टीका वर्तमान में केवल अंग्रेज़ी में उपलब्ध है। हिन्दी अनुवाद प्रगति पर है।
Matthew 25 — Inasmuch As Ye Have Done It Unto One of the Least of These
Three parables of judgment. Ten virgins — five wise, five foolish, with oil and without. The door shut — I know you not. The talents — five, two, one — the unprofitable servant cast out. The sheep and the goats — inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. These shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
“And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
— Matthew 25:40
- v.1-13 The ten virgins
- v.14-30 The talents
- v.31-46 The sheep and the goats
The reward of faithfulness — well done. The servant entered into the joy of his lord; the reward is sharing the Master's joy itself.
Faithful over a few things. The size of the assignment is not the issue; the faithfulness is. The two-talent servant gets the same commendation as the five-talent one. God measures stewardship, not assets.
Christ identifies with the least. To serve the hungry, the prisoner, the stranger — His suffering brothers — is to serve Him. The verse undoes any neat division between piety toward Christ and care for the lowly.
A test the religious can fail. The goats were busy in their own way; they did not see Christ in the small ones. The sheep had not been theologically calculating; they had been loving. The verse honors what they did even before they knew its weight.
Two destinies, both eternal. The same word — everlasting — describes both. To soften one is to soften the other; the parallel forbids it.
The chapter ends with the line that ends life as a probationary state. The Christ who pleads is the Christ who judges. The two are not in tension; they are one Person who told us this so we would prepare.
Verse 40 simplifies what is often complicated. Whom did you serve today, of the least sort? Christ counts what is done for them as done for Him. Not what was theologically argued, but what was kindly done. Look around your block, your office, your family — and serve.
Matthew 25 is the Judge in three parables — the Bridegroom of the virgins, the Lord of the talents, the King of the sheep and goats. Each parable describes the same return. The chapter shows how Christ will sort humanity at the end: by readiness, by stewardship, by love for His least brethren — all of which trace back to whether He was actually known and loved.
The lesson of the virgins. Watching is the response to the unknown timing. The lamp burning when the bridegroom returns is the picture of readiness.
The foolish were not refused for malice but for un-readiness. The oil could not be borrowed at the last minute. Preparation is personal and cannot be transferred.