Immerse: Messiah - Flipbook - Page 369
25:14-32
M atthe w
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“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man
going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his
money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two
bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in
proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.
“The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the
money and earned five more. The servant with two bags of silver also went
to work and earned two more. But the servant who received the one bag of
silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.
“After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them
to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom
he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and
said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned
five more.’
“The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give
you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and
said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned
two more.’
“The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have
been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many
more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master,
I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so
I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’
“But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew
I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, why
didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten
some interest on it.’
“Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the
one with the ten bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given,
even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those
who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Now throw
this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth.’
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him,
then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered
in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates
