Parable of the Talents: To every person who has something, even more will be given; but the person who has nothing, even that will be taken away

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But I say to you that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken from him. But as for those my enemies, who would not have me reign over them, bring them hither and kill them before me. Gospel of Luke 19:26…

What is the exegesis on Luke 19:26?

The same holds true for Matthew’s Parable of the Talents: Take ye away therefore the talent from him and give it him that hath ten talents. For to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: but from him that hath not, that also which he seemeth to have shall be taken away. And the unprofitable servant, cast ye out into the exterior darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Gospel of Matthew 25:28-30.

Haydock comments on Luke:

"This parable is an exact prophetic history of what happened to Archelaus Antipas, son of Herod the great, about thirty-six years afterwards. Judea being then tributary, he was obliged to go to Rome to receive his kingdom from the hands of the emperor Augustus. The Jews, who hated him for his cruelty, sent an embassy to the emperor, to accuse him of many crimes, and disappoint him in his hopes of gaining his crown. But Augustus confirmed it to him, and sent him back to reign in Judea, where he revenged himself on those who had opposed his pretensions. With regard to the instruction, which is meant to be conveyed by this parable; this nobleman is the Son of God, who came among the Jews to take possession of the kingdom, which was his due. But being rejected and treated unworthily, and even put to a disgraceful death on the cross, he will one day come again, armed with vengeance, and inflict the effects of his anger upon them. This was partly fulfilled at the destruction of Jerusalem, and will be completed at the general judgment. (Calmet) (Bible de Vence)

Ver. 13. Ten pieces of money, each of which was called a mna. To translate pounds, gives the English reader a false notion, the Roman coin called a mna not corresponding to our pound. (Witham) — A mna was 12½ ounces, which, at five shillings per ounce, is £3 2s. 6d.

Ver. 19. All the disciples of Christ have not the same degree of honour in this world, nor in the next; because all do not make an equal use of the graces they receive. Some are in the first rank, as apostles; then those, to whom the gift of prophecy has been committed; then doctors, &c. each exalted according to his merit. For there are many mansions, and many degrees of glory, in the house of the heavenly Father. (Calmet) — For there is one brightness of the sun, another of the moon, and another of the stars; for star differeth from star in brightness. (1 Corinthians xv. 41.)

Haydock in discussing the similar parable in Matthew states:

In the parable of the talents, the master is God, talents, graces, &c. (Witham) — From this, it appears, we can do no good of ourselves, but only by means of God’s grace, though he requires our co-operation; since the servants could only make use of the talents given them to gain others. (A talent is £187 10s.) It is also worthy of remark, that both he who received five and he who received only two talents, received an equal reward of entering into the joy of our Lord; which shews, that only an account will be taken according to what we have received, and that however mean and despicable our abilities may be, we still have an equal facility with the most learned of entering heaven. (Jansenius) — The servant to whom this treasure was delivered, is allegorically explained of the faithful adorers of God, in the Jewish law, who departing from it, became followers of Christ, and therefore deserving of a double recompense. … The servant to whom the two talents were delivered, is understood of the Gentiles, who were justified in the faith and confession of the Father and the Son, and confessed our Lord Jesus Christ, God and man, composed of body and soul; and as the people of the Jews doubled the five talents they received, so the Gentiles, by the duplication of their two talents, merited a double recompense also. … But the servant who received only one talent, and hid it in the ground, represented such of the Jews as persisted in the observation of the old law, and thus kept their talent buried in the ground, for fear the Gentiles should be converted. (St. Hilary)

Ver. 18. He that had received the one. The man who hid this one talent, represents all those who, having received any good quality, whether mental or corporal, employ it only on earthly things. (St. Gregory) — Origen is also of the same sentiment: if you see any one, says he, who has received from God the gift of teaching and instructing others to salvation, yet will not exercise himself in this function, he buries his talent in the ground, like this unworthy servant, and must expect to receive the like reward.

Ver. 19. After a long time. This represents the time that is to intervene between our Saviour’s ascension and his last coming. For, as he is the Master, who went into a far country, i.e. to heaven, after he had inculcated the relative duties of each man in his respective state of life; so shall he come at the last day, and reckon with all men, commending those who have employed their talents well, and punishing such as have made a bad use of them. (St. Jerome)

Ver. 20. I have gained other five. Free-will, aided by the grace of God, doth evidently merit as we see here.

(continued)
 
Ver. 24. I know that thou art a hard man. This is an insignificant part, that is, an ornament of the parable only; as also when it is said: I should have received mine with usury. ver. 27. (Witham) — This seems to have been an adage levelled at avaricious men, who are never pleased but with what increases their hoards. Under this symbol is also depicted the excuse of many, who accuse God of being the cause of their idleness, both here and in the judgment to come; as that God is too severe and unbending, whose service is extremely hard, and who adopts, rejects, and reprobates whom he pleases; who deals out heavier burdens than the weak nature of man is made to support; who denies the grace of obedience, and thus wishes to reap where he has not sown. (Jansenius)

Ver. 26. Thou evil and slothful servant, for thus calumniating thy master; if I wish to reap where I have not sown, how ought you to fear my just indignation, if were I have sown I find nothing by your neglect to reap. Thus our Lord retorts the accusation upon the servant, as in Luke xix. 22. Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant.

Ver. 29. To every one that hath, &c. That is, who hath, so as to have made good use of, or to have improved, what was committed to his trust and management. See the notes Matthew xiii, ver. 12. (Witham) — When those who are gifted with the grace of understanding for the benefit of others, refuse to make a proper use of the gift, that grace is of consequence withdrawn; whereas had they employed it with zeal and diligence, they would have received additional graces. (St. Chrysostom, hom. lxxix.) — This, moreover, shews that God never requires of men more than he has enabled them to perform.

Ver. 30. And the unprofitable servant. Thus not only the rapacious, the unjust, and evil doers, but also all those who neglect to do good, are punished with the greatest severity. Let Christians listen to these words, and while time will permit them, embrace the means of salvation. (St. Chrysostom, hom. lxxix.) — Let no one suffer his talent to lie uncultivated, and, as it were, hidden and buried in this unhappy earth of the world and the flesh, which engages all their thoughts and affections more than the honour and glory of God, or the eternal welfare of their own or their neighbour’s souls. — The foregoing parables manifestly tend to excite in us great watchfulness, under the just apprehension of the strict account which hereafter we must give of our respective talents.

So here Haydock believes the poor servant with one talent to be the Jews of the time I take it.

(continued)
 
Father Raymond Brown writes of Luke: “The thrust of the parable is to challenge the disciples to make profitable use of all that Jesus has revealed to them about the Kingdom.” On Matthew’s parable, Brown writes: “the message is not one of meriting reward but of dedicated and fruitful response by the Christian to God’s gift in and through Jesus”.

St. John Chrysostom writes of this parable:
“Take,” saith He, "the talent from him, and give it to him that hath ten talents? For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath."What then is this? He that hath a gift of word and teaching to profit thereby, and useth it not, will lose the gift also; but he that giveth diligence, will gain to himself the gift in more abundance; even as the other loseth what he had received.

But not to this is the penalty limited for him that is slothful, but even intolerable is the punishment, and with the punishment the sentence, which is full of a heavy accusation. For “cast ye,” saith He, "the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."Seest thou how not only the spoiler, and the covetous, nor only the doer of evil things, but also he that doeth not good things, is punished with extreme punishment.

Let us hearken then to these words. As we have opportunity, let us help on our salvation, let us get oil for our lamps, let us labor to add to our talent. For if we be backward, and spend our time in sloth here, no one will pity us any more hereafter, though we should wail ten thousand times. He also that had on the filthy garments condemned himself, and profited nothing. He also that had the one talent restored that which was committed to his charge, and yet was condemned.

I asked this question because I always wondered why the poor servant would have everything taken away from him. Is the Parable directed to Christians working the harder with the gifts given them, or, as above, is there also another level of interpretation with the poor servant symbolizing Judaism which is the first I’ve heard of this.

Any answers or thoughts?
🙂
 
It means “use it or lose it”

We don’t really have anything at all. Whatever we have is just to use for God’s
kingdom. If we don’t use it for that, it will fade away. If we do use it for that, we
will get more. It’s not just money or talent, but love. If we use what love we have to
love others with, we will get more, because it exercises it and multiplies it. If we
hide it, or bury it, it won’t be able to multiply itself.
 
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