Mathayo 25

Ten bridesmaids wait for the bridegroom

¹At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten young women who were bridesmaids. They took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.^{a 2}Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³The foolish ones took their lamps but brought no oil along with them.^{b 4}But the wise ones took flasks of oil as well as their lamps. ⁵When the bridegroom was late in coming, every one of them nodded off and slept. ⁶In the middle of the night a shout was heard: ‘The bridegroom is here! Go out to meet him.’ ⁷Then all the young women woke up and got their lamps ready. ⁸The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Share some of your oil with us; our lamps are going out.’ ⁹But the wise ones replied, ‘We cannot; there would surely not be enough for both you and us. You had better go to the oil sellers and buy your own.’ ¹⁰While they were off buying it, the bridegroom arrived. The ones who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was closed. ¹¹Later the rest of the young women came as well. ‘Lord, lord,’ they cried, ‘open the door for us!’ ¹²But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ ¹³Keep awake, then, for you know neither the day nor the hour.^c

Slaves entrusted with their master’s money

¹⁴It is like a man about to travel abroad. He summoned his own slaves and handed his property over to them. ¹⁵He gave five bags of silver to one, two to another and one to a third, according to what each could manage. Then he set off. At once ¹⁶the slave with the five bags went and did business with them and made five more. ¹⁷In the same way the one with two made two more. ¹⁸The slave who had received only one, however, went away and buried his master’s money in a hole in the ground. ¹⁹A long time afterward the master of those slaves returned and went over the accounts with them. ²⁰The one who had received five bags of silver came and brought five more. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you put five bags of silver in my care. See, I have made five more.’ ²¹His master answered, ‘Well done! You are a good and faithful slave. You proved faithful in small matters; I will put you in charge of great ones. Come in and share the joy of your master.’ ²²The one with the two bags of silver came too. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you put two bags of silver in my care. See, I have made two more.’ ²³His master answered, ‘Well done! You are a good and faithful slave. You proved faithful in small matters; I will put you in charge of great ones. Come in and share the joy of your master.’ ²⁴Then the one who had received the one bag of silver came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew how hard a man you are. You reap fields you never sowed and gather grain where you scattered no seed. ²⁵I was afraid, so I went off and buried your bag of silver in the ground. Here it is; you have what is yours.’ ²⁶His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy slave! So you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not scatter? ²⁷In that case you should have handed my money to the bankers. On my return I would at least have got back what is mine, with interest. ²⁸So take the bag of silver away from him and give it to the slave who has ten bags. ²⁹For everyone who has will be given more, and they will have more than enough. But anyone who has nothing will lose even what they have. ³⁰Throw this useless slave out into the darkness outside, where people will weep and grind their teeth.’

The Son of Man judges the nations

³¹The Son of Man will come in his glory, and all the angels with him. Then he will take his seat on the throne of his glory. ³²Every nation will be brought together before him. Then he will divide the people into two groups, the way a shepherd sorts the sheep from the goats. ³³He will stand the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. ³⁴Then the King will say to those at his right, ‘Come, you whom my Father has blessed. The kingdom has been ready for you since the world was founded; now it is yours to inherit. ³⁵For when I was hungry, you gave me food; when I was thirsty, you gave me a drink; when I was a stranger, you took me into your home; ³⁶when I had no clothes, you dressed me; when I was sick, you looked after me; when I was in prison, you came to see me.’ ³⁷Then the righteous will reply, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and fed you, or thirsty and gave you a drink? ³⁸When was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you in, or without clothes and dressed you? ³⁹When was it that we saw you sick or in prison and came to you?’ ⁴⁰The King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, each time you did it for one of these my brothers and sisters, even the least of them, you did it for me.’^{d 41}Then he will say to those at his left, ‘Go away from me, you who are under a curse, into the eternal fire that has been made ready for the devil and his angels. ⁴²For when I was hungry, you gave me no food; when I was thirsty, you gave me nothing to drink; ⁴³when I was a stranger, you did not take me into your home; when I had no clothes, you did not dress me; when I was sick and in prison, you did not look after me.’ ⁴⁴Then they too will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or without clothes, sick or in prison, and not come to your help?’ ⁴⁵Then he will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, each time you failed to do it for one of these, even the least of them, you failed to do it for me.’ ⁴⁶These will depart to eternal punishment, and the righteous will go to eternal life.”