Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 24:48
But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
Verse 48. But, and if that evil servant] Here are three characters of a bad minister.
1. He has little or no faith in the speedy coming of Christ, either to punish for wickedness, or to pardon and sanctify those who believe. It may be, he does not outwardly profess this, but he says it in his heart, and God searches his heart, and knows that he professes to teach what he does not believe.
2. He governs with an absolute dominion, oppressing his colleagues and doing violence to the followers of Christ. And shall begin to smite, &c.
3. He leads an irregular life does not love the company of the children of God, but eats and drinks with the drunkards, preferring the tables of the great and the rich, whose god is their belly, and thus feeds himself without fear. Great God! save thine inheritance from being ravaged by such wolves!
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
But and if that evil servant,…. Or should there be an evil servant, an unwise and faithless one, who though he may have gifts and talents, yet destitute of the grace of God; and though he may be in the highest post and office in the church of God for sometimes wicked and graceless men are in such places; yet if he
shall say in his heart; secretly to himself, and with pleasure to his mind, and strengthen himself in a full persuasion of this,
my Lord delayeth his coming; and begins to think that either he will not come at all, to call him to an account for the use of his time, gifts, and talents; or if he does, it will be long first ere he will come, and visit the people of the Jews, by desolating calamities; or by death, to summon him to his bar; or at judgment, to give in his account of his stewardship.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
My lord tarrieth ( ). That is the temptation and to give way to indulge in fleshly appetites or to pride of superior intellect. Within a generation scoffers will be asking where is the promise of the coming of Christ (2Pe 3:4). They will forget that God’s clock is not like our clock and that a day with the Lord may be a thousand years or a thousand years as one day (2Pe 3:8).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
48. But if that wicked servant shall say in his heart. By these words, Christ briefly points out the source of that carelessness which creeps upon wicked servants. It is because they trust to a longer delay, and thus of their own accord involve themselves in darkness. They imagine that the day when they must render an account will never come; and, under the pretext of Christ’s absence, they promise themselves that they will remain unpunished. For it is impossible but that the expectation of him, when it does occur to our minds, shall shake off sleep, and still more, that it shall restrain us from being carried away by wicked sensuality. No excitement of exhortation, therefore, can be more powerful or efficacious, than to represent to us that rigid tribunal which no man will be able to escape. That each of us may be careful to discharge his duty earnestly, and keep himself strictly and modestly within his own limits, let us constantly make our minds familiar with the thought of that last and sudden coming of the Lord, the neglect of which leads the reprobate to indulge in wickedness.
At the same time, Christ takes a passing glance at the ease with which insolence grows, when a man has once shaken off the bridle, and given himself up to sinning. For Christ does not represent to us a servant who is merely dissolute and worthless, but one who rises up in an outrageous manner to disturb the whole house, who wickedly abuses the power committed to him, exercises cruelty on his fellow-servants, and wastefully spends the property of his master, whom he treats with open ridicule. Lastly, to excite terror, he adds the punishment, which is of no ordinary degree; for severe punishment is due to such unbounded wickedness.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(48) But and if that evil servant.Better, but if that evil servant, the and being in modern English usage superfluous, and representing originally a different conjunction.
My lord delayeth his coming.The temper described is identical with that portrayed in 2Pe. 3:3-4. The words are memorable as implying the prescience, even in the immediate context of words that indicate nearness, that there would be what to men would seem delay. Those who looked on that delay as St. Peter looked on it would continue watchful, but the selfish and ungodly would be tempted by it to forget that Christ comes to men in more senses and more ways than one. The tyranny and sensuality which have at times stained the annals of the Church of Christ have had their origin in this forgetfulness, that though the final coming may be delayed, the Judge is ever near, even at the doors (Jas. 5:9).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
48. My lord delayeth his coming There is a clear allusion to the coming of Christ to judgment implied under all these symbolical expressions of its conceptual nearness, yet real distance.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, ‘My lord delays’, and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken,”
However, if the one appointed turns out to be an evil servant, and begins to consider that his Master is delaying his coming (although that should really have made no difference to his behaviour), and thus begins to beat his fellow-servants and indulge in riotous excess (note the inference that such behaviour is displeasing to the Lord), he will in the end be caught out.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The unfaithful servant:
v. 48. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming,
v. 49. and shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken,
v. 50. the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
v. 51. and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The opposite side of the picture: the servant that takes advantage of the supposed delay of his master. Frivolously, exultingly, he says in his heart: There is no danger, the master is tardy about coming. The very remark proves that his work is mere eye-service. And this is borne out by his behavior: playing the tyrant in beating his fellow-slaves, especially such as are anxious to do their duty, indulging to excess in eating and drinking with such as are willing to join him in his debauch. Here the unexpected arrival of the master brings the curse and punishment, an unmerciful thrashing and a condemnation to the lot of the hypocrites, the dungeon with a remorse of weeping and gnashing of teeth. The same doom awaits the false Christians that abuse the trust of their Lord Jesus Christ, delay true repentance, are unmerciful in their dealings with others, join with the children of the world in all the lusts and vices of the flesh, and try to console themselves with the thought: The Day of Judgment is not yet coming. While the Lord rewards the true believers with the fullness of His heavenly blessings and all the riches of the mansions above, the false servants will be doomed to everlasting torment in hell. And not without reason have commentators of all times made special application of this parable to the ministers of the Word, upon whom special responsibilities devolve. The greater the trust placed by God in any man, the more exact will be the reckoning.
Summary. Jesus foretells the destruction of the Temple and of the city of Jerusalem, with all the signs that are intended as a warning to believers; He makes this a, type of the coming to Judgment, which He briefly describes, adding an earnest admonition to be watchful and faithful.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Mat 24:48-51. But, &c. But if that servant, being evil, shall say, &c. Heylin. “If on the other hand you behave like wicked stewards, who, because their Lord delays his coming, beat their fellow-servants, and get drunk with sots and epicures: if you tyrannize over the consciences of your brethren, neglect the duties of your function, and give yourselves up to sensual pleasures; I will come when you little think of it, and make you dreadful examples ofmy indignation, by the severe punishments which I will inflict upon you.” It is remarkable, that in this parable the crime of the unfaithful stewards is said to have been sensuality; particularly drunkenness, than which a more abominable vice can hardly be named. A drunkard,one who employs himself in erasing the illustrious signature of reason, which God stamped upon him in creation, as the prerogative of his nature; and who makes himself incapable of his duty, while he is ready to commit every sin to which a temptation offers; what a monster is this, and how unlikely to lead others in the way of eternal life! See Macknight.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Mat 24:48-51 . , . . .] the emphasis is on as contrasting with . , Mat 24:45 , therefore . .
] refers back to , . . ., Mat 24:45 , and represents the sum of its contents. Hence: but suppose the worthless servant who has been put in that position shall have said, etc. To assume that we have here a blending of two cases (the servant is either faithful or wicked), the second of which we are to regard as presupposed and pointed to by (de Wette, Kaeuffer), is to burden the passage with unnecessary confusion.
] will have begun , does not refer to the circumstance that the lord surprises him in the midst of his misdemeanours (Fritzsche), because in that case what follows would also have to be regarded as depending on , but on the contrary it brings out the fearless wickedness of the man abandoning himself to tyrannical behaviour and sensual gratifications.
. .] Before, we were told what his conduct was toward his fellow-slaves over whom he had been set; now, on the other hand, we are shown how he behaved himself apart from his relation to the .
] he will cut him in two (Plat. Polit . p. 302 F; Polyb. vi. 28. 2; x. 15. 5; Exo 29:17 ), a form of punishment according to which the criminal was sawn asunder, 2Sa 12:31 ; 1Ch 20:3 ; Heb 11:37 . Comp. Sueton. Calig . xvii.: “medios serra dissecuit.” Herod, vii. 37. See, in general, Wetstein and Rosenmller, Morgenl ., on our passage. There is no force in the usual objection that, in what follows, the slave is assumed to be still living; for, in the words , . . ., which are immediately added, we have a statement of the thing itself, which the similitude of that terrible punishment was intended to illustrate . All other explanations are inconsistent with the text, such as: he will tear him with the scourge (Heumann, Paulus, Kuinoel, Schott, de Wette, Olshausen), or: he will cut him off from his service (Beza, Grotius, Jansen, Maldonatus; comp. Jerome, Euthymius Zigabenus), or: he will withdraw his spiritual gifts from him (Basil, Theophylact), or generally: he will punish him with the utmost severity (Chrysostom).
, . . .] and will assign him his proper place among the hypocrites, i.e . he will condemn him to have his fitting portion in common with the hypocrites, that thenceforth he may share their fate. Comp. on Joh 13:8 , and the classical phrase . Rabbinical writers likewise regard Gehenna as the portion of hypocrites; see Schoettgen. But the expression . is made use of here because the is a hypocrite in the inmost depths of his moral nature, inasmuch as he acts under the impression , though he hopes that when his lord arrives he will be able to assume the appearance of one who is still faithfully discharging his duty, just as he must have pretended to be good at the time when he received the trust which had been committed to him; but now he is suddenly unmasked.
] namely, in hell, Mat 8:12 , Mat 13:42 ; Mat 13:50 , Mat 22:13 , Mat 25:30 .
REMARK 1.
It is exegetically certain that from Mat 24:29 onward Jesus announces His second advent, after having spoken, in what precedes that verse, of the destruction of Jerusalem, and of that, too, as an event that was to take place immediately before His second coming. All attempts to obtain, for the of Mat 24:29 , a different terminus a quo (see on Mat 24:29 ), and therefore to find room enough before this for an interval, the limits of which cannot as yet be assigned, or to fix upon some different point in the discourse as that at which the subject of the second advent is introduced (Chrysostom: Mat 24:23 ; E. J. Meyer: Mat 24:35 ; Ssskind: Mat 24:36 ; Kuinoel: Mat 24:43 ; Lightfoot, Wetstein, Flatt: not till Mat 25:31 ; Hoelemann: as early as Mat 24:19 ), are not the fruits of an objective interpretation of the text, but are based on the assumption that every trifling detail must find its fulfilment, and lead to interpretations in which the meaning is explained away and twisted in the most violent way possible. The attempts of Ebrard, Dorner, Cremer, Hoelemann, Gess, to show that the prediction of Jesus is in absolute harmony with the course of history, are refuted by the text itself, especially by Mat 24:29 ; above all is it impossible to explain Mat 24:15-28 of some event which is still in the womb of the future (in opposition to Hofmann, Schriftbew . II. p. 630 ff.); nor again, in Mat 24:34 , can we narrow the scope of the , or extend that of the , or make denote merely the dawning of the events in question.
REMARK 2.
It is true that the predictions, Mat 24:5 ff., regarding the events that were to precede the destruction of Jerusalem were not fulfilled in so special and ample a way as to harmonize with the synoptical representations of them ; still, that they were so in all essential respects, is proved by what we learn from history respecting the impostors and magicians that appeared, the wars that raged far and near, the numerous cases of famine and earthquake that occurred, the persecutions of the Christians that took place, the moral degeneracy that prevailed, and the way in which the gospel had been proclaimed throughout the world, and all shortly before the destruction of Jerusalem (after the Jews had begun to rise in rebellion against the Roman authority in the time of Gessius Florus, who became procurator of Judea in 64). This prophecy, though in every respect a genuine prediction, is not without its imaginative element, as may be seen from the poetical and pictorial form in which it is embodied. Compare on Mat 24:7 , Remark. But it is just this mode of representation which shows that a vaticinium post eventum (see on Mat 24:1 ) is not to be thought of. Comp. Holtzmann, Weizscker, Pfleiderer.
REMARK 3.
With regard to the difficulty arising out of the fact that the second advent did not take place, as Jesus had predicted it would, immediately after the destruction of Jerusalem, and as an explanation of which the assumption of a blending of type and antitype (Luther) is arbitrary in itself, and only leads to confusion, let the following be remarked: (1) Jesus has spoken of His advent in a threefold sense; for He described as His second coming ( a ) that outpouring of the Holy Spirit which was shortly to take place, and which was actually fulfilled; see on Joh 14:18 f., Mat 16:16 ; Mat 16:20 ff., also on Eph 2:17 ; ( b ) that historical manifestation of His majesty and power which would be seen, immediately after His ascension to the Father, in the triumph of His cause upon the earth, of which Mat 26:64 furnishes an undoubted example; ( c ) His coming, in the strict eschatological sense, to raise the dead, to hold the last judgment, and to set up His kingdom, which is also distinctly intimated in such passages of John as Joh 4:40 ; Joh 4:54 , Mat 5:28 , Mat 14:3 (Weizel in the Stud. u. Krit . 1836, p. 626 ff.), and in connection with which it is to be observed that in John the (Joh 6:39 f., Joh 6:44 ; Joh 6:54 ) does not imply any such nearness of the thing as is implied when the spiritual advent is in question; but, on the contrary, presupposes generally that believers will have to undergo death. Again, in the parable contained in Mat 22:1-14 , the calling of the Gentiles is represented as coming after the destruction of Jerusalem; so that (comp. on Mat 21:40 f.) in any case a longer interval is supposed to intervene between this latter event and the second coming than would seem to correspond with the of Mat 24:29 . (2) But though Jesus Himself predicted His second coming as an event close at hand, without understanding it, however, in the literal sense of the words (see above, under a and b ); though, in doing so, He availed Himself to some extent of such prophetical phraseology as had come to be the stereotyped language for describing the future establishment of the literal kingdom of the Messiah (Mat 26:64 ), and in this way made use of the notions connected with this literal kingdom for the purpose of embodying his conceptions of the ideal advent, it is nevertheless highly conceivable that, in the minds of the disciples, the sign of Christ’s speedy entrance into the world again came to be associated and ultimately identified with the expectation of a literal kingdom. This is all the more conceivable when we consider how difficult it was for them to realize anything so ideal as an invisible return, and how natural it was for them to apprehend literally the figurative language in which Jesus predicted this return , and how apt they were, in consequence, to take everything He said about His second coming, in the threefold sense above mentioned, as having reference to the one great object of eager expectation, viz. the glorious establishment of the Messiah’s kingdom. The separating and sifting of the heterogeneous elements that were thus blended together in their imagination, Jesus appears to have left to the influence of future development, instead of undertaking this task Himself, by directly confuting and correcting the errors to which this confusion gave rise (Act 1:7-8 ), although we must not overlook the fact that any utterances of Jesus in this direction would be apt to be lost sight of all the more, that they would not be likely to prove generally acceptable. It may likewise be observed, as bearing upon this matter, that the spiritual character of the Gospel of John in which the idea of the advent, though not altogether absent, occupies a very secondary place as compared with the decided prominence given to that of the coming again in a spiritual sense is a phenomenon which presupposes further teaching on the part of Jesus, differing materially from that recorded in the synoptic traditions. (3) After the idea of imminence had once got associated in the minds of the disciples with the expectation of the second advent and the establishment of the literal kingdom, the next step, now that the resurrection of Jesus had taken place, was to connect the hope of fulfilment with the promised baptism with the spirit which was understood to be near at hand (Act 1:6 ); and they further expected that the fulfilment would take place, and that they would be witnesses of it before they left Judea, an idea which is most distinctly reflected in Mat 10:23 . Ex eventu the horizon of this hope came to be gradually enlarged, without its extending, however, beyond the lifetime of the existing generation . It was during this interval that, according to Jesus, the destruction of Jerusalem was to take place. But if He at the same time saw, and in prophetic symbolism announced, what He could not fail to be aware of, viz. the connection that there would be between this catastrophe and the triumph of His ideal kingdom, then nothing was more natural than to expect that, with Jerusalem still standing (differently in Luk 21:24 ), and the duration of the existing generation drawing to a close, the second advent would take place immediately after the destruction of the capital, an expectation which would be strengthened by the well-known descriptions furnished by the prophets of the triumphal entry of Jehovah and the disasters that were to precede it (Strauss, II. p. 348), as well as by that form of the doctrine of the dolores Messiae to which the Rabbis had given currency (Langen, Judenth. in Palst . p. 494 f.). The form of the expectation involuntarily modified the form of the promise ; the ideal advent and establishment of the kingdom came to be identified with the eschatological , so that in men’s minds and in the traditions alike the former gradually disappeared, while the latter alone remained as the object of earnest longing and expectation, surrounded not merely with the gorgeous colouring of prophetic delineation, but also placed in the same relation to the destruction of Jerusalem as that in which the ideal advent, announced in the language of prophetic imagery, had originally stood. Comp. Scherer in the Strassb. Beitr . II. 1851, p. 83 ff.; Holtzmann, p. 409 f.; Keim, III. p. 219 f.
Certain expositors have referred, in this connection, to the sentiment of the modern poet, who says: “ the world’s history is the world’s judgment ,” and have represented the destruction of Jerusalem as the first act in this judgment, which is supposed to be immediately followed (Mat 24:29 ) by a renovation of the world through the medium of Christianity, a renovation which is to go on until the last revelation from heaven takes place (Kern, Dorner, Olshausen). But this is only to commit the absurdity of importing into the passage a poetical judgment, such as is quite foreign to the real judgment of the New Testament. No less objectionable is Bengel’s idea, revived by Hengstenberg and Olshausen (comp. also Kern, p. 56; Lange, II. p. 1258; Schmid, Bibl. Theol. I. p. 354), about the perspective nature of the prophetic vision, an idea which could only have been vindicated from the reproach of imputing a false vision, i.e . an optical delusion , to Jesus if the latter had failed to specify a definite time by means of a statement so very precise as that contained in the of Mat 24:29 , or had not added the solemn declaration of Mat 24:34 . Dorner, Wittichen, rightly decide against this view. As a last shift, Olshausen has recourse to the idea that some condition or other is to be understood: “All those things will happen, unless men avert the anger of God by sincere repentance ,” a reservation which, in a prediction of so extremely definite a character, would most certainly have been expressly mentioned, even although no doubt can be said to exist as to the conditional nature of the Old Testament prophecies (Bertheau in the Jahrb. f. D. Theol . 1859, p. 335 ff.). If, as Olshausen thinks, it was the wish of the Lord that His second advent should always be looked upon as a possible, nay, as a probable thing, and if it was for this reason that He spoke as Matthew represents Him to have done, then it would follow that He made use of false means for the purpose of attaining a moral end, a thing even more inconceivable in His case than theoretical error, which latter Strauss does not hesitate to impute. According to this view, to which Wittichen also adheres, it is to the ethical side of the ministry of Jesus that the chief importance is to be attached. But it is precisely this ethical side that, in the case of Him who was the very depository of the intuitive truth of God, would necessarily be compromised by such an error as is here in view, an error affecting a prediction so intimately connected with His whole work, and of so much importance in its moral consequences. Comp. Joh 8:46 .
REMARK 4.
The statement of Mat 24:29 , to the effect that the second advent would take place immediately after the destruction of Jerusalem, and that of Mat 24:34 , to the effect that it would occur during the lifetime of the generation then living, go to decide the date of the composition of our Greek Matthew, which must accordingly have been written at some time previous to the destruction of the capital. Baur, indeed ( Evangelien , p. 605; Neut. Theol . p. 109), supposes the judgment that was immediately to precede the second advent to be represented by the Jewish war in the time of Hadrian, and detects the date of the composition of our Gospel (namely, 130 134) in the . . of Mat 24:15 , which he explains of the statue of Jupiter which Hadrian had erected in the temple area (Dio Cass. lxix. 12). Such a view should have been felt to be already precluded by Mat 24:1-3 , where, even according to Baur himself, it is only the first devastation under Titus that can be meant, as well as by the parallel passages of the other Synoptists; to say nothing, moreover, of the fact that a literal destruction of Jerusalem in the time of Hadrian, which is mentioned for the first time by Jerome in his comment on Eze 5:1 , is, according to the older testimony of Justin, Ap. i. 47, and of Eusebius, iv. 6, highly questionable (Holtzmann, p. 405). But as regards the , in whose lifetime the destruction of the capital and the second advent were (Mat 24:34 ) to take place, Zeller (in the Theol. Jahrb . 1852, p. 299 f.), following Baur and Hilgenfeld, b. d. Ev. Justin’s , p. 367, has sought to make the duration of the period in question extend over a century and more, therefore to somewhere about the year 130 and even later, although the common notion of a was such that a century was understood to be equal to something like three of them (Herod, ii. 142; Thuc. i. 14. 1; Wesseling, ad Diod . i. 24). The above, however, is an erroneous view, which its authors have been constrained to adopt simply to meet the exigencies of the case. For, with such passages before them as Mat 10:23 , Mat 16:28 , neither their critical nor their dogmatical preconceptions should have allowed them to doubt that anything else was meant than the ordinary lifetime of the existing generation, the generation living at the time the discourse was being delivered (the , Dem. 1390, 25), and that, too, only the portion of their lifetime that was still to run. Comp. Kahnis, Dogm . I. p. 494; Holtzmann, p. 408; Keim, p. 206; also Kstlin, p; 114 ff.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
Ver. 48. But and if that evil servant ] All places are full of such evil servants (and so is hell too), as future their repentance, and so fool away their salvation. Of such dust heaps we may find in every corner: this is a depth of the devil, brimfull with the blood of many souls, to persuade them that they have yet long to live, and many fair summers to see; that there is no such haste, but that hereafter may be time enough. In space comes grace, and a few good words at last will waft them to heaven.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
48 51. ] The question is not here asked again, . . ., but the transition made from the good to the bad servant, or even the good to the bad mind of the same servant, by the epithet .
On this graphic use of the demonstrative pronoun, see Khner, Gramm. ii. 325.
] then manifestly, a long delay is in the mind of the Lord : see above on Mat 24:29 . Notice that this servant also is one set over the household one who says and began well but now ., &c. falls away from his truth and faithfulness; the sign of which is that he begins (lit. shall have begun) to 1Pe 5:3 , and to revel with the children of the world. In consequence, though he have not lost his belief ( . ), he shall be placed with those who believed not, the hypocrites.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Mat 24:48 . he other side of the picture : not the same individual, but a man placed in the same post (“cui eadem provincia sit demandata,” Schott). (again in Mat 25:5 ): the servant begins to reflect on the fact that his lord is late in coming, and is demoralised. , he (now) begins to play the tyrant ( ) and to indulge in excess ( , etc.). Long delay is necessary to produce such complete demoralisation.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
But and if = But if. As in Mat 24:23.
evil. Greek. kakos. App-128.
his coming = to come.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
48-51.] The question is not here asked again, …, but the transition made from the good to the bad servant, or even the good to the bad mind of the same servant, by the epithet .
On this graphic use of the demonstrative pronoun, see Khner, Gramm. ii. 325.
] then manifestly, a long delay is in the mind of the Lord: see above on Mat 24:29. Notice that this servant also is one set over the household-one who says -and began well-but now ., &c.-falls away from his truth and faithfulness;-the sign of which is that he begins (lit. shall have begun) to 1Pe 5:3, and to revel with the children of the world. In consequence, though he have not lost his belief ( . ), he shall be placed with those who believed not, the hypocrites.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Mat 24:48. , THAT evil servant) whom the Lord knoweth.-, delayeth) See Mat 25:5 [cf. Ecc 8:11].
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
if: Mat 18:32, Mat 25:26, Luk 19:22
say: Deu 9:4, Deu 15:9, 2Ki 5:26, Isa 32:6, Mar 7:21, Luk 12:45, Joh 13:2, Act 5:3, Act 8:22
My: Ecc 8:11, Eze 12:22, Eze 12:27, 2Pe 3:3-5
Reciprocal: Exo 32:1 – we wot Psa 10:6 – said Psa 125:5 – with the workers Pro 7:19 – he Eze 12:28 – There shall Eze 34:2 – Woe Amo 6:3 – put Mat 10:23 – till Mat 25:5 – the Mat 25:19 – a long Mar 13:36 – he find Luk 12:20 – God Rom 2:4 – despisest Rom 13:13 – rioting Rom 16:18 – but 1Co 7:31 – use Eph 6:9 – knowing Phi 4:5 – The Col 4:1 – ye Heb 4:1 – any 1Pe 5:8 – sober Rev 2:5 – else
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
4:48
A servant might be attentive to his duties for a while, but if more time went by than was expected, he may conclude that his lord has postponed his coming for an indefinite period. (See 2Pe 3:3-4.)
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mat 24:48. But if that evil servant. The form is changed from that in Mat 24:45, as if to intimate that such cases would readily occur, without need of special inquiry. The verse is a caution to the faithful to persevere, and a warning to those who intrude into the ministry.
Shall say, not openly, for the official position forbids that; but in his heart, and in his conduct (Mat 24:49).
My lord delayeth to come. This implies that a long delay would occur. The servant began well, and still recognizes Christ as His Lord (my lord). The spring of all his evil conduct was unbelief; whether the Lord came sooner or later, his duty remained the same.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Our Lord in these verses describes an unfaithful and negligent steward, and denounces the dreadful sentence of wrath hanging over him.
He is described, 1. By the character of infidelity; he believeth not Christ’s coming to judgment, though he preaches it to others: he saith in his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming.
2. He is described by his hatred, envy, and malignity against his fellow-servants, that were more painful and faithful than himself. He begins to smite, at least with the virulence of his tongue, if not the violence of his hand.
3. By his associating with the wicked, and strengthening their hands by his ill example, He eateth and drinketh with the drunken; that is, as their associate and fellow-companion.
Thus the unfaithful servant is described; next his judgment and sentence are declared.
Observe, 2. The tremendous judgment that shall come upon unfaithful stewards.
1. Christ will surprise them in their sin and security, by coming in an hour when they look not for him.
2. He will execute temporal vengeance upon them: He will cut them asunder, or hew them in pieces, as the Jews did their sacrifices; that is, separate their souls from their bodies by untimely death.
Hence some observe, That God seldom suffers slothful, sensual, wicked, and debauched ministers to live out half their days.
3. Christ will punish them with eternal destruction also: appointing them their portion with hypocrites; that is, with the worst of sinners, they shall have a double damnation. As the hypocrite has a double tongue, a double heart, and is a double sinner, so shall he undergo a double damnation.
Learn hence, That such ministers as neglect the service of God, and the souls of their people; as they are ranked amongst the worst of sinners in this life, so shall they be punished with them in the severest manner in the next.
When Satan destroys the souls of men, he shall answer for it as a murderer only, not as an officer that was entrusted with the care of the soul. But is the steward doth not provide, if the shepherd doth not feed, if the watchman doth not warn, they shall answer not only for the souls that have miscarried, but for an office neglected, for a talent hidden, and for a stewardship unfaithfully administered.
Woe unto us, if at the great day we have distressed souls roaring out their complaints, and howling forth that doleful accusation against us; “Lord! our stewards have defrauded us, our watchmen have betrayed us, our guides have misled us.”
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Other disciples may conclude that Jesus’ delay indicates a postponement of His appearing. This conclusion may lead to their abusing their fellow disciples and their carousing. Jesus’ return will surprise such disciples who will not be ready for it. The fate of such unfaithful and unwise servants will be tragic. Jesus will cut them to pieces, a graphic and hyperbolic description of personal destruction (Mat 24:51; cf. 1Sa 15:33; Heb 11:37). [Note: See Pagenkemper, pp. 191-94.] Their lot will be with the hypocrites, those whom Jesus predicted would experience God’s most severe judgment (cf. Mat 6:2; Mat 6:5; Mat 6:16; Mat 16:3; Mat 23:13-29). Furthermore they will eventually go to hell.
"Invariably throughout Matthew this phrase [weeping and gnashing of teeth] refers to the retribution of those who are judged before the millennial kingdom is established (Mat 8:12; Mat 13:42; Mat 13:50; Mat 22:13; Mat 25:30)." [Note: Toussaint, Behold the . . ., p. 282.]
These unfaithful servants must be disciples of Jesus during the Tribulation who are not genuine believers. There will be some people who claim to be followers of Jesus in the Tribulation but who have not trusted in Him for salvation. There were many such in Jesus’ day, and there are many today.
In this parable the good servant was prudent and faithful (Mat 24:45). Jesus next gave the parable of the 10 virgins to illustrate prudence, and then He gave the parable of the talents to illustrate faithfulness. [Note: M’Neile, p. 359.]
"This [next] part of the Olivet Discourse [i.e., ch. 25] goes beyond the ’sign’ questions of the disciples (Mat 24:3) and presents our Lord’s return in three aspects: (1) as testing profession, Mat 24:1-13; (2) as testing service, Mat 24:14-30; and (3) as testing individual Gentiles, Mat 24:31-46." [Note: The New Scofield . . ., p. 1035.]