Matthew 25: 1 - 13
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
7 “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
9 “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. The virgins went out to meet the bridegroom. Wasn't that enough? Why did their mistake have to doom them?
2. Why wouldn't the 5 wise virgins help the foolish virgins? Isn't that what God would call us to do?
3. Why didn't the bridegroom not know the virgins? Why wouldn't he let them in?
https://bible.org/seriespage/26-ten-virgins-what-it-means-be-ready-matthew-251-13 says:
ReplyDelete(My 2 cents: This is an author who has a viewpoint on what Matthew 24 means and is very confident about it - and almost certainly wrong - but so is everybody who has a strong opinion about it).
First, we need to recognize that this is a selective account. There are many details omitted. It is obviously the groom who is central to this story (after all, it is about the coming of the Messiah at the end of the age).
Second, we may not be looking at a typical wedding. I doubt that in most wedding celebrations the groom would exclude bridesmaids for forgetting to bring oil for their lamps. I doubt that arriving late, as five of the virgins did, would keep them from gaining entrance to the celebration. This seems to be a rather exceptional situation, and not a typical event. Thus, knowledge of how wedding ceremonies were conducted in those days (largely gained from sources outside the Bible) will not prove that helpful. This extra-biblical information is not the key to understanding our text.
Third, we need to set aside our 20th century assumptions about weddings, bridesmaids and lamps. The lampas is more of a torch, a larger, brighter “lamp” than that which is normally used inside a house.
It was more like a large, flat, bowl, with a rag or rope-like “wick.” I think she was preparing the lamp by fixing it to a pole and then lighting the rag or primitive wick.
Fourth, we need to rid ourselves of the false conception that the five foolish virgins ran out of oil. The text is clear on this point; the five foolish virgins never brought any oil with them. A footnote in the NET Bible indicates that the word “extra” is not found in the Greek text, but has been supplied because the context implies it. I don’t think so at all.
I would understand that the lamps were transported without oil in them.
Not only is the text clear about the foolish virgins bringing no oil with them, it is difficult to interpret the parable if, indeed, they did run out of oil. The difference between the five wise virgins and the five foolish virgins is salvation. These five foolish virgins were not once saved, but then “ran out” of salvation. They were lost, and never had it. They never had oil. They were just empty lamps. They looked useful, they seemed to give promise of light, but they never produced it. Let us not seek to supply what the author has purposefully omitted (any oil) in a way that makes us feel better about the story. We are not supposed to feel good about these five foolish, oil-less virgins.
The groom tarried longer than expected and so all ten bridesmaids (virgins) slept until he arrived.
The need for these lamps is now particularly obvious (it is midnight, pitch dark). The five foolish virgins ask the five wise virgins to share their oil, but their request is denied. It wasn’t that the five wise virgins didn’t care; it was because there would not be enough oil for all ten lamps. Better to have a torchlight parade with five working lamps than with ten non-functioning, lightless, lamps. The foolish virgins were told to go purchase their own oil, which they did. But during their absence the torchlight parade took place, and the groom, accompanied by the five wise virgins entered the celebration hall. The doors were then closed. Later, the five foolish virgins arrived, with oil, but it was too late. That part of the festivities had already been completed. There was no need for the services of these five virgins, and they were not allowed to enter and join in the wedding celebration.
https://bible.org/seriespage/26-ten-virgins-what-it-means-be-ready-matthew-251-13 (continued):
ReplyDeleteOur Lord then concludes this parable by applying it to His disciples (and thus the church). He urges His disciples to stay alert, because they, too, do not know the day or the hour of His return.
In a moment I will make some observations which should help us identify the unique message of this parable. But first, let’s consider what this parable shares in common with the other parables in this section.
This parable, like all the others in this section, Jesus tells to His disciples privately
This parable, like the others in this section, instructs us to be ready, when Jesus returns to this earth
This parable is consistent with the rest of this discourse in that it indicates that the Lord’s return will not be nearly as soon as the disciples suppose.
This parable, like the others, portrays the return of Christ as sudden and unexpected
This parable, like the others, indicates that the Lord’s coming will distinguish one group of people from another
This parable, like others in this section, indicates that this distinction between believers and unbelievers, between those who will enter the kingdom of heaven and those who will be confined in hell, may not be apparent until the coming of Christ. It is at the second coming, when men stand before our Lord, that their true spiritual status (and thus their destiny) is known. Several times in the Gospels, Jesus makes it clear that there will be some surprises (regarding who is in the kingdom and who is not) when He returns.
What, then, is the unique contribution of the parable of the ten virgins?
Some would say (and I would agree) that this parable describes the condition of the church at the second coming.
Second, we should observe that for some period of time the five foolish virgins were almost indistinguishable from the five wise virgins. The five virgins were not different from the five wise virgins, except for one thing “ the foolish virgins brought their lamps but no oil.
Third, none of the ten virgins knew when the groom would arrive, and all ten slept when he took longer than expected to arrive. The emphasis here is not really on working, as it is in the earlier and later parables. This is because our salvation is not the result of our works, but of His work on Calvary
Fourth, we are initially surprised (and even disappointed) that the five wise virgins will not share their oil with the foolish virgins. This is not because the five wise virgins were selfish. In the context of the story, sharing their oil may have meant that all ten would run short of oil. But when we come to the interpretation of this parable, we can see that the saved cannot share what they have in Christ with the lost. The lost will not enter heaven based on the salvation others have received. Each person is accountable for his own choices
Fifth, we find it emphasized here that once our Lord returns, there is neither the time nor the opportunity for the five foolish virgins to change their course of unbelief. There is a “point of no return,” after which one’s rejection of Christ cannot be reversed.
Sixth, the outcome is either heaven or hell, and thus the key element is salvation. The wise virgins had the opportunity to obtain oil, and did so. The foolish virgins had plenty of opportunity to procure oil, but did not.
It is possible to be in close contact with Christ, and with Christians, and yet not be saved.
Jesus wants us to be careful about assuming we are saved, if indeed we are not. It is for this reason that the apostles challenge us to examine ourselves, to be sure we are in the faith
My 2 cents:
ReplyDelete1. The virgins went out to meet the bridegroom. Wasn't that enough? Why did their mistake have to doom them?
The foolish virgins wanted to be in the party, but they were not sanctified by Jesus. They did not bear the fruit of salvation. We can't just say that we are saved, we need to bear fruit which comes from the Holy Spirit living in us and being active in our lives.
2. Why wouldn't the 5 wise virgins help the foolish virgins? Isn't that what God would call us to do?
We can't "save" other people. Ultimately, we are on our own when it comes to accepting or rejecting God's gift to us. It's that separation of the sheep and the goats.
3. Why didn't the bridegroom not know the virgins? Why wouldn't he let them in?
Because He never lived in them. God/Jesus cannot bear any unsanctified person in His presence. That's why He gave us His gift, so that we could enter His presence.