one is earthly and the other heavenly. So

in either case, we must give God all the glory; and if He has

given us more than He has to another, we should be humbly

grateful.

What are the talents? Do they not represent the gifts of the

Spirit as mentioned in I Corinthians 12? These gifts have many

manifestations and operations. They operate proportionately

according to the person’s faith and the measure of grace given

(Rom. 13:3). Jesus said to certain ones who came for healing:

“According to your faith be it unto you.” Gifts are given to

the person in proportion to their faith and their natural capacities

to receive.

We find that although the pounds were given to each man in

the same measure, not so are the talents. One received five

talents, and another two, still another only one. When it comes

to gifts and ministries, there is a great diversity both in capacity

and opportunities in God’s service. Each was given the number

of talents which their natural capacities could best use. But in

any case, the talents were not to be spent for personal

advantages, but for the purpose of enriching the master. The first

two, as wise stewards began to trade and invest the money and

gradually increased that which the master had put in their hands.

The third servant, however, went out and dug in the earth and

hid the lord’s money.

Now the time came at last when the lord of the servants

returned and reckoned with them:

After a long time the lord of those servants cometh,

and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five

talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord,

34

The Parable of the Talents

thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained

beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well

done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been

faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many

things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Matt. 25:19-21

We notice the difference between the Parable of the Pounds

and the Parable of the Talents in the matter of the rewards. The

man whose pound gained ten was made ruler of ten cities while

he whose pound gained five was made ruler of only five cities.

But in the case of the talents, he whose five gained five and he

whose two gained two received the same reward. For he spoke

the same words to both of them. “Well done, thou good and

faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I

will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the

joy of thy Lord.”

In this parable Jesus was teaching another truth than that in

the Parable of the Pounds. Men were not to be rewarded on the

basis of how much God gave them in the first place. For a man

has nothing to boast of because God has given him more than he

has given another man. The reward is in the degree of

faithfulness. Equal faithfulness brings equal reward. Each will

enter into the joy of the Lord.

What is the joy of the Lord? Who can plumb the infinite

meaning of these words? But we may say that whatever it will

mean to Christ Himself it will mean to His faithful servants. As

a wife shares the wealth and possessions of her husband, so the

Bride of Christ will enter into the Bridegroom’s joy and be

coheir with Him in all things.

Indeed the parable seems to teach that the mother who is

faithful in all things in her home, the Sunday school teacher who

is faithful at her post, the pastor who is faithful to his flock, all

will share alike in the Bridegroom’s joy. The key word is

faithfulness. But alas, as we shall see, there is a grave danger

that the one who has been given a smaller field of labor, being

disappointed in what was allotted to him, may become slothful

35

Parable of the Second Coming

in carrying out his responsibility.

This we see in the case of the man who received one talent

and who went and hid it in the earth. As the napkin which hid

the pound was a symbol, so is the earth where it was hidden.

There are earthly pleasures, earthly possessions, earthly

ambitions, earthly friendships which can, and often do, cover up

the talents God has given. He who has a talent that can be used

for God and is letting it lie idle is covering it up.

Perhaps there is a person who has an excellent voice, but

worldly ambitions attract his attention and the talent is used for

selfish purposes instead. Another is called to the ministry; and

though he might be a great soul winner, the sacrifice involved

seems too great, and so the talent is buried and is of no use to his

Lord.

But the time comes when a reckoning must be made. What

will the man do with his talent? The slothful servant had

explanations. He defended himself by reflecting against his

lord’s character:

Then he which had received the one talent came and

said, Lord, I know thee that thou art an hard man, reaping

where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast

not strawed. And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent

in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

Matt. 25:24-25

It would seem that the servant was rudely presumptuous to

make these remarks about his lord. But he went on and said that

he was afraid. His own bad conscience took away his faith, and

he was afraid. The demon of fear took control of him and he did

the worst thing he could have done. He took the lord’s money

and hid it in the earth. There are those who are afraid to take

God at His Word. They are afraid to use their talents for God—

afraid to do what God had told them to do. The fact that the man

had received only one talent was not to account for his failure on

the day of reckoning. His character is the single explanation of

what he did. Because a man has few talents does not indicate in

any way that he will not be commended. All that is required at

36

The Parable of the Talents

that day is faithfulness.

Perhaps a warning is in order here that men guard against a

misinterpretation of slender gifts. The test of faithfulness can be

made equally well if one has few gifts as if he has many. The

widow who had two mites and cast them into the treasury of the

Lord, received the Lord’s commendation, when He said, “Of a

truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more

than they all... but she of her penury hath cast in all the

living that she had” (Luke 21:3-4).

In the unprofitable servant we see the terrible sin of doing

nothing. It is to be observed that the man was not charged with

committing some gross act of wickedness. True enough, if

neglect alone brings condemnation, how much more

condemnation will fall upon those who live a life of vice? Truly

the wrath of God is a fearful thing to consider.

But this man was guilty of having hard thoughts about God.

When the time came for him to make an accounting he was

unable to give an explanation of his conduct. Indeed his words

were irrational and incoherent. In his panic he accused the lord

of “reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where

thou hast not strawed.” The man in his folly was taking the

lord to task, when in reality he was the one on trial. Such a

defense seems incredible, yet it is excuses like this that people

give when they are asked why they are not using their talents for

God.

But then came the verdict. The talent that the slothful

servant had was taken from him and given to him who had ten

talents. Because of his sloth, he forfeited his gift. This principle

is true in both material and spiritual spheres. If an arm or a limb

is not used, the muscles weaken and atrophy. Powers that are not

employed wither away.

But if we fail to avail ourselves of our privileges, it does not

mean that no one else will. When Judas fell, another took his

vacated office. When Israel rejected her opportunity and

position of glory, God turned to the Gentiles. It is a solemn thing

to realize that the unfaithful servant never awakes to his danger

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Parable of the Second Coming

until his gift is lost forever. No opportunity afterward to redeem

himself was given.

What happened to the unprofitable servant? The talent that

he had was taken from him and he was cast into the outer

darkness:

Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto

him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath

shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him

that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness:

there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matt. 25:28-30

We are told that this unfaithful servant was cast out from the

presence of the Lord. He is described as “wicked and slothful”

and “unprofitable.” Jesus said, “Every branch in me that

beareth not fruit he taketh away... If a man abide not in me,

he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather

them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.”

Some see the wicked and slothful servant as a saved man. But

what is told of his final estate is not encouraging. The man was

cast into the outer darkness, hardly a description of the fate of

the righteous. The final word is, “There shall be weeping and

gnashing of teeth.” Oh, what pangs of remorse must beset the

unfaithful servant when the time of reckoning comes! What

desperate regrets when the terrible realization comes that it is

too late to mend one’s ways. Henry Calderwood in his Parables

of the Lord puts it well when he says:

He who will not live as a faithful servant of the Lord must

be an outcast from His presence.... But when the inevitable

separation becomes a reality in personal experience there will

be no heart so dulled to sensibility as to escape overwhelming

anguish. A willful refusal of service involves God’s rejection

of the servant. A fruitless life closes in fruitless remorse, from

which there is no escape, outer darkness bearing witness to

exclusion from Divine favor and subjection to Divine wrath.

(The Parable of the Rich Fool is not rightly a parable

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The Parable of the Talents

concerning Christ’s Second Coming. We are including it in this

volume, however, for it has a corresponding analogy. Christ

does not suddenly come to judge the man as in the case of the

unprofitable servant. Here is a man who goes out to meet God

totally unprepared).

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Parable 31

The Parable of the Rich Fool

5

And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground

of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he

thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I

have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said,

This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build

greater; and there I will bestow all my fruits and my

goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much

goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink,

and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night

thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those

things be, which thou hast provided?

Luke 12:16-20

This parable was occasioned as the result of a request by one

of his hearers that concerned the estate of his family. “Master,

speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me”

(Luke 12:13). The Scriptures do not give us the full details of

the incident. We do not know whether his brother actually

cheated him, or whether he had a mind to do his brother wrong.

The law gave the elder brother a double portion of the estate,

and it may be that he would have had Christ to alter the law and

oblige his brother to divide the inheritance equally with him. At

any rate the Lord rebuked him and said, “Man, who made me a

judge or a divider over you?” He had come to assist men to

secure their heavenly inheritance, and the man was only

interested in the earthly and material things. Jesus wanted him to

know that the Kingdom of God is not of this world and that it

does not interfere in civil matters. It does not meddle with civil

rights, nor does it encourage us to expect worldly advantages

because of our religion.

Here Christ foreshadowed the truth that Christianity and

communism would have nothing in common. Communism’s

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Parable of the Second Coming

chief lure is its promise to divide this world’s inheritance—it

will take from the rich and give to the poor. It will see that the

masses share equally of this world’s reward—although time has

shown that the claim is a fraud, a mere pretense to obtain

unlimited power for communist agitators.

When communism takes over a government, the selfish

natures of those in power seize the wealth of the land to promote

their own advantage. The people continue to receive the

minimum, while the wealth of the nation is mobilized to

maintain great armaments for the purpose of threatening or

overpowering other nations.

Jesus then took occasion to teach a lesson to His hearers:

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of

covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the

abundance of the things which he possesseth.

Luke 12:15

Jesus is saying, “Our happiness and comfort do not depend

upon our having a great deal of this world’s goods.” The

creature comforts of this world do not meet the needs of the

soul, nor satisfy its true desires. Many live very contentedly with

but little material wealth; and on the other hand, others live very

miserably although they have much of this world’s goods.

Jesus illustrates His words with the Parable of the Rich

Fool. It is a picture of a worldly-minded man whose ground

brought forth plentifully, insomuch that he had no room to store

his fruits. Instead of thanking God for his prosperity, he was

concerned only about preserving his increasing wealth. He

speaks to himself as one filled with perplexity. The abundance

of the wealthy does not suffer them to sleep. The rich man’s

question was, “What shall I do?”

There seems to have been no thought in his mind to help the

poor, the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow. He wanted to put

it all in his own barns, to hoard it up for the years to come. He

made a decision that he would pull down his barns and build

bigger ones:

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The Parable of the Rich Fool

And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns,

and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and

my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much

goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink,

and be merry.

Luke 12:18-19

It is to be noted that the Scriptures do not condemn the man

simply for his business plan. He is not said to be especially

wicked, or that he is a deceiver or oppressor of the helpless. Nor

does the parable strike at the fact that honorable industry will

bring a reward.

The parable notes that the man was concerned only with

himself. He was a complacent worldling who thought that the

even flow of his prosperity was going on forever. He bade his

soul to rely on the “much goods laid up for many years.” He

intended to eat, drink, and be merry. In the philosophy of the

rich fool, the center of the universe was himself, and the range

of his thoughts were the physical pleasures of his body, and no

other provision was necessary. Thus he lived on a plane not

much higher than that of the animals in his barnyard.

But the unexpected happened. On that same day, a sentence

of death was passed upon him. God spoke and said, “Thou fool,

this night thy soul shall be required of thee.”

But of this the farmer yet knew nothing. That day he stepped

out into the fields; he gave his orders to his servants. Certain

ones in the building trade were called in, and plans were

discussed and preparations made to set in motion the work of

tearing down the old barns and the building of the new ones.

Throughout the day he proceeded with his planning, little

dreaming that he would never see the sun rise again.

Finally it was night. He retired to his bed. His mind was full

of thoughts and schemes of what he would do on the morrow. So

preoccupied with these things was he that he did not hear the

rustling of the wings of Death as he entered his room. Suddenly

the man trembled, then with a great shudder he lay very still.

Just that quickly it happened. Was it a heart attack? We do not

43

Parable of the Second Coming

know. At any rate his heart ceased beating and he man was no

longer living.

What of this poor worldling as he felt his soul slipping out

into eternity? Did a thought flash through his mind of his

spiritual destitution, of his unpreparedness to meet God? The

rich man was totally unprepared. If he thought of his barns and

his riches, he suddenly realized in that instant that they had all

been taken away from him. He heard the fateful decree, “Thou

fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose

shall those things be, which thou hast provided?”

When morning came his servants found him cold in death.

What were all his goods to him then? To whom would his broad

acres go? The once rich man gave no commands; nor was his

advice asked. He was given a few square feet in the corner of a

field—the place of the dead. Time had ended for him; only

eternity remained.

Where is the rich man who thought that all that mattered

were goods and larger barns? This parable does not carry the

scene forward any further. His destiny, however, is revealed in

Luke 16 in the story of the rich man and Lazarus. He was in

Hades. There is no wealth in this region of night, no comfort—

not even a drink of water—only anguish and despair and the

memory of selfish acts and forgotten opportunities.

The occurrence as described in this parable is a common one

and chronicled regularly in the daily press. A strong man

without the slightest warning bowed himself and died. Even

while his riches flowed to his garner, life ebbed away.

And so the man who was rich had no possessions. The

earthly ones were gone, and there were no spiritual ones to be

discovered. And thus did Jesus conclude, “So is he that layeth

up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Clearly, the rich man might have prepared other things. Had

he used his wealth for others he might have harvested certain

precious fruits of the Spirit. There were store-places, ready-

made in the homes of the poor, in the ever-present need of

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The Parable of the Rich Fool

forlorn humanity. But this would have meant that he would be of

an unselfish spirit, whereas, he was covetous and centered

everything about himself. He believed that charity was to end

where it began—strictly at home. His favorite pronoun was the

possessive—my corn, my goods, my barns, my soul.

What a contrast there was between the man’s own views and

the divine decree. He talked of many years; God said, “This

night.” The farmer considered himself as having much goods;

God declared him bankrupt. The rich man fancied he had great

foresight; divine decree declared him a fool. He spoke of his

soul as his own; God said, “This night thy soul shall be

required,” for the purpose of weighing it in the balance.

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Document Outline

- Parable of the Second Coming

- Contents

- 1 The Parable of the Faithful and the Evil Servant

- 2 The Parable of the Ten Virgins

- 3 The Parable of the Pounds

- 4 The Parable of the Talents

- 5 The Parable of the Rich Fool

Table of Contents

The Parable of the Faithful and the Evil Servant.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins.

The Parable of the Pounds.

The Parable of the Talents.

The Parable of the Rich Fool.

Parable of the Second Coming

Contents