Luke 16

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.

1Jesus told his followers a story. A rich man had a manager who took care of his things. Someone told the rich man that this manager was wasting them.

2And 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.

2So the rich man called him in. He said, "What is this I hear about you? Show me the records of your work. You cannot be my manager any longer."

3Then 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.

3The manager said to himself, "What will I do now? My master is taking my job away. I am not strong enough to dig. I am too ashamed to beg."

4I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.

4"Now I know what I will do. When I lose this job, people will welcome me into their homes."

5So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?

5So he called in every person who owed his master money. He asked the first one, "How much do you owe my master?"

6And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.

6The man said, "A hundred jars of olive oil." The manager said, "Here is your bill. Sit down quickly and write fifty."

7Then 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.

7Then he asked another man, "And how much do you owe?" The man said, "A hundred big sacks of wheat." The manager said, "Take your bill and write eighty."

8And 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.

8The master said that the cheating manager had been clever. People who live for this world are clever with their own kind. They are more clever than the people who belong to the light.

9And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

9Jesus said, "Use the money of this world to make friends. Then when the money is gone, they will welcome you into homes that last forever."

10He 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.

10"A person who can be trusted with a little can be trusted with a lot. A person who cheats with a little will cheat with a lot."

11If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

11"So if you cannot be trusted with the money of this world, who will trust you with true riches?"

12And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?

12"And if you cannot be trusted with someone else's things, who will give you things of your own?"

13No 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.

13"No servant can work for two masters. He will hate one and love the other. Or he will stay with one and look down on the other. You cannot serve God and money at the same time."

14And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.

14The Pharisees, religious leaders who kept strict rules, loved money. They heard all of this and made fun of Jesus.

15And 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.

15Jesus said to them, "You try to look good in front of people. But God knows what is inside your hearts. What people think is great, God hates."

16The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.

16"The law of Moses and the prophets were taught until John came. Prophets were people who told others what God said. Since then, the good news about God's kingdom is being told. Everyone is pushing to get in."

17And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.

17"Heaven and earth will end sooner than one tiny mark of the law will drop out."

NoteA "tittle" in the King James wording means the smallest pen stroke used in writing, like the dot over the letter i.

18Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.

18"A man who divorces his wife and marries another woman breaks his marriage promise. And a man who marries a woman whose husband divorced her breaks that promise too."

19There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:

19There was a rich man. He wore costly purple clothes and soft, fine cloth. Every day he ate the very best food.

20And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,

20A beggar named Lazarus lay at the rich man's gate. His body was covered with sores.

21And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

21He wished he could eat the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

22And 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;

22One day the beggar died. Angels carried him to the place right beside Abraham. The rich man died too, and he was buried.

Note"Abraham's bosom" was a way of saying the place of honor right next to Abraham at a meal, where people leaned close together.

23And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

23The rich man was in the place of the dead, and he was in great pain. He looked up and saw Abraham far away. Lazarus was beside Abraham.

NoteThe King James Version says "hell" here. The Greek word is Hades, which means the place where the dead are.

24And 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.

24He called out, "Father Abraham, please have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water. Let him cool my tongue. I am hurting in this fire."

25But 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.

25But Abraham said, "Child, remember your life on earth. You had good things then. Lazarus had bad things. Now he is comforted here, and you are hurting."

26And 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.

26"Besides that, there is a wide, deep space set between us and you. No one who wants to can cross from here to you. And no one can cross from there to us."

27Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:

27Then the rich man said, "Father, I beg you. Please send Lazarus to my father's house."

28For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

28"I have five brothers. Let him warn them. Then they will not come to this place of pain too."

29Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

29Abraham said, "They have Moses and the prophets. Let your brothers listen to them."

30And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

30The rich man said, "No, Father Abraham. But if someone came to them from the dead, they would turn away from their sins."

31And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

31Abraham said to him, "If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, nothing will change their minds. They will not believe even if someone rises from the dead."