But if that evil servant should say in his heart, ‘My lord is delaying his coming,’
Parallel Translations
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But if that evil servant should say in his heart, ‘My lord is delaying his coming,’
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But and yf that evill servaut shall saye in his herte my master wyll defer his comynge
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But if that euil seruant shall say in his heart, My master doth deferre his comming,
Cross-references (16)
Passages linked to Matthew 24:48 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Matthew 18:32 Then his lord called him in, and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt, because you begged me.
- Isaiah 32:6 For the fool will speak folly, and his heart will work iniquity, to practice profanity, and to utter error against Yahweh, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
- Luke 12:45 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,
- 2 Peter 3:3-5 knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” For this they willfully forget that there were heavens from of old, and an earth formed out of water and amid water by the word of God,
- Deuteronomy 9:4 Don’t say in your heart, after Yahweh your God has thrust them out from before you, “For my righteousness Yahweh has brought me in to possess this land;” because Yahweh drives them out before you because of the wickedness of these nations.
- Mark 7:21 For from within, out of the hearts of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, sexual sins, murders, thefts,
- John 13:2 During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him,
- Acts 5:3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the price of the land?
- Deuteronomy 15:9 Beware that there not be a wicked thought in your heart, saying, “The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,” and your eye be evil against your poor brother and you give him nothing; and he cry to Yahweh against you, and it be sin to you.
- 2 Kings 5:26 He said to him, “Didn’t my heart go with you, when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and olive groves and vineyards, and sheep and cattle, and male servants and female servants?
- Ecclesiastes 8:11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
- 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?’
- Ezekiel 12:27 “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.’
- Matthew 25:26 “But his lord answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I didn’t sow, and gather where I didn’t scatter.
- Luke 19:22 “He said to him, ‘Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant! You knew that I am an exacting man, taking up that which I didn’t lay down, and reaping that which I didn’t sow.
- Acts 8:22 Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 48 But and if that evil servant shall say…
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
Ver. 48. But and if that evil servant] All places are full of such evil servants (and so is hell too), as future their repentance, and so fool away their salvation. Of such dust heaps we may find in every corner: this is a depth of the devil, brimfull with the blood of many souls, to persuade them that they have yet long to live, and many fair summers to see; that there is no such haste, but that hereafter may be time enough. In space comes grace, and a few good words at last will waft them to heaven.
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 an unfaithful and…
Our Lord in these verses describes an unfaithful and negligent steward, and denounces the dreadful sentence of wrath hanging over him.
He is described, 1. By the character of infidelity; he believeth 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 painful and faithful than himself. He begins to smite, at least with the virulence of his tongue, if not the violence of his hand.
3. 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 unfaithful servant is described; next his judgment and sentence are declared.
Observe, 2. The tremendous judgment that shall come upon unfaithful stewards.
1. Christ will surprise them in their sin and security, by coming in an hour when they look not for him.
2. He will execute temporal vengeance upon them: He will cut them asunder, or hew them in pieces, as the Jews did their sacrifices; that is, separate their souls from their bodies by untimely death.
Hence some observe, That God seldom suffers slothful, sensual, wicked, and debauched ministers to live out half their days.
3. Christ will punish them with eternal destruction also: appointing them their portion with hypocrites; that is, with the worst of sinners, they shall have a double damnation. As the hypocrite has a double tongue, a double heart, and is a double sinner, so shall he undergo a double damnation.
Learn hence, That such ministers as neglect the service of God, and the souls of their people; as they are ranked amongst the worst of 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 entrusted with the care of the soul. But is the steward doth not provide, if the shepherd doth not feed, if the watchman doth 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 administered.
Woe unto us, if at the great day we have distressed souls roaring out their complaints, and howling forth that doleful accusation against us; "Lord! our stewards have defrauded us, our watchmen have betrayed us, our guides have misled us."
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 And shall begin to smite his fellow servants,.... By…
And shall begin to smite his fellow servants,.... By abusing the power lodged in him, usurping a dominion over their faith, and imposing on their consciences things which Christ has never commanded; vexing and burdening them with trifling rites and ceremonies, and other unnecessary things; wounding, grieving, offending weak minds by his conduct and example; or persecuting the saints, such of them as cannot come into everything in his way of believing and practising:
and to eat and drink with the drunken; giving himself up to luxury and intemperance; feeding himself instead of the family; serving his own belly, and not his Lord and Master Christ; living an ungodly and licentious life, altogether unbecoming the Gospel of Christ: such servants and stewards have been, and are in the church of God; but sad will be their case, when their Lord comes, as follows. Respect seems to be had either to the ecclesiastical rulers among the Jews, who went under the name of the servants of the Lord, but persecuted the apostles, and those that believed in Christ; or the "Judaizing" Christians, and false teachers, that were for imposing the ceremonies of the law upon believers; or Simon Magus, and his followers, a set of licentious, men; or all of them; who lived in this period of time, between the death of Christ, and the destruction of the temple.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain But if that evil servant - Now evil, having…
But if that evil servant - Now evil, having put away faith and a good conscience.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 48. But, and if that evil servant] Here…
Verse 48. But, and if that evil servant] Here are three characters of a bad minister.
1. He has little or no faith in the speedy coming of Christ, either to punish for wickedness, or to pardon and sanctify those who believe. It may be, he does not outwardly profess this, but he says it in his heart, and God searches his heart, and knows that he professes to teach what he does not believe.
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2. He governs with an absolute dominion, oppressing his colleagues and doing violence to the followers of Christ. And shall begin to smite, &c.
3. He leads an irregular life does not love the company of the children of God, but eats and drinks with the drunkards, preferring the tables of the great and the rich, whose god is their belly, and thus feeds himself without fear. Great God! save thine inheritance from being ravaged by such wolves!
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 48. My lord delayeth his coming — There is…
48. My lord delayeth his coming — There is a clear allusion to the coming of Christ to judgment implied under all these symbolical expressions of its conceptual nearness, yet real distance.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (48) But and if that evil servant.—Better, but if…
(48) But and if that evil servant.—Better, but if that evil servant, the “and” being in modern English usage superfluous, and representing originally a different conjunction.
My lord delayeth his coming.—The temper described is identical with that portrayed in 2Pe_3:3-4. The words are memorable as implying the prescience, even in the immediate context of words that indicate nearness, that there would be what to men would seem delay. Those who looked on that delay as St. Peter looked on it would continue watchful, but the selfish and ungodly would be tempted by it to forget that Christ comes to men in more senses and more ways than one. The tyranny and sensuality which have at times stained the annals of the Church of Christ have had their origin in this forgetfulness, that though the final coming may be delayed, the Judge is ever near, even at the doors (Jas_5:9).
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 But and if (ea). is a remnant of an…
But and if (ea). is a remnant of an old use of the word, meaning "it"," so that it is here redundant, and the translation should he simply, but if; si autem. That evil servant (oo kako ) is in a sense the same as he who, in ver. 45, was regarded as faithful and prudent. The opposite case is here put; he is supposed to be wicked and untrustworthy; he no longer is always watching for his lord"s coming and endeavouring to be always ready, because he knows that he may at any moment be called to account. My lord delayeth his coming. B, a, and other good manuscripts omit elyein as unnecessary. Revised Version, my lord tarrieth, he brings himself to believe that the day of reckoning is still distant, and that he will have plenty of time to prepare his accounts before the settlement is called for. So men put off the day of repentance, saying, "Tomorrow, tomorrow," when they ought to feel that the present alone is theirs in which to prepare for judgment.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 48. My lord delayeth his coming. The worst enemy…
48. My lord delayeth his coming. The worst enemy of Christ is the professed servant of the Lord who practices are evil, and who supposes he can evade punishment for his crimes.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain The unfaithful servant:
The unfaithful servant:
v. 48. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming,
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v. 49. and shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken,
v. 50. the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
v. 51. and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The opposite side of the picture: the servant that takes advantage of the supposed delay of his master. Frivolously, exultingly, he says in his heart: There is no danger, the master is tardy about coming. The very remark proves that his work is mere eye-service. And this is borne out by his behavior: playing the tyrant in beating his fellow-slaves, especially such as are anxious to do their duty, indulging to excess in eating and drinking with such as are willing to join him in his debauch. Here the unexpected arrival of the master brings the curse and punishment, an unmerciful thrashing and a condemnation to the lot of the hypocrites, the dungeon with a remorse of weeping and gnashing of teeth. The same doom awaits the false Christians that abuse the trust of their Lord Jesus Christ, delay true repentance, are unmerciful in their dealings with others, join with the children of the world in all the lusts and vices of the flesh, and try to console themselves with the thought: The Day of Judgment is not yet coming. While the Lord rewards the true believers with the fullness of His heavenly blessings and all the riches of the mansions above, the false servants will be doomed to everlasting torment in hell. And not without reason have commentators of all times made special application of this parable to the ministers of the Word, upon whom special responsibilities devolve. The greater the trust placed by God in any man, the more exact will be the reckoning.
Summary.Jesus foretells the destruction of the Temple and of the city of Jerusalem, with all the signs that are intended as a warning to believers; He makes this a, type of the coming to Judgment, which He briefly describes, adding an earnest admonition to be watchful and faithful.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Connecting Statement:
Connecting Statement:
Jesus concludes his proverb of a master and servants to illustrate that his disciples should be prepared for his return. (See: Proverbs)
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says in his heart
Here "heart" refers to the mind. AT: "thinks in his mind" (See: Metonymy)
My master has been delayed
This can be stated in active form. AT: "My master is slow to return" or "My master will not return for a long time" (See: Active or Passive)
on a day that the servant does not expect and at an hour that he does not know
Both of these statements mean the same thing. They emphasize that the master will come when the servant is not expecting him. (See: Parallelism)
cut him in pieces
This is an idiom that means to make the person suffer terribly. (See: Idiom)
assign him a place with the hypocrites
"put him with the hypocrites" or "send him to the place where hypocrites are sent"
there will be weeping and grinding of teeth
"Grinding of teeth" here is a symbolic act, representing extreme suffering. See how you translated this in Matthew 8:12. AT: "people will weep and grind their teeth because of their suffering" (See: Symbolic Action)
translationWords
evil
servant
heart
lord
drunk
hour, hours
hypocrite
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.