(singular) much (in any respect) or (plural) many · adjective — dative singular neuter
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Luke 16:11-12 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
Matthew 25:21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over ma…
Luke 19:17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.
Matthew 25:23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many th…
Hebrews 3:2 Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house.
John 12:6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.
John 13:27 And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly.
John 13:2 And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him;
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Luke 16:1-18
We mistake if we imagine that the design of Christ's doctrine and holy religion was either to amuse us with notions of divine mysteries or to entertain us with notions of divine mercies. No, the divine revelation of both these in the gospel is intended to engage and quicken us to the practice of Christian duties, and, as much as any one thing, to the duty of beneficence and doing good to those who stand in need of any thing that either we have or can do for them. This our Saviour is here pressing us to, by reminding us that we are but stewards of the manifold grace of God; and since we have in divers instances been unfaithful, and have forfeited the favour of our Lord, it is our wisdom to th…
He, &c.--a maxim of great pregnancy and value; rising from the prudence which the steward had to the fidelity which he had not, the "harmlessness of the dove, to which the serpent" with all his "wisdom" is a total stranger. Fidelity depends not on the amount entrusted, but on the sense of responsibility. He that feels this in little will feel it in much, and conversely.
Adam Clarke on Luke 16:10
He that is faithful in that which is least, etc. - He who has the genuine principles of fidelity in him will make a point of conscience of carefully attending to even the smallest things; and it is by habituating himself to act uprightly in little things that he acquires the gracious habit of acting with propriety fidelity, honor, and conscience, in matters of the greatest concern. On the contrary, he who does not act uprightly in small matters will seldom feel himself bound to pay much attention to the dictates of honor and conscience, in cases of high importance. Can we reasonably expect that a man who is continually falling by little things has power to resist temptations to great evils?
John Gill on Luke 16:10
He that is faithful in that which is least,.... In quantity and quality, especially the latter; in that which is of little value and worth, at least when compared with other things:
is faithful also in much: in matters of greater consequence and importance: the sense of the proverb is, that, generally speaking, a man that acts a faithful part in a small trust committed to him, does so likewise in a much larger; and being tried, and found faithful in things of less moment, he is intrusted with things of greater importance; though this is not always the case: for sometimes a man may behave with great integrity in lesser matters, on purpose that he might gain greater confidence, which, when he…
The Church Fathers
Wherefore, brethren, by doing the will of the Father, and keeping the flesh holy, and observing the commandments of the Lord, we shall obtain eternal life. For the Lord saith in the Gospel, "If ye have not kept that which was small, who will commit to you the great? For I say unto you, that he that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much." This, then, is what He means: "Keep the flesh holy and the seal undefiled, that ye may receive eternal life."
He who is faithful in little is also faithful in much. And he who is dishonest in little is also dishonest in much. There are those who, ignorant of the bowels of compassion and works of mercy owed to their neighbors, nonetheless rightly consider themselves faithful in chastity, vigils, prolonged prayer, full faith, fasting, and other virtues which the love of God tends to produce. But, as the judge himself attests, he who is faithful in little, that is, in sharing money with the poor, is also faithful in much, namely, in that act by which he desires particularly to adhere to the Creator, and become one spirit with Him. But he who neglects to rightly dispense the temporal things he possesses, empties the glory of the eternal which he boasts of for himself. For how can he who does not love his brother whom he sees love God whom he does not see (1 John IV)? And as the same says: If anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him (1 John XIII)?
Thus then Christ taught those who abound in riches, earnestly to love the friendship of the poor, and to have treasure in heaven. But He knew the sloth of the human mind, how that they who court riches bestow no work of charity upon the needy. That to such men there results no profit of spiritual gifts, He shows by obvious examples, adding, He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much; and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. Now our Lord opens to us the eye of the heart, explaining what He had said, adding, If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? That which is least then is the mammon of unrighteousness, that is, earthly riches, which seem nothing to those that are heavenly wise. I think then that a man is faithful in a little, when he imparts aid to those who are bowed down with sorrow. If then we have been unfaithful in a little thing, how shall we obtain from hence the true riches, that is, the fruitful gift of Divine grace, impressing the image of God on the human soul? But that our Lord's words incline to this meaning is plain from the following; for He says, And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? But the conclusion of the whole discourse is what follows, Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Let us then transfer all our devotions to the one, forsaking riches.
Dictionary and topics
Mammon — A Chaldee or Syriac word meaning “wealth” or “riches” (Luke 16:9-11); also, by personification, the god of riches (Matt. 6:24; Luke 16:9-11).
Faithfulness · EXHORTATION TO — EXHORTATION TO
Injustice · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Probation · The embezzling steward — The embezzling steward
Servants · Duties of, to masters: To be faithful to them — Duties of, to masters: To be faithful to them
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Luke 16:1-15
Luke 16:1-15
1. And he said also to his disciples, There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and he was accused to him that he was wasting his estate. 2. And he called him, and said to him, What is this that I hear of thee? render an account of thy stewardship, for thou shalt no longer have it in thy power to be steward. 3. And the steward said within himself, What shall I do, since my master taketh from me my stewardship? I cannot dig, and am ashamed to beg. 4. I know what I shall do, that, when I shall be dismissed from the stewardship, they may receive me [294] into their houses. 5. Having therefore sent for each of his master's debtors, he said to the first, How much…
worldly resources: This is a better translation than the traditional “mammon of unrighteousness” (KJV). Believers are to use their resources wisely for spiritual benefit. • they will welcome you to an eternal home: They are probably the friends. Just as the manager’s friends would give him security, the friends we win to the Kingdom will warmly welcome us for eternity.
