Matthew 25:18

18 But the one who had received the one went away [and] dug up the ground and hid his master's money.

Matthew 25:18 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 25:18

But he that received one
Talent, or the least degree of gifts, for the ministry of the word:

went and digged in the earth, and hid his Lord's money.
The Syriac and Arabic versions read, "silver", and the Ethiopic, "gold"; but whether these talents were silver or gold, is not certain. Where he buried it; that is, he neglected the gift that was in him, he made no use of it, either to his own advantage, or to the good of others, and the interest of his Lord; he either never went into the ministry, or if he did, he left it as Demas did, having too great affection for the world, and the things of it: he minded earth and earthly things, and employed himself in them, and not in his master's work and service. The phrase seems to point out the earthly mindedness of the man, his worldly disposition, and his eager pursuit after the things of life; which were the reason why he disregarded his talent, and made no use of his ministerial gifts: he could not deny worldly self, nor leave all to follow Christ; but rather than drop the world, he chose to bury his talent in it: it was his Lord's money and not his own, and he was accountable to him for it, and should have used it in another manner.

Matthew 25:18 In-Context

16 The one who had received the five talents went out [and] traded with them and gained five more.

17 In the same way the one [who had] the two gained two more.

18 But the one who had received the one went away [and] dug up the ground and hid his master's money.

19 Now after a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.

20 And the one who had received the five talents came up [and] brought five more talents, saying, 'Master, you handed over to me five talents. See, I have gained five more talents!'

Footnotes

• [a] *Here "[and]" is supplied because the previous participle ("went away") has been translated as a finite verb