From: Luke 19:11-28
Parable of the Pounds
[11] As they heard these things, [Jesus] proceeded to tell a parable, because
He was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the Kingdom of God
was to appear immediately. [12] He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far
country to receive kingly power and then return. [13] Calling ten of his servants,
he gave them ten pounds, and said to them, ‘Trade with these till I come.’ [14]
But his citizens hated him and sent an embassy after him saying, ‘We do not
want this man to reign over us.’ [15] When he returned, having received the king-
ly power, he commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to
be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by trading. [16] The
first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your pound has made ten pounds more.’
[17] And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faith-
ful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ [18] And the second
came, saying, ‘Lord, your pound has made five pounds.’ [19] And he said to him,
‘And you are to be over five cities.’
[20] Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your pound, which I kept laid
away in a napkin; [21] for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man; you
take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.’ [22] He said
to him, ‘I will condemn you out of your own mouth, you wicked servant! You knew
that I was a severe man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did
not sow? [23] Why then did you not put my money into the bank, and at my co-
ming I should have collected it with interest?’ [24] And he said to those who stood
by, ‘Take the pound from him, and give it to him who has the ten pounds.’ [25]
(And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten pounds!’) [26] ‘I tell you, that to every one
who has will more be given; but from him who has not, even what he has will be
taken away. [27] But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign
over them, bring them here and slay them before me.’”
The Messiah Enters the Holy City
[28] And when He had said this, He went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
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Commentary:
11. The disciples had a wrong concept of the Kingdom of Heaven: they thought
it was about to happen and they saw it in earthly terms: they envisaged Jesus
conquering the Roman tyrant and immediately establishing the Kingdom in the
holy city of Jerusalem, and that when that happened they would hold privileged
positions in the Kingdom. There is always a danger of Christians failing to grasp
the transcendent, supernatural character of the Kingdom of God in this world,
that is, the Church, which “has but one sole purpose—that the Kingdom of God
may come and the salvation of the human race may be accomplished.” (Vati-
can II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 45).
Through this parable our Lord teaches us that, although His reign has begun, it
will only be fully manifested later on. In the time left to us we should use all the
resources and graces God gives us, in order to merit the reward.
13. The “mina”, here translated as “pound”, was worth about 35 grams of gold.
This parable is very like the parable of the talents reported in St. Matthew (cf.
25:14-30).
14. The last part of this verse, although it has a very specific context, reflects
the attitude of many people who do not want to bear the sweet yoke of our Lord
and who reject Him as king. “There are millions of people in the world who reject
Jesus Christ in this way; or rather they reject His shadow, for they do not know
Christ. They have not seen the beauty of His face; they do not realize how won-
derful His teaching is. This sad state of affairs makes me want to atone to our
Lord. When I hear that endless clamor—expressed more in ignoble actions than
in words—I feel the need to cry out, ‘He must reign!’ (1 Corinthians 15:25)” (St. J.
Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 179).
17. God counts on our fidelity in little things, and the greater our effort in this re-
gard the greater the reward we will receive: “Because you have been ‘in pauca
fidelis’, faithful in small things, come and join in your Master’s happiness. The
words are Christ’s. ‘In pauca fidelis!...Now will you neglect little things, if Heaven
itself is promised to those who mind them?” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 819).
24-26. God expects us to strive to put to good use the gifts we have received —
and He lavishly rewards those who respond to His grace. The king in the parable
is shown to be very generous towards his servants—and generous in rewarding
those who managed to increase the money they were given. But he is very se-
vere towards the lazy servant who was also the recipient of a gift from his Lord,
who did not let it erode but guarded it carefully—and for this his king criticizes
him: he failed to fulfill the just command the king gave him when he gave him the
money: “Trade till I come.” If we appreciate the treasures the Lord has given us
— life, the gift of faith, grace—we will make a special effort to make them bear fruit
— by fulfilling our duties, working hard and doing apostolate. “Don’t let your life be
barren. Be useful. Make yourself felt. Shine forth with the torch of your faith and
your love. With your apostolic life, wipe out the trail of filth and slime left by the
corrupt sowers of hatred. And set aflame all the ways of the earth with the fire of
Christ that you bear in your heart” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 1).
28. Normally in the Gospels when there is mention of going to the Holy City it
is in terms of “going up” to Jerusalem (cf. Matthew 20:18; John 7:8), probably
because geographically the city is located on Mount Zion. Besides, since the
temple was the religious and political center, going up to Jerusalem had also a
sacred meaning of ascending to the holy place, where sacrifices were offered to
God.
Particularly in the Gospel of St. Luke, our Lord’s whole life is seen in terms of a
continuous ascent towards Jerusalem, where His self-surrender reaches its high
point in the redemptive sacrifice of the Cross. Here Jesus is on the point of ente-
ring the city, conscious of the fact that His passion and death are imminent.
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
| First reading |
| 2 Maccabees 7:1,20-31 © |
The creator of the world will give you back both breath and life
There were seven brothers who were arrested with their mother. The king tried to force them to taste pig’s flesh, which the Law forbids, by torturing them with whips and scourges. But the mother was especially admirable and worthy of honourable remembrance, for she watched the death of seven sons in the course of a single day, and endured it resolutely because of her hopes in the Lord. Indeed she encouraged each of them in the language of their ancestors; filled with noble conviction, she reinforced her womanly argument with manly courage, saying to them, ‘I do not know how you appeared in my womb; it was not I who endowed you with breath and life, I had not the shaping of your every part. It is the creator of the world, ordaining the process of man’s birth and presiding over the origin of all things, who in his mercy will most surely give you back both breath and life, seeing that you now despise your own existence for the sake of his laws.’
Antiochus thought he was being ridiculed, suspecting insult in the tone of her voice; and as the youngest was still alive he appealed to him not with mere words but with promises on oath to make him both rich and happy if he would abandon the traditions of his ancestors; he would make him his Friend and entrust him with public office. The young man took no notice at all, and so the king then appealed to the mother, urging her to advise the youth to save his life. After a great deal of urging on his part she agreed to try persuasion on her son. Bending over him, she fooled the cruel tyrant with these words, uttered in the language of their ancestors, ‘My son, have pity on me; I carried you nine months in my womb and suckled you three years, fed you and reared you to the age you are now (and cherished you). I implore you, my child, observe heaven and earth, consider all that is in them, and acknowledge that God made them out of what did not exist, and that mankind comes into being in the same way. Do not fear this executioner, but prove yourself worthy of your brothers, and make death welcome, so that in the day of mercy I may receive you back in your brothers’ company.’
She had scarcely ended when the young man said, ‘What are you all waiting for? I will not comply with the king’s ordinance; I obey the ordinance of the Law given to our ancestors through Moses. As for you, sir, who have contrived every kind of evil against the Hebrews, you will certainly not escape the hands of God.’
| Responsorial Psalm |
| Psalm 16(17):1,5-6,8,15 © |
I shall be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory, O Lord.
Lord, hear a cause that is just,
pay heed to my cry.
Turn your ear to my prayer:
no deceit is on my lips.
I shall be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory, O Lord.
I kept my feet firmly in your paths;
there was no faltering in my steps.
I am here and I call, you will hear me, O God.
Turn your ear to me; hear my words.
I shall be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory, O Lord.
Guard me as the apple of your eye.
Hide me in the shadow of your wings
As for me, in my justice I shall see your face
and be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory.
I shall be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory, O Lord.
| Gospel Acclamation |
1Jn2:5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Whenever anyone obeys what Christ has said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia!
I chose you from the world
to go out and bear fruit,
fruit that will last,
says the Lord.
Alleluia!
The parable of the talents
While the people were listening, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and they imagined that the kingdom of God was going to show itself then and there. Accordingly he said, ‘A man of noble birth went to a distant country to be appointed king and afterwards return. He summoned ten of his servants and gave them ten pounds. “Do business with these” he told them “until I get back.” But his compatriots detested him and sent a delegation to follow him with this message, “We do not want this man to be our king.”
‘Now on his return, having received his appointment as king, he sent for those servants to whom he had given the money, to find out what profit each had made. The first came in and said, “Sir, your one pound has brought in ten.” “Well done, my good servant!” he replied “Since you have proved yourself faithful in a very small thing, you shall have the government of ten cities.” Then came the second and said, “Sir, your one pound has made five.” To this one also he said, “And you shall be in charge of five cities.” Next came the other and said, “Sir, here is your pound. I put it away safely in a piece of linen because I was afraid of you; for you are an exacting man: you pick up what you have not put down and reap what you have not sown.” “You wicked servant!” he said “Out of your own mouth I condemn you. So you knew I was an exacting man, picking up what I have not put down and reaping what I have not sown? Then why did you not put my money in the bank? On my return I could have drawn it out with interest.” And he said to those standing by, “Take the pound from him and give it to the man who has ten pounds.” And they said to him, “But, sir, he has ten pounds…”. “I tell you, to everyone who has will be given more; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
‘“But as for my enemies who did not want me for their king, bring them here and execute them in my presence.”’
When he had said this he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.