The Gospel of Luke 12:41-48

Luke

12:41-48

The teachings of Messiah, 9:51-19:44

3. The kingdom and judgment, 12:35-13:21

ii] A warning to the unfaithful

Synopsis

Having just delivered two parables on the subject of watchfulness, Jesus now delivers two more parables, this time on stewardship.

Teaching

Much is expected from a servant of the kingdom.

Issues

i] Context: See 12:35-40. A warning to the unfaithful serves as the second episode in the series of six covering the topic of The Kingdom and Judgment, 12:35-13:21. These episodes examine the issue of discipleship from an eschatological perspective: first, watchfulness - prepared for the coming of the Son of man; and now in this episode, stewardship - faithful service.

ii] Structure: The faithful servant:

Setting, v41;

Peter asks a question.

The parable of the faithful and unfaithful servants, v42-47;

"blessed is that servant whom his master finds so doing ..."

The parable of just desserts, v48-49;

"from everyone who has been given much, much ....."

iii] Interpretation:

Both Dodd and Jeremias take the view that the teaching parable of the Faithful and Unfaithful Servants began life as a critique, offered by Jesus, of the religious authorities of his day. Jeremias argues that it was originally climactic, with no emphasis on delay. The immediacy of judgment, in this case upon Israel's faithless shepherds, brings it inline with the eschatological function of Jesus' kingdom parables. It may even have once had the introductory tag-line, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared with the situation of a master who sets a steward over his household ...."

Whatever the exact historical context, Luke has drawn this parable from his received tradition and, by means of its context, applies it to Jesus' disciples (possibly in leadership terms, of those representing the stewards / servants / shepherds / ministers of God's people). By this means, it joins Luke's list of discipleship instructions, here as an instruction to the disciples to feed his sheep (presumably with the Word of God, the gospel): "Blessed" of God is the steward who nourishes the Lord's household, but woe to the wastrel; The Master "will make him share the fate of the unfaithful", Berkeley. So, as a lesson for disciples in possession of the gospel and with the responsibility to make it known, the parable makes the point that a "faithful and prudent manager ...... is expected to be ready and watchful, administering faithfully", Fitzmyer.

The linked mini-parable of the Just Deserts, v47-48a, and its attached saying, v48bc, instead of addressing "worthiness and untrustworthiness, ... speaks of greater and lesser knowledge of the will of God .... The thought is of greater and less responsibility", Marshall. This teaching reflects the just treatment of conscious and unconscious sins, cf., Num.15:22-26, Psalm 19:12-13, Wisdom 6:6. As Fitzmyer notes, it is difficult to determine how much allegory is intended in the interpretation of these parables. As a rule of thumb, the identification of a single idea is far better than an attempted identification of all the individual elements in a parable. So, v47-48 probably serves as a warning to disciples that their privileged position as those in possession of the gospel ("servants who know the masters will"), v47, instead of the crowd ("who does not know"), v48, places them under greater responsibility to live it and make it known, so Nolland, Black, Geldenhuys, ....

Both parables are dramatic representations of discipleship within an eschatological context, and so a judgment theme is prominent; see Bock. The relationship between the two parables and the different types of punishment is a matter of some discussion. It is possible that Luke uses v47-48 to counter the severity of v46 - a disciple, who is less than faithful, will come through the day of judgment singed but saved! Yet, as Danker states, "these verses do not aim to give detailed instructions on the after-life, nor do they speak of degrees of punishment. Rather, they emphasise the importance of understanding the principle that responsibility is commensurate with endowment and opportunity." "If the picture of accountability that ensues appears threatening, even gruesome, this is not grounds for fear. God has granted the kingdom to those willing to orient their hearts and lives around it", Green.

Both parables may be classified as teaching parables. For the difference between Jesus' teaching parables and kingdom parables, see The Parables of Jesus, 8:1-18.

iv] Synoptics :

See 3:1-20. Luke provides a context for the parable of the faithful and unfaithful servants, and the mini-parable of the just desserts, in the opening verse, v41. The parable which follows in v42-46, is paralleled in Matthew 24:45-51 with only minor differences - Matthew has "hypocrites" for Luke's "faithless", and Matthew adds "weeping and gnashing of teeth" in v51. The mini-parable of the just desserts, v47-48, is unique to Luke. Its key link word is "servant", and it is more than likely that it was attached to the parable of the faithful and unfaithful servants during the period of oral transmission, rather than attached by Luke.

Text - 12:41

The faithful servant, v41-48. i] Setting, v41. Peter, speaking on behalf of the disciples, asks who the parables are intended for. Jesus doesn't directly answer, but the implication from the parable of the faithful and unfaithful servants, v42-46, is that these teaching parables are applicable to the disciples; they are "the servant who knows the master's will", v47, rather than the crowd, "who does not know", v48.

de "-" - but/and. Transitional, indicating a step in the narrative / discourse.

proV + acc. "to [us]" - [peter said, lord, do you say this parable] toward [only us, or and = also] toward [all]. Probably adverbial here, expressing reference / respect; "Are you telling this parable with respect to us only, or with respect to everyone else as well"? It is possible that the hJmaV, "us", is the leadership team, the three or the twelve, and that the pantaV, "all", is "all of the other disciples", but disciples and the crowd seems more likely. So, these parables apply to Jesus' disciples, not the crowd.

v42

ii] The parable of the faithful and unfaithful servants, v42-46. The parable carries an implied instruction for disciples / believers, that, in this not-yet age of the kingdom, they be faithful stewards of the Master's household. Primarily this amounts to seeking out the lost through the communication of the gospel, cf., Lk.24:44-49. Obviously, other suggestions present themselves, eg., "they are not to browbeat their fellow Christians or to run riot", Evans.

oJ franimoV adj. "[faithful and] wise [manager]" - [and the lord said, who therefore is the faithful, reliable, trustworthy and] wise [steward, manager]. Attributive adjective, second position. Note that the noun "manager", nominative subject of the verb to-be, also has an attributive adjective in the first position. Matthew uses the noun "servant", but Luke is making sure that the parable applies to the disciples (possibly church leaders) and not in a general sense to the gathered crowd.

epi + gen. "of [his servants]" - [whom he will appoint the lord] over [the household of him]. Here expressing subordination.

tou didonai (didwmi) pres. inf. "to give them" - to give. This construction, the genitive articular infinitive, serves to introduce a final clause expressing purpose; "in order to give."

en + dat. "at [the proper time]" - in [time the food allotment]. Temporal use of the preposition, introducing a temporal clause; "to issue them their rations at the right time", Barclay; "give out their daily rations", Rieu.

v43

makarioV adj. "it will be good for" - [that sort of servant] is blessed / happy. Predicate nominative of an assumed verb to-be. As is often the case, it is unclear whether the sense is "blessed of God", or just "happy"; probably as NIV here.

autou gen. pro. "-" - [the lord] of him. The genitive is adjectival, idiomatic / subordination; "the lord over him."

poiounta (poiew) pres. part. "doing" - [finds who] doing. The participle serves as the accusative complement of the direct object "who", standing in a double accusative construction and asserting a fact about the object.

ou{twV adv. "so" - thus. Modal adverb, expressing manner, the manner of his doing faithful service to his master, namely, caring for his household.

elqwn (ercomai) aor. part. "when he returns" - having come. The participle is adverbial, temporal, as NIV.

v44

There is always the danger of over-interpreting a parable by drawing unintended implications from subordinate elements. None-the-less, it's interesting to note that reward is often in the terms of greater responsibility, eg., 19:17-19. It's as if a disciple who does well with the Master's charge in this age, is rewarded with greater responsibility in the age to come. Dr. Who fans may relate this to the size and power of the Tardis allocated to them on the day of glory. This will be of some concern to those of us who haven't done very well in this age, for it implies that our Tardis will be small and underpowered.

uJmin dat. pro. "you" - [truly i say] to you. Dative of indirect object. The phrase, "Truly I say to you", serves to underline / emphasise the following statement.

oJti "-" - that [he will put in charge, appoint him]. Introducing an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech expressing what the master says to his servant.

epi + dat. "of" - over [all the possessions of him]. Here expressing subordination.

v45

ean + subj. "suppose" - [but/and] if [that slave may say in the heart of him]. Introducing a 3rd., class conditional clause where the proposed condition has the possibility of coming true. Verse 46 serves as the apodosis of the conditional clause (the then clause); "if, as may be the case, the slave says to himself, 'My master is delayed in coming', and so he begins to beat the male servants and the female servants, both to eat and drink and get drunk, (v46) then the master of that servant will come ......."

ercesqai (ercomai) pres. inf. "coming" - [the master of me is delaying] to come. The infinitive is complementary, completing the sense of the verb "to delay, to stay a long time."

kai "and then" - and. The connective here probably has consecutive force, expressing result; "and so, and so then."

tuptein (tuptw) pres. inf. "[begins] to beat" - [he begins] to beat [the male servants and the female servants]. As with "to eat", "to drink" and "to become drunk", this infinitive is complementary, completing the sense of the verb "to become."

te kai .... kai "and [to eat] and [drink] and [get drunk]" - both [to eat] and [to drink] and [to become drunk]. This construction serves to coordinate the three infinitives.

v46

tou doulou (oV) gen. "of [that] servant" - [the lord] of [that] servant. The genitive is adjectival, idiomatic / subordination; "the master over / who rules over that servant.

en + dat. "on [a day]" - [will come] in [a day]. As for "in an hour, adverbial use of the preposition, temporal, as NIV.

h|/ dat. pro. "when" - in which [he does not expect, and in an hour] in which [he does not know]. Dative of time, as NIV. So also the second use of the dative pronoun, "in an hour in which he does not know" = "at an hour when he does not know." Note there is the possibility of the dative occurring due to attraction. Marshal thinks the second use is a dative by attraction, so "on a day when (on which) he does not expect him and at an hour (which) he does not know."

meta + gen. "with [the unbelievers]" - [and he will cut in two him, and he will put the portion of him] with [the unbelieving]. Expressing association. Matthew has the unfaithful servant ending up with the "hypocrites" and sharing eternal darkness, the place "where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Bock argues that Luke's imagery is of rejection, cut off from the Lord and his people, although it may just serve to image the severity of the punishment, so Fitzmyer. Yet, it seems more likely that the imagery simply serves to reinforce the warning that we not be an unfaithful steward with respect to the Lord's "household" - all that the Lord has entrusted to us. The function of such a warning is not to condemn, but rather to strengthen our resolve. As for what the Lord has entrusted to us, the prime role of a believer is the dissemination of the gospel, a fact made clear by Jesus' commission to his disciples, cf., Lk.24:44-49.

v47

iii] The mini-parable of the just desserts, v47-48. This parable illustrates the saying / principle that "responsibility varies according to gift and commission", Evans; "greater and lesser knowledge of the will of God .... means ..... greater and less responsibility", Marshall. Again, it is likely that this warning serves to encourage disciples to act on the knowledge they possess from the Lord, a warning that, even in itself, has the power to transform inaction into action. The mini-parable uses imagery which is not as confronting as the previous parable - now the faithful servant is saved, but only after "many blows", or as Paul would put it, "through fire", 1Cor.3:15 - but the imagery only has an illustrative intent. As to the intended recipients, it is certainly applicable to the apostles / church leaders / Christian ministers, but it is probably intended for all disciples / believers. This doesn't mean that unbelievers, those "who do not know", are treated lightly on the day of judgment. As is always the case, an allegorical treatment of a parable has the potential to deliver error.

de "-" - but/and. Transitional, indicating a step to the next parable.

oJ gnouV (ginwskw) aor. part. "who know" - [the servant] having known. The participle is adjectival, attributive, limiting "servant", as NIV.

tou kuriou (oV) gen. "the master's [will]" - [the will] of the lord, master [of him]. The genitive is adjectival, possessive, or verbal, subjective, "the will communicated by the master."

eJtoimasaV (eJtoimazw) aor. part. "does [not] get ready" - [and not] having prepared [or having done]. The participle, as with "having done", is adjectival, attributive, limiting "servant".

proV + acc. "-" - toward [the will of him will be beaten much]. The preposition here is adverbial, possibly expressing reference / respect, "with respect to his will", or expressing a standard, "in accord with", "according to his will", TH, ESV, Torrey, ... "The servant who knew his master's will, but did not prepare for him and carry out his wishes, receives many strokes of the lash", Rieu.

v48

de "but" - but/and. Transitional, indicating a step to a counterpoint. This contrasting counterpoint is used to emphasise the proposition "great knowledge means great responsibilities."

oJ ... gnouV (ginwskw) aor. part. "the one who does [not] know" - the having known [not the will of the master]. The participle serves as a substantive, subject of the verb "to beat."

poihsaV (poiew) aor. part. "does things" - [but/and] having done things. Taking de as coordinative, the participle serves as a substantive, parallel with "the one who does not know", as NIV; "He who did not know and who does things worthy of punishment."

plhygwn (h) gen. "punishment" - [worthy = deserving] of wounds, strokes = punishment [will be beaten little]. The genitive here serves as the genitive complement of the adjective "worthy". In this construction, the noun functions as if it were an objective genitive. "Servants who don't know what their master wants them to do will not be beaten so hard for doing wrong", CEV.

de "-" - but/and. Transitional, indicating a step to an attached saying. "Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities", Peterson.

panti dat. adj. "[from] everyone" - to all = everyone. The dative may be adverbial, reference / respect, "with respect to everyone ....", but Marshal takes the view that the adjective is attracted to the dative relative pronoun w|/, "to whom." So, the adjective "all" serves as a noun, subject of the verb "to give"; "everyone to whom much was given." "Everyone" is resumed by the genitive autou, him, after the preposition para, "from beside", expressing source / origin; "much will be required from him." The NIV simplifies the sentence with "From everyone who has been given much."

w|/ dat. pro. "who" - [much was given] to whom, [much will be required from beside him]. Dative of indirect object used to introduce a headless relative clause; "to whom much was given."

w|/ "[and from one] who" - [and everyone they entrusted much] to whom, [they will ask him to give more, in excess]. Dative of indirect object, again used to introduce a headless relative clause; "to whom they entrusted much." Note the elliptical nature of the clause, particularly the assumed infinitive dounai, "to give", and its object perissoteron, "more, excessive", so Thompson. The plural referent "they will ask" is unclear, although Marshal suggests it is God. The point being, "more will be asked of the person to whom much is given, than of the person to whom little has been given", Marshal, cf., Creed.

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Exegetical Commentaries

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