The Parable of the Bags of Gold (Matthew 25:14-30)
We find in the Gospels the words of Jesus, his miracles, his death and his resurrection. In his teachings, Christ often speaks in parables to the crowd. The Gospel of Matthew presents us with the Parable of the Bags of Gold which is similar to the Parable of the Ten Minas present in the Gospel of Luke. Let us find out the story of the lord who distributes different measures of gold to his three servants and let us carefully consider this text in order to be able to glean precious lessons from it.
The Parable of the Bags of Gold in the Gospel according to Matthew
14 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them.
15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.
16 The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more.
17 So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more.
18 But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
19 “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.
20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’
21 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
22 “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’
23 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
24 “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.
25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
26 “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?
27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
28 “ ‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags.
29 For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.
30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
To each according to his abilities
When the lord distributes the gold to his servants, he looks at the abilities of each one. So we understand that what God gives us corresponds to the ability that we have. To image this, we can think of a boss who gives a particular position to his employee because he has the qualification, the diploma, the aptitude to carry out his functions and bring profit to the company through his work. There is therefore good news to be taken from this passage, that the more our abilities increase, the more the Lord and those around us can entrust us with responsibilities.
Good and Faithful Servant
Of these three servants, only two rejoiced at their master’s heart because they worked to make the money they had entrusted to them grow. So we understand that God expects us to multiply everything he puts at our disposal. Indeed, when he created man, “God blessed them and said to them: Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1:28) But why did this third servant not live up to the expectations of his master? The reply of this servant tells us that he had a bad image of his lord and therefore he feared his master rather than trusting him. Fear led him to bury his gold in the ground. Thus, to be a good and faithful servant, we must learn to better understand the goodness and the faithfulness of our Lord Jesus. The confidence that comes from it will give us the courage to promote our talents and thus bring joy to the master’s heart.
