But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My lord delays his coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken,
Parallel Translations
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But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My lord delays his coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken,
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But and yf the evyll servaunt shall saye in his hert: My master wyll differre his cominge and shall beginne to smyte the servauntes and maydens and to eate and drinke and to be dronken:
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But if that seruant say in his heart, My master doeth deferre his comming, and ginne to smite the seruants, and maydens, and to eate, and drinke, and to be drunken,
Cross-references (24)
Passages linked to Luke 12:45 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Matthew 24:48-50 But if that evil servant should say in his heart, ‘My lord is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with the drunkards, the lord of that servant will come in a day when he doesn’t expect it, and in an hour when he doesn’t know it,
- Jeremiah 20:2 Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet and put him in the stocks that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was in Yahweh’s house.
- Ezekiel 34:8 “As I live,” says the Lord Yahweh, “surely because my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became food to all the animals of the field, because there was no shepherd. My shepherds didn’t search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and didn’t feed my sheep.”
- Revelation 18:7-8 However much she glorified herself, and grew wanton, so much give her of torment and mourning. For she says in her heart, ‘I sit a queen, and am no widow, and will in no way see mourning.’ Therefore in one day her plagues will come: death, mourning, and famine; and she will be utterly burned with fire; for the Lord God who has judged her is strong.
- Isaiah 65:6 “Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will repay, yes, I will repay into their bosom,
- Ezekiel 12:22 “Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are prolonged, and every vision fails?’
- Matthew 22:6 and the rest grabbed his servants, and treated them shamefully, and killed them.
- Romans 16:18 For those who are such don’t serve our Lord, Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts of the innocent.
- 2 Corinthians 11:20 For you bear with a man if he brings you into bondage, if he devours you, if he takes you captive, if he exalts himself, or if he strikes you on the face.
- Philippians 3:18-19 For many walk, of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, as the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is the belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who think about earthly things.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:7 For those who sleep, sleep in the night; and those who are drunk are drunk in the night.
- 2 Peter 2:3-4 In covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words: whose sentence now from of old doesn’t linger, and their destruction will not slumber. For if God didn’t spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and committed them to pits of darkness to be reserved for judgment;
- 2 Peter 2:13 receiving the wages of unrighteousness; people who count it pleasure to revel in the daytime, spots and defects, reveling in their deceit while they feast with you;
- 2 Peter 2:19 promising them liberty, while they themselves are bondservants of corruption; for a man is brought into bondage by whoever overcomes him.
- 3 John 1:9-10 I wrote to the assembly, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, doesn’t accept what we say. Therefore if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with wicked words. Not content with this, neither does he himself receive the brothers, and those who would, he forbids and throws out of the assembly.
- Jude 1:12-13 These are hidden rocky reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you, shepherds who without fear feed themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; wild waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the blackness of darkness has been reserved forever.
- Revelation 13:7-10 It was given to him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them. Authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation was given to him. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been killed. If anyone has an ear, let him hear. If anyone is to go into captivity, he will go into captivity. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, he must be killed. Here is the endurance and the faith of the saints.
- Revelation 13:15-17 It was given to him to give breath to it, to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause as many as wouldn’t worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, to be given marks on their right hands, or on their foreheads; and that no one would be able to buy or to sell, unless he has that mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.
- Revelation 16:6 For they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. They deserve this.”
- Revelation 18:24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on the earth.”
- Isaiah 56:10-12 His watchmen are blind. They are all without knowledge. They are all mute dogs. They can’t bark— dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber. Yes, the dogs are greedy. They can never have enough. They are shepherds who can’t understand. They have all turned to their own way, each one to his gain, from every quarter. “Come,” say they, “I will get wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow will be as today, great beyond measure.”
- Ezekiel 12:27-28 “Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel say, ‘The vision that he sees is for many days to come, and he prophesies of times that are far off.’ “Therefore tell them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “None of my words will be deferred any more, but the word which I speak will be performed,” says the Lord Yahweh.’ ”
- Ezekiel 34:3-4 You eat the fat. You clothe yourself with the wool. You kill the fatlings, but you don’t feed the sheep. You haven’t strengthened the diseased. You haven’t healed that which was sick. You haven’t bound up that which was broken. You haven’t brought back that which was driven away. You haven’t sought that which was lost, but you have ruled over them with force and with rigor.
- Revelation 17:5-6 And on her forehead a name was written, “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered with great amazement.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 45 But and if that servant say in his…
45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;
Ver. 45. See Mat 24:46-51.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain Our Lord in these verses describes a negligent and…
Our Lord in these verses describes a negligent and unfaithful steward of his household, and then declares that dreadful sentence of wrath which hangs over him. The unfaithful steward, or negligent minister of the gospel, is decribed:
1. By his infidelity: he believed not Christ’s coming to judgment, though he preaches it to others; He saith in his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming.
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2. He is described by his hatred, envy, and malignity, against his fellow servants, that were more faithful than himself: He begins to smite them, at least with the virulence of his tongue, if not with the violence of his hand.
3. He is farther described by his associating with the wicked, and strengthening their hands by his ill example: He eateth and drinketh with the drunken; that is, as their associate and fellow companion. Thus the negligent steward and unfaithful minister is described.
Next his sentence is declared.
1. Christ will surprise him in his sin and security, by coming at an hour when he looketh not for him.
2. He will execute temporal vengeance upon him; he will cut him in pieces, as the Jews did their sacrifices, dividing them into two parts.
Hence some observe, that God seldom suffers slothful, sensual ministers to live out half their days.
3. Christ will punish them with eternal destruction also: Appoint them their portion with unbelievers.
Teaching us, that such ministers as neglect the service of God, and the souls of their people, as they are ranked amongst the worst sinners in this life, so shall they be punished with them in the severest manner in the next. When Satan destroys the souls of men, he shall answer for it as a murderer only, not as an officer that was intrusted with the care of souls. But if the steward does not provide, if the shepherd does not feed, if the watchman does not warn, they shall answer, not only for the souls that have miscarried, but for an office neglected, for a talent hidden, and for a stewardship unfaithfully managed. Woe unto us, if at the great day we hear distressed souls roaring out their complaints, and howling out their doleful accusations against us, say, "Lord, our stewards have defrauded us, our watchmen have betrayed us, our guides have misled us," verse 48. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
Hence we learn,
1. That whatever we receive from God, is both a gift and a talent.
2. That every one has some gift or talent from God to be improved for God.
3. That God’s gifts or talents are not given to all in the same measure.
4. That whether we receive little or much, all is in order to an account.
5. That answerable to our present talents will be our future accounts. The greater opportunities a man has of knowing his duty, and the greater abilities he has for doing good, if he does it not, the greater will be his condemnation, because the neglect of his duty in this case cannot be without a great deal of willfulness and contempt, which is an heinous aggravation. If thy gifts be mean, the less thou hast to account for; if greater than others, God expects thou should do more good than others, for where much is given, much will be required.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain The Lord of that servant will come in a…
The Lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him,.... For, not coming as was expected, he gives over looking, and concludes he will not come at all; in which he will find himself mistaken, for he will come in the very day which is appointed, though men know not of it, and do not look for it:
and at an hour when he is not aware; for as neither the day, nor hour of Christ's coming are known to any man, it becomes men to look for it every day and hour, lest it come upon them unawares; as it will, on such evil servants before described, with whom it will go ill, as follows:
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and will cut him in sunder, and appoint him his portion with unbelievers; whose portion is the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death, Rev 21:8 and by these are meant, not only the Heathens, who never heard of Christ; nor the Jews only, who disbelieved the Messiah, and rejected him when he came; but all deists and atheists, who deny revelation; even all unbelievers of, and scoffers at the coming of Christ, and who put away the evil day far from them; compare with this Job 20:29, See Gill on Mat 24:51.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 45. Begin to beat, c.] See the different…
Verse 45. Begin to beat, c.] See the different parts of this bad minister's conduct pointed out on Mt 24:48-49.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Luk 12:45-46. But and if that servant, &c. —…
Luk 12:45-46. But and if that servant, &c. — On the other hand, consider attentively the character and punishment of a bad servant, that you may avoid both. If any steward, who has the care of his lord’s family committed to him, yielding to the evil of his own disposition, shall take occasion from his lord’s long absence to behave unfaithfully in his duty; and shall begin to beat the men-servants, &c. — Shall behave tyrannically toward his fellow-servants, and give himself up to gluttony and drunkenness, wasting their provisions in living riotously with his companions. The lord of that servant will come when he looketh not for him — Such a course of rioting will stupify that servant, so that he will not foresee his lord’s coming, nor know of it till he is in the house, and shall have exemplary punishment inflicted upon him, proportionable to the greatness of his offences: and will cut him in sunder, &c. — See on Mat 24:51; and appoint him his portion — His everlasting portion; with the unbelievers — His wickedness having proceeded from his not believing the rewards and punishments of a future state, he shall have his portion in that state with such as were of those Sadducean principles. The Greek, μετα των απιστων, may be properly rendered, with the unfaithful: as faithful as he once was, Christ himself being judge, he becomes unfaithful, and has his eternal portion with the unfaithful. This circumstance, it must be observed, is added according to the meaning, rather than the form of the parable, and is explanatory of that meaning.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain begin to beat, &c.--In the confidence that his Lord's…
begin to beat, &c.--In the confidence that his Lord's return will not be speedy, he throws off the role of servant and plays the master, maltreating those faithful servants who refuse to join him, seizing on and revelling in the fulness of his master's board; intending, when he has got his fill, to resume the mask of fidelity ere his master appear.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 45. Say… delayeth—Supposing that he ought to come sooner.…
45. Say… delayeth—Supposing that he ought to come sooner. It is remarkable that every mistake on the subject of time hitherto made arises from requiring it to be
too soon. Beat… eat… drink… drunken—Our Lord here gives a graphic description of the disorder and revel of the slaves of a householder, set loose from all fear or sense of responsibility.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 45. say in his heart, My lord delayeth his…
45. say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming] Ecc_8:11. It was not long before the temptation to use this language arose with fatal results, 2Pe_3:8-9.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (45) To beat the menservants.—Literally, the boys, but in…
(45) To beat the menservants.—Literally, the boys, but in the sense which the word had acquired, like the French garçon, as used generally for servants of any age. Note the more specific terms as compared with the “fellow-servants” of St. Matthew.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 45, 46. But and if that servant say…
Vers. 45, 46. But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; the lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware. "But," continued the Master, "although certain of my servants have onlooks to higher degrees of glory than the great mass of their fellows, these seemingly favored ones have at the same time more perilous responsibilities; and only if in these graver responsibilities they are faithful to the end, will they receive their high and peculiar reward." If, on the other hand, they fail in their perpetual watch for the coming of their Lord, and instead of the restless toil which the Master has assigned to these stewards, these servants, weighted with higher responsibilities, give themselves up to worldly pleasures and passions, terrible will be their doom. Again the excesses of the table are specially mentioned. If, instead of spending themselves in the cares of their high office, they make a profit out of that office, if they live as oppressors of the flock rather than as shepherds, then to these unfaithful stewards will the Lord suddenly come, as pictured in the parable imagery, a thief in the night. And will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. The terrible punishment here specified was not unknown among the ancients. (see Herodotus, 7:39; and Heb_11:37) Isaiah was said to have been sawn asunder. Bengels comment is curious: Qui cor divisum habet, dividetur." It has been suggested, to bring the punishment into harmony with the statement immediately following, which speaks of a definite and, perhaps, of an enduring position for the guilty one, a "portion with the unbelievers," to understand the word as an equivalent for scourging; so in the Latin we find flagellis discindere, to scourge the back with the rod. There is, however, no known instance of the Greek word dicotomein being used in this sense. The expression is, however, used as simply implying that a terrible doom is surely reserved in the life to come for those who have so sadly misused their high opportunities and neglected their great responsibilities. "The image of the parable itself is blended with the reality which the parable signifies; this thought of the human master who can punish his slaves with temporal death passes into that of the Divine Judge who can punish with spiritual death" (Dean Mansel).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain My lord delayeth his coming
Luk_12:45-46
My lord delayeth his coming
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Emboldened by delay
History says that long ago it had been announced that the world was coming to an end, and there was great excitement in London.
It was said that the world would perish on a certain Friday. On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday the people were in the cathedral, praying and weeping. It seemed as if the whole English nation was being converted to God, for it was announced as certain by philosophers that on the coming Friday the world would perish. Friday came, and there were no portents, no fires in the air, no earthquakes. The day passed along just like every other day, and when it was past and the night came, it is said that in London there was a scene of riot, and wassail, and drunkenness, and debauchery such as had never been witnessed. They forgot their vow, they forgot their repentance, they forgot their good resolutions. Oh, how much human nature in that! While trials and misfortunes come to us, and we are down deep in darkness and trouble, we make vows. We say: Oh Lord, do so, and I will do so. The darkness passes, the peril goes away. We are as we were before, or worse; for oh, how often I have Been men start for the kingdom of God, come up to within arms reach of it, and then go back farther from God than they ever were before, dropping from the very moment of their privilege into darkness for ever. (Dr. Tulmage.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 that servant
that servant
This refers to the servant whose lord has put him in charge of the other servants.
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says in his heart
Here "heart" is a metonym for a person's mind or inner being. AT: "thinks to himself" (See: Metonymy)
My lord delays his return
"My master will not return soon"
male and female servants
The words that are translated here as "male and female servants" are normally translated as "boys" and "girls." They may indicate that the servants were young or that they were dear to their master.
in a day when he does not expect, and in an hour that he does not know
The words "day" and "hour" form a merism of time that refers to any time, and the words "expect" and "know" have similar meanings, so the two phrases here are parallel to emphasize that the coming of the lord will be a total surprise to the servant. However, the phrases should not be combined unless your language has no different words for "know" and "expect" or "day" and "hour." AT: "at a time when the servant is not expecting him" (See: Merism and Parallelism)
cut him in pieces and appoint a place for him with the unfaithful
Possible meanings are 1) this is an exaggeration for the master dealing out harsh punishment toward the slave, or 2) this describes the manner in which the servant will be executed and buried as punishment. (See: Hyperbole and Generalization)
translationWords
servant
lord
drunk
hour
appoint
faithful
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.