16:1 And he said also unto his disciples, {1} There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.
(1) Seeing that men often purchase friendship for themselves at the expense of others, we are to be ashamed if we do not please the Lord or procure the good will of our neighbours with the goods which the Lord has bestowed on us freely and liberally, making sure that by this means riches, which are often occasions of sin, are used for another end and purpose.
16:1-7 The Rich Man and Lazarus
SUMMARY OF LUKE 16:
The Unjust Steward. His Shrewd Forethought. Making Friends with the Unrighteous Mammon. The Scoffing of the Covetous Pharisees. The Rich Man. The Beggar at His Gate. Death--One in Abraham's Bosom; the Other in Hades. The Rich Man's Petition. The Great Gulf. Hearing Moses and the Prophets.
There was a certain rich man. The three parables of the last chapter, the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Lost Son, are a rebuke of the self-righteousness of the Pharisees: the two of this chapter are directed against their covetousness.
Had a steward. An officer who had charge of his estates. Eliezer was the steward of Abraham; Joseph that of Potiphar (Ge 24:2-12 39:4). A man of business to take charge of the property is still common in the Old World on large estates. The Christian, to whom God has entrusted the earthly care of property that belongs to the Creator, is thus described (Mt 25:14-30 Lu 19:11-27).
Had wasted his goods. Dishonest; an embezzler.
16:1 And he said also to his disciples - Not only to the scribes and Pharisees to whom he had hitherto been speaking, but to all the younger as well as the elder brethren: to the returning prodigals who were now his disciples. A certain rich man had a steward - Christ here teaches all that are now in favour with God, particularly pardoned penitents, to behave wisely in what is committed to them.
16:1-12 Whatever we have, the property of it is God's; we have only the use of it, according to the direction of our great Lord, and for his honour. This steward wasted his lord's goods. And we are all liable to the same charge; we have not made due improvement of what God has trusted us with. The steward cannot deny it; he must make up his accounts, and be gone. This may teach us that death will come, and deprive us of the opportunities we now have. The steward will make friends of his lord's debtors or tenants, by striking off a considerable part of their debt to his lord. The lord referred to in this parable commended not the fraud, but the policy of the steward. In that respect alone is it so noticed. Worldly men, in the choice of their object, are foolish; but in their activity, and perseverance, they are often wiser than believers. The unjust steward is not set before us as an example in cheating his master, or to justify any dishonesty, but to point out the careful ways of worldly men. It would be well if the children of light would learn wisdom from the men of the world, and would as earnestly pursue their better object. The true riches signify spiritual blessings; and if a man spends upon himself, or hoards up what God has trusted to him, as to outward things, what evidence can he have, that he is an heir of God through Christ? The riches of this world are deceitful and uncertain. Let us be convinced that those are truly rich, and very rich, who are rich in faith, and rich toward God, rich in Christ, in the promises; let us then lay up our treasure in heaven, and expect our portion from thence.
