Word Pictures in the New Testament - David Cox

Word Pictures in the NT [Luke: Chapter 16]
unrighteousness. The genitive is the case of genus, species, the
steward distinguished by unrighteousness as his characteristic.
See "the mammon of unrighteousness" in verse 9. See "the
forgetful hearer" in Jas 1:25. It is a vernacular idiom common
to Hebrew, Aramaic, and the _Koin•_. {Wisely} (\phronim•s\). An
old adverb, though here alone in the N.T. But the adjective
\phronimos\ from which it comes occurs a dozen times as in Mt
10:16. It is from \phrone•\ and that from \phr•n\, the mind
(1Co 14:20), the discerning intellect. Perhaps "shrewdly" or
"discreetly" is better here than "wisely." The lord does not
absolve the steward from guilt and he was apparently dismissed
from his service. His shrewdness consisted in finding a place to
go by his shrewdness. He remained the steward of unrighteousness
even though his shrewdness was commended. {For} (\hoti\).
Probably by this second \hoti\ Jesus means to say that he cites
this example of shrewdness because it illustrates the point.
"This is the moral of the whole parable. Men of the world in
their dealings with men like themselves are more prudent than the
children of light in their intercourse with one another"
(Plummer). We all know how stupid Christians can be in their
co-operative work in the kingdom of God, to go no further. {Wiser
than} (\phronim•teroi huper\). Shrewder beyond, a common Greek
idiom.
16:9 {By the mammon of unrighteousness} (\ek tou mam•n• t•s
adikias\). By the use of what is so often evil (money). In Mt
6:24 mammon is set over against God as in Lu 16:13 below.
Jesus knows the evil power in money, but servants of God have to
use it for the kingdom of God. They should use it discreetly and
it is proper to make friends by the use of it. {When it shall
fail} (\hotan eklip•i\). Second aorist active subjunctive with
\hotan\, future time. The mammon is sure to fail. {That they may
receive you into the eternal tabernacles} (\hina dex•ntai humas
eis tas ai•nious sk•nas\). This is the purpose of Christ in
giving the advice about their making friends by the use of money.
The purpose is that those who have been blessed and helped by the
money may give a welcome to their benefactors when they reach
heaven. There is no thought here of purchasing an entrance into
heaven by the use of money. That idea is wholly foreign to the
context. These friends will give a hearty welcome when one gives
him mammon here. The wise way to lay up treasure in heaven is to
use one's money for God here on earth. That will give a cash
account there of joyful welcome, not of purchased entrance.
http://www.ccel.org/r/robertson_at/wordpictures/htm/LU16.RWP.html (3 of 9) [28/08/2004 09:05:46 a.m.]