King James Version KJV
Good News Translation GNT
1 And he said also unto his disciples,There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.
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Jesus said to his disciples, "There was once a rich man who had a servant who managed his property. The rich man was told that the manager was wasting his master's money,
2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.
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so he called him in and said, "What is this I hear about you? Turn in a complete account of your handling of my property, because you cannot be my manager any longer.'
3 Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.
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The servant said to himself, "My master is going to dismiss me from my job. What shall I do? I am not strong enough to dig ditches, and I am ashamed to beg.
4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
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Now I know what I will do! Then when my job is gone, I shall have friends who will welcome me in their homes.'
5 So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?
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So he called in all the people who were in debt to his master. He asked the first one, "How much do you owe my master?'
6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.
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"One hundred barrels of olive oil,' he answered. "Here is your account,' the manager told him; "sit down and write fifty.'
7 Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.
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Then he asked another one, "And you - how much do you owe?' "A thousand bushels of wheat,' he answered. "Here is your account,' the manager told him; "write eight hundred.'
8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.
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As a result the master of this dishonest manager praised him for doing such a shrewd thing; because the people of this world are much more shrewd in handling their affairs than the people who belong to the light."
9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.
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And Jesus went on to say, "And so I tell you: make friends for yourselves with worldly wealth, so that when it gives out, you will be welcomed in the eternal home.
10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
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Whoever is faithful in small matters will be faithful in large ones; whoever is dishonest in small matters will be dishonest in large ones.
11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
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If, then, you have not been faithful in handling worldly wealth, how can you be trusted with true wealth?
12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?
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And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to someone else, who will give you what belongs to you?
13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
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"No servant can be the slave of two masters; such a slave will hate one and love the other or will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."
14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
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When the Pharisees heard all this, they made fun of Jesus, because they loved money.
15 And he said unto them,Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
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Jesus said to them, "You are the ones who make yourselves look right in other people's sight, but God knows your hearts. For the things that are considered of great value by people are worth nothing in God's sight.
16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.
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"The Law of Moses and the writings of the prophets were in effect up to the time of John the Baptist; since then the Good News about the Kingdom of God is being told, and everyone forces their way in.
17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.
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But it is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the smallest detail of the Law to be done away with.
18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.
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"Any man who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery; and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
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"There was once a rich man who dressed in the most expensive clothes and lived in great luxury every day.
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
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There was also a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who used to be brought to the rich man's door,
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
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hoping to eat the bits of food that fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs would come and lick his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
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The poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the feast in heaven. The rich man died and was buried,
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
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and in Hades, where he was in great pain, he looked up and saw Abraham, far away, with Lazarus at his side.
24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
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So he called out, "Father Abraham! Take pity on me, and send Lazarus to dip his finger in some water and cool off my tongue, because I am in great pain in this fire!'
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
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But Abraham said, "Remember, my son, that in your lifetime you were given all the good things, while Lazarus got all the bad things. But now he is enjoying himself here, while you are in pain.
26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
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Besides all that, there is a deep pit lying between us, so that those who want to cross over from here to you cannot do so, nor can anyone cross over to us from where you are.'
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
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The rich man said, "Then I beg you, father Abraham, send Lazarus to my father's house,
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
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where I have five brothers. Let him go and warn them so that they, at least, will not come to this place of pain.'
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
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Abraham said, "Your brothers have Moses and the prophets to warn them; your brothers should listen to what they say.'
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
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The rich man answered, "That is not enough, father Abraham! But if someone were to rise from death and go to them, then they would turn from their sins.'
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
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But Abraham said, "If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone were to rise from death.' "
The King James Version is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.