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He said therefore, A certain nobleman ° went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.

And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.

And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.

16

Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.

17

And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority ° over ten cities.

18

And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.

19

And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.

20

And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:

21

For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow.

22

And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:

23

Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?

24

And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds.

25

(And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) °

26

For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.

27

But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.

Luke 19:12

19:12 to return. The “parable of the pounds” obviously speaks of the return of Christ to heaven (“the far country”) until the time of His second coming.

Luke 19:13

19:13 pounds. A “pound” (the Roman mina) was about one-hundredth of a “talent” (see note on Matthew 25:15).

Luke 19:13

19:13 Occupy. The servants of Christ are instructed herein to continue working at their vocations, without hesitation when they see (or think they might see) the day approaching. The Greek for “occupy” is the word from which we derive our English word “pragmatic,” and occurs elsewhere in the New Testament only in II Timothy 2:4 (i.e., “affairs”).

Luke 19:14

19:14 not have this man. This pronouncement succinctly represents the basic attitude of all those who reject Christ in this age between His first and second comings.

Luke 19:17

19:17 authority over ten cities. In the parable of the pounds, the Lord rewards His servants in accordance with the quantity of return produced from equal gifts. In the somewhat similar parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), the reward is based on proportionate return from unequal gifts. The conclusion from the two parables is that our rewards when Christ returns are based on both quantitative and qualitative criteria. The Lord will take full and understanding account of both our opportunities and our works. He is well able to discern and to “give every man according as his work shall be” (Revelation 22:12). In the parable of the pounds, the nobleman went “into a far country” (Luke 19:12). In the parable of the talents, Jesus gives the additional information that the master only returned “after a long time” (Matthew 25:19).

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