Luke 16:12

And who will give us "our own," when we deal unfaithfully with what is "another's," that is, with possessions? And they are "another's," since they are designated for the poor, and on the other hand, since we brought nothing into the world, but were born …

And if you have not been faithful in what is another's, who will give you what is your own? The resources of this world are alien to us, meaning, situated outside of our nature. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain …

Nevertheless, because what is one's own is lost on account of what is another's, he therefore adds: And if you have not been faithful in what belongs to another, through the due dispensation of earthly goods; whence the Gloss: "Whatever belongs to the world is …

); and the contempt which the Pharisees put upon the doctrine Christ preached to them, for which he sharply reproved them, adding some other weighty sayings,

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

If ye have not been faithful in that which was another's - None of these temporal things are yours: you are only stewards of them, not proprietors: God is the proprietor of all; he lodges them in your hands for a season: but still they are his property.

And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's,....

Now if we be unfaithful in the less, if we use the things of this world to other purposes than those for which they were given us, it may justly be feared that we should be so in the gifts of God's grace, that we should receive them also in vain, and therefore they will be denied us: He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.

That which is another man’s - Or rather another’s, τῳ αλλοτριω. That is, worldly riches, called another’s: 1. Because they belong to God, and he has not designed that they should be any man’s portion. 2. Because they are continually changing their possessors, being in the way of commerce, and in providence going from one to another. This property of worldly goods is often referred to by both sacred and profane writers. See a fine passage in Horace, Sat. l. ii. s. 2. v. 1

Hereafter, what the faithful have will be their own property, being no longer on probation, but in secure, undisturbed, rightful, everlasting possession and enjoyment of all that is graciously bestowed on us. Thus money is neither to be idolized nor despised: we must sit loose to it and use it for God's glory.

The passage we have now read is a difficult one. There are knots in it which perhaps will never be untied, until the Lord comes again. We might reasonably expect that a book written by inspiration, as the Bible is, would contain things hard to be understood. The fault lies not in the book, but in our own feeble understandings. If we learn nothing else from the passage before us, let us learn humility. Let us beware, in the first place — that we do not draw lessons from these verses which they were never meant to teach.

The passage we have now read is a difficult one. There are knots in it which perhaps will never be untied, until the Lord comes again. We might reasonably expect that a book written by inspiration, as the Bible is, would contain things hard to be understood. The fault lies not in the book, but in our own feeble understandings. If we learn nothing else from the passage before us, let us learn humility. Let us beware, in the first place — that we do not draw lessons from these verses which they were never meant to teach. The steward whom our Lord describes, is not set before us as a pattern of morality. He is distinctly called the "unjust steward." The Lord Jesus never meant to sanction dishonesty, and unfair dealing between man and man. This steward cheated his master, and broke the eighth commandment. His master was struck with his ingenuity and forethought, when he heard of it — and commended him as a shrewd and far-seeing man. But there is no proof that his master was pleased with his conduct. Above all, there is not a word to show that the man was praised by Christ. In short, in his treatment of his master, the steward is a beacon to be avoided — and not a pattern to be followed. The caution, now laid down, is very necessary. Commercial dishonesty is unhappily very common in these latter days. Honest dealing between man and man is increasingly rare. Men do things in the way of business — which will not stand the test of the Bible . In "making haste to be rich," thousands are continually committing actions which are dishonest. (Proverbs 28:20.) Sharpness and smartness, in bargaining, and buying, and selling, and pushing trade — are often covering over dishonest hearts. The generation of "the unjust steward" is still a very large one. Let us not forget this.

Another man’s - The word “man’s” is not in the original. It is, “If ye have been unfaithful managers for another.” It refers, doubtless, to “God.” The wealth of the world is “his.” It is committed to us as his stewards. It is uncertain and deceitful, and at any moment he can take it away from us. It is still “his;” and if, while intrusted with “this,” we are unfaithful, we cannot expect that he will confer on us the rewards of heaven. That which is your own - The riches of heaven, which, if once given to us, may be considered as “ours” - that is, it will be permanent and fixed, and will not be taken away “as if” at the pleasure of another. We may “calculate” on it, and look forward with the assurance that it will “continue” to be “ours” forever, and will not be taken away like the riches of this world, “as if” they were not ours. The meaning of the whole parable is, therefore, thus expressed: If we do not use the things of this world as we ought - with honesty, truth, wisdom, and integrity, we cannot have evidence of piety, and shall not be received into heaven. If we are true to that which is least, it is an evidence that we are the children of God, and he will commit to our trust that which is of infinite importance, even the eternal riches and glory of heaven.