Luke 16:1-17:10

21st Century King James Version

16 And He said also unto His disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.

² And he called him and said unto him, ‘How is it that I hear this of thee? Give an account of thy stewardship, for thou mayest be no longer steward.’

³ Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my lord taketh away from me the stewardship. I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.

⁴ I am resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’

⁵ So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, ‘How much owest thou unto my lord?’

⁶ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take thy bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’

⁷ Then said he to another, ‘And how much owest thou?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said unto him, ‘Take thy bill and write fourscore.’

⁸ And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely; for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.

⁹ And I say unto you, make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, that when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

¹⁰ He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much; and he that is unjust in the least, is unjust also in much.

¹¹ If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

¹² And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?

¹³ No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

¹⁴ And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things, and they derided Him.

¹⁵ And He said unto them, “Ye are they who justify yourselves before men, but God knoweth your hearts. For that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

¹⁶ “The Law and the Prophets were until John. Since that time the Kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.

¹⁷ And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than one tittle of the law to fail.

¹⁸ “Whosoever putteth away his wife and marrieth another committeth adultery; and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.

¹⁹ “There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.

²⁰ And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, who was laid at his gate, full of sores

²¹ and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

²² And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried.

²³ And in hell, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom.

²⁴ And he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’

²⁵ But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime received thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and thou art tormented.

²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that they who would pass from here to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from there.’

²⁷ Then he said, ‘I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house,

²⁸ for I have five brethren, that he may testify unto them lest they also come into this place of torment.’

²⁹ Abraham said unto him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’

³⁰ And he said, ‘Nay, father Abraham; but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.’

³¹ And Abraham said unto him, ‘If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead.’”

17 Then said He unto His disciples, “It is impossible but that offenses will come, but woe unto him through whom they come!

² It were better for him that a millstone were hung about his neck and he cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to fall.

³ “Take heed to yourselves. If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.

⁴ And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, ‘I repent,’ thou shalt forgive him.”

⁵ And the apostles said unto the Lord, “Increase our faith.”

⁶ And the Lord said, “If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, ‘Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea,’ and it should obey you.

⁷ But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by when he is come from the field, ‘Go and sit down to meat’?

⁸ But will you not rather say unto him, ‘Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself and serve me until I have eaten and drunk, and afterward thou shalt eat and drink’?

⁹ Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not!

¹⁰ So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done that which was our duty to do.’”