“At that time, the Heavenly Kingdom will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the groom. Five of them were stupid and five were wise, and the stupid ones forgot to bring extra olive oil for their lamps. The wise ones brought olive oil for their lamps.

The groom was late, and the ten became tired and fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, someone shouted, “Look, it’s the groom! Come and meet him!”

The virgins got up and prepared their lamps. The stupid ones said to the wise ones, “Give us your olive oil because we are running out.”

The wise ones answered, “There isn’t enough oil to share. Go buy some.”

While the stupid ones were away buying olive oil, the groom arrived. The wise ones who were ready to go went with him to the wedding celebration, and the door was shut behind them.

The other virgins eventually arrived and said, “Sir, sir! Open up!”.

The groom answered, “I’m telling you, I don’t know you!”

So be ready, because you don’t know when it will happen.

“It is like a man going away. He called his servants and asked them to look after his things.

He gave one servant five coins. He gave another two coins. He gave another one coin. This was due to their differing abilities. He then immediately left on his journey.

The servant who received five coins went and invested them and gained five more. The servant who received two coins also invested them and gained two more. But the servant who received one coin dug a hole and buried his master’s coin.

A long time later, the master returned to check on the servants. The servant who received the five coins showed the five extra coins and said, “Sir,  you gave me five coins. Look, I’ve gained five more.”

The master replied, “Good job, good and trusted servant. You were trustworthy with a few things so I’ll put you in charge of many things. Come into the happiness of your master!”

The servant who received two coins came and said, “Sir, you gave me two coins. Look, I’ve gained two more.”

The master replied, “Good job, good and trusted servant. You were trustworthy with a few things so I’ll put you in charge of many things. Come into the happiness of your master!”

The servant who received one coin came and said, “Sir, I know you are a mean person, harvesting what you did not grow and gathering from places you didn’t plant the seeds. I was afraid and hid your coin in the ground. Look, now you have it back.

His master answered, “You’re an evil and lazy servant. If you know I harvest what I don’t grow and gather from places where I didn’t plant the seeds, then you should have put my money in the bank so that I would have gotten back my coin plus interest. So take the coin from him and give it to the other servant with ten coins.

For everyone who has it, they will be given more, and they will have heaps. For anyone who doesn’t have it, even what they have will be taken. Throw the worthless servant into the outside darkness where there is crying and teeth grinding.”

“When the Son of Man gloriously arrives with the angels, he will sit on his glorious throne. Everyone on earth will come before him. He will sort them like a shepherd sorting sheep from goats. He will sort sheep to the right and goats to the left.

The king will say to those on the right, “Let’s go. My father blesses you. You can receive the kingdom that has been prepared for you from the world’s foundations. Because you gave me food when I was hungry. You gave me a drink when I was thirsty. I was a stranger and you invited me in as a guest. You gave me clothes when I was naked. You cared for me when I was sick. You came to me when I was in prison.”

The good people will answer, “Lord, when did we feed you or give you something to drink? When did we welcome you in as a guest or give you clothes? When did we care for you or visit you in prison?

The king will reply, “I’m telling you, when you did those things to the least of my brothers, you did it to me.

The king will say to the people on his left, “Go away, cursed people, into the eternal fire that is ready for the devil and his angels. Because you didn’t feed me when I was hungry or give me a drink when I was thirsty. You didn’t welcome me in when I was a stranger, give me clothes when I was naked or care for me when I was sick or in prison.

The ones on his left will also say, “Lord, when did we see you hungry, thirsty, as a stranger, naked, sick or in prison and not serve you?

The king will answer, “I’m telling you, as you didn’t do it to the least of people, you didn’t do it for me.”

They will go into eternal suffering, but the good will go into living forever.

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Continue exploring Matthew 25

If you’d like to read Matthew 25 in other translations, here are a few BibleHub links:
For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, try Matthew 25 in the English Standard Version.
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, try Matthew 25 in the New International Version.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, try Matthew 25 in the Contemporary English Version.

If you prefer to read the Bible in a hard-copy format, here are cheaper versions from Amazon:
[These are Amazon affiliate links which support the production of this blog]
For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, ESV Economy Bible
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, NIV, Economy Bible, Paperback: Accurate. Readable. Clear.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version

If you’d like to explore Matthew in more depth, here are some commentaries I would recommend:
[These are Amazon affiliate links which support the production of this blog]
Easy to access commentaries that include life applications:
The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew
Matthew (The Story of God Bible Commentary)
For a commentary that goes into more depth:
The Gospel of Matthew (The New International Commentary on the New Testament)