Matthew 25:1-5 – When the Messiah appears it will be the Groom coming with His bride at an unexpected time. The wise virgins are those who are ready when the groom comes while the unwise are not prepared for His coming. The illustration that Jesus gives here lets it be understood that there will be no second chance. We either are ready or we are not. If we are not ready the door to the marriage supper will be closed and outside there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Jewish weddings at the time of Jesus set a day for the ceremony but have never been as bound by precision of starting or ending times as weddings here. The bridal party was to be ready. The ten virgins of the parable are part of the bridal party. Five realize that a time lapse could occur and come prepared for any delay. Five are foolish and consequently unprepared. The oil is similar to the wedding clothes in the parable in Matthew 22:11-13, it symbolizes an outward profession of faith without a real relationship with God. (2 Timothy 3:5) These hold to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. These are people who have the outward appearance of being believers without its spiritual reality. A people whose walk and talk do not match.
(James 2:17) Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. There are many within the church who appear to be believers but like the unwise virgins are not prepared for the coming of the Messiah. The delay described in the parable illustrates the truth that the Messiah or Bridegroom is coming at an unexpected time, and not as early as had been hoped. The delay was so long that the anticipation of his coming wore off and both those who were ready and those who were not fell asleep. The sleeping is not condemned, but not being prepared is. All of us must be prepared for the anytime return of the Lord. We must do the work that God has prepared for us to do. We are not to wait on some mountain top and for the Lord’s return, we are to be at work until the Lord returns (Luke 19:13).
Matthew 25:6-12 – Midnight is a time when most people are asleep, and the day’s work is done. Israel began its journey to the promised land at midnight (Exodus 12:29,31). The Rabbis taught that just as God provided deliverance from their bondage at midnight, so also everlasting deliverance would occur at midnight. The shout of the groomsman was an indication that the groom was on his way. So also the events of the great tribulation be an indication that the Messiah is on the way. Those ready trimmed their lamps so that they would be burning brightly at His coming.
The foolish ones now try to borrow oil for their supply had run out. They failed to be prepared with extra provisions when there was time, and now the stores were closed. Perhaps they thought that they would be able to borrow from someone else, but they were wrong. It will be revealed at the coming of the Lord who is a believer and who is not. Prior to His coming we are continually encouraged to examine our lives and see if we are indeed ready. (2 Corinthians 13:5). Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you‑‑ unless indeed you fail the test? This verse is not intended to rob believers of assurance and security of their salvation. It is, however, intended as a warning to those who would follow false teaching and adopt a life‑style that is inconsistent with the message of salvation.
The wise bridesmaids were not selfish because they wouldn’t share their oil, they just couldn’t do it without causing themselves to be unprepared. This means that personal faith is not transferable to another. You will not be fit for heaven because of the faith of someone else, each of us must have our own faith. The parable does not teach that we can buy our salvation either but rather we need to go to the right source to be prepared. Isaiah called Israel to this truth:
(Isaiah 55:1) ““Ho! everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. This passage is a call to revival for all who have wandered far from the Lord or from that grace which is the basis for our relationship with Him. It is also a call to salvation for any who have not known Him, promising a free but abundant and eternal life that is better than money can buy. The call is issued to the thirsty and the penniless ‑‑ all who will recognize their need for spiritual blessing and their inability to meet the need themselves. “Waters, wine and milk” are symbols of abundant spiritual blessings.
(Luke 6:47-49). The foolish virgins were those who built their lives on a poor foundation and thus were not prepared when the time came for their lives to be tested so that they were not ready. James describes testing as the means God uses to cause our faith to grow. The groom comes and enters the wedding banquet hall and those not prepared were permanently shut out. (Luke 13:25-28). Jesus then warns His disciples to be on the alert, this is the fifth time in the Olivet discourse that He warns His followers to be on the alert (Matthew 24:36,42,44,50). No man knows the day or the hour of the coming of the Messiah.
Matthew 25:14-15 – Jesus in parables reminds His followers that we have been given a stewardship. We are called to be ministers of the Gospel with the gifts that He has given us. The parable describes a landowner preparing for being away for a season by entrusting his servants to care and manage his property. The talents represent money but also point to the various gifts the Lord has given to his servants for the maintenance and care of His kingdom. Each servant of the Lord has been given different gifts and places to serve.
Matthew 25:16-18 – The man with 5 talents was eager and took his talents and doubled them. He took his talents and put them to work. This is a picture of the believer who immediately serves the Lord with the talents that he has been given. The second servant is a picture of one with less talents but wisely using them to advance the work of the master. The third servant’s behavior was noticeably different from the first two. He was protecting what he was given but not working or investing the talent so that it might bring back interest what was given. It is important to remember that we are called to abide in the Lord and He will cause fruit to grow. Eph. 2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
Matthew 25:19-27 – The master was gone “a long time”, so long in fact that his arrival was not expected. The first order of business upon his return was to determine what the slaves had done with what he had entrusted to them. In essence upon his return, he judged their performance. The first reported joyfully that he had doubled what he had been given. It was not with boasting but simply reporting the facts. The master praises him for his faithfulness and entrusts him with more responsibility as well as partaking in the joy of his master (Psalm 16:11;John 15:11) .
The parable is speaking of the joy that will be experienced by God’s faithful servants in the eternal state. Heaven will not be simply one of bliss and idle relaxation, although an aspect of that will be present. In the eternal state we will be ruling and reigning with our Messiah. Each of us will be given responsibility that will bless us and allow us to be blessed and a blessing. All who are believers will be serving the master in differing roles, but it will be done in the way God intended work to be done.
The example was in the Garden of Eden, where there was work was done yet they lived in paradise. There was labor but not with the sweat of the brow. There will be no jealousy, envy, or any other fruit of the flesh, in an atmosphere of joy serving God and man. The second servant receives the same commendation as the first, even though he only brought back 4 talents instead of 10.
The point of the parable is faithfulness with what had been given. Too often we lose our joy because we feel that we have less than our neighbor. The second servant did not spend any time thinking about what he didn’t have but went about his business with what he had been given. The result was the same blessing by his master. The third servant did nothing with the talent entrusted to him and didn’t even attempt to invest it so that it would gain intrest.
This servant is not a picture of an unbeliever but rather a servant of the master. Just as there are believers in our churches who consider themselves believers but not using their talents to serve their master to lay at the master’s feet. He also had a horrible perspective of his master thinking him to be a hard, demanding, and unfair. Those who see the punitive nature of God without coming to understand His love and grace do not know the master as revealed in Scripture. This servant is projecting on God his distorted personality, and using that as an excuse, as well as an accusation toward God. When Adam was confronted with his sin, rather than confess his sin he blamed God by saying, “the woman you gave me, caused me to sin”.
This demonstrated a lack of fellowship and love for his master. The response by his master was to accuse him of being wicked and lazy. Wicked because he falsely accused his master and lazy because he did nothing with the talent entrusted to him.
God, in His love has given us all talents that should be invested to further His kingdom. If we do not use the talents that the Lord has given us, we will be held accountable. According to Historical records the Roman government had a banking system. The maximum interest charged on loans was 12% simple interest with investments returning 6%. So, the worthless slave could have at least done that (Matthew 24:48-50).
The lazy slave’s own words condemned him, he said that the master was a harsh judge, and since that was his view of the master, the servant had no excuse for not knowing that he would judge him so sternly. This excuse seems to be a spur of the moment response. He probably thought the master was not coming back to hold him accountable. The first two servants were like wheat and the third like chaff in the parable of Matthew 13:24ff.
Matthew 25:28-30 – That this man was cast out into outer darkness demonstrates that he was not a believer at all. He professed to be a servant by his words, but his actions revealed that he was not. The judgment for believers is different from those who are not.
The Lord will begin the process of judging the Gentiles or nations during the seven-year period of the tribulation. In that time many Jews and Gentiles will come to faith through the testimony of the 144,000 Jewish believers (Rev 7). God will separate the sheep from the goats, placing the sheep on His right side and the goats on His left. The sheep refers to believers and the goats are unbelievers. The right side is a picture of the blessings of the first born (Genesis 48) as it was for Joseph in the blessings of Manasseh and Ephraim his sons. Joseph, through them enjoyed a double portion.
The Lord welcomes the sheep into the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world. This is an allusion to the gift of eternal life apart from works. It is a legacy not earned (Ephesians 2:8-10). These works and their rewards were prepared from the foundation of the world. The idea of predestination and free will are mysteries that only eternity will enable us to fully understand. What this truth should do is give us a certain amount of peace in the place of our striving. We all battle the idea that we need to do things in our own strength to please the Lord. The message of the Bible is not what we can do for God but rather abiding in Yeshua and seeing what God will do through us. Prayer is an essential element as well. We have not because we ask not (James 4:2-3;1 John 5:14). The works that Jesus commends his sheep for during this judgment is the fruit of their faith, the rewards are the fruit of their faith, not their works. Many people do good works for God but for them to be of eternal value they must be based on the finished work of the Messiah (Matthew 7:22-23).
The people the Lord commends seem to have a humble attitude, surprised by their commendation. While the context of these words apply to specific people and events during the tribulation, they are applicable to us today (James 2:15-17;1 John 3:17-18). These are not the fantastic works that those who practice lawlessness claim, like the casting out of demons, prophesying, and the working of miracles. It is taking care of the simple everyday needs of those who are our brothers and sisters in the Messiah, in a humble way.
Matthew 25:34-40 Who are the brothers that Jesus is referring to? This section beginning with Matthew 25:32 states that the events described here are in the context of the Lord’s judgment of the nations at the end of the Great Tribulation. The word nation is used interchangeably with the word Gentile, from the Greek word ethne. There are three kinds of people described in this section: sheep who are righteous Gentiles, goats who are unrighteous gentiles and “my brethren”, which refers to a redeemed Israel. The brethren of the Lord are Jewish people who have come to faith during the tribulation and will be the particular object of the anti-Christ and the false prophet’s rage (Revelation 12:17). Israel during this time will experience judgment as described in Ezekiel 20:33-44. Those Gentiles who help Jews during this period demonstrate that they are believers, by being willing to jeopardize their own lives for those whom the Lord loves. These works will not save them but reveal that they have a living faith in the God of Israel.
Matthew 25:41-46 – The goats at the left hand of Jesus are unbelievers. He will decree their eternal separation and judgment. The basis for this judgment is not that they failed to do works, but their lack of faith in Jesus, evidenced by their inability to do the right thing during the Great Tribulation. They will join the devil and his angels in the place of torment, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The description in Matthew 25:46 describes an eternal state for both groups; one to everlasting or eternal life the other into everlasting or eternal punishment.
