Parable of the talents or minas

As the parable of the talents of two New Testament parable stories are referred to, which have been handed similar in Matthew's and Luke's Gospel. Jesus portrays a gentleman who richly furnishes his servants with financial resources, then embarks on the road, watching for his return billing. The first two servants to make a profit and be rewarded according to their performance. The money of the last, however, who invested nothing of fear and hid it instead, the Lord will take away and speaks it according to the principle "He who has, more will be given; who has not, to him shall be taken. " the most successful to.

Wording

The parable is narrated by Luke and Matthew in two similar versions, but differ in some details:

Structure

Differences

Matthew describes patently a trader to equip its three servants with according to their specific skills talents at different heights and embarks on a journey whose purpose will be described in detail. In Luke, however, there is a nobleman, who each entrusted a mine his ten servants, and then goes on his way to his enthronement, on which he is exposed to various hostile. Matthew portrays the intermediate growth of the invested funds by 100%. The most gifted generates a grand total of 10 talents, the second doubled its profits from two to four. The reward for both is done but at the same level, "You were on a small scale ... faithful ... I will put you in a big job. Enter thou into the joy of thy lord. " Luke again oriented remuneration at the level of the profit: the range of 1000 % (from 1 to 10 mines ) will be rewarded with the rule over 10 cities, and ranged from 500 % (5 mines ) with the 5 towns. As the remaining seven servants go out, is irrelevant narrative technique. The last is the third party who keeps the money packed in Luke with him, buries it in Matthew in the earth. In Matthew, the Lord punishes the servant of the exclusion in those area where " weeping and gnashing of teeth " rule. In Luke, the Lord calls conclude with this on his enemies who do not want him as their King to seize and kill before his eyes.

Source theory and dependencies

The historical- critical exegesis of the New Testament parables recognizes as a basis a text from the sayings source ( "Q"). This had the parts Lk comprises 19,12-13.15-24.26. Luke 've added to Luke 19:14 - 15a .25 (failed thwarting the kingship of making ) a second theme which criticism of the enemies of Jesus exercises, trying to prevent his imminent enthronement in Jerusalem.

The text of Matthew tends to be more drastic and more differentiated representation. The servants receive different amounts of money, which are also significantly greater than in Q / Lk (see weights and measures in the Bible). The last servant is not only criticized but explicitly marked with the attribute " lazy". With the punishment in the " darkness " reached the parable in Matthew own climax. This is probably an editorial addition by Matthew, who thus puts greater emphasis on the eschatological aspect of the narrative and, in particular, emphasizes the punitive aspect of the Last Judgment. Another condemnation of Latter is not pronounced in Luke.

Interpretation

Man, especially the Christian, experiences himself as talented, equipped with gifts that he has to manage " in faithfulness " and multiply. There is a risk of their loss, they should not be used. " Do " means to dispose of talents and to do business with them. "He who has, more will be given " here can mean as much as " Property entails obligations ", material and beyond.

When resemble both parable texts formally, but the content and contextual differences become apparent. The neighborhood to the previous Matthean parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13 ) and the subsequent parable of the Last Judgment (Matthew 25:31-46 ) refers to the character of the narrative as a parable parousia. The sudden irruption each with the ability to be late and to be condemned, give Matthew's version of a ethisierenden character.

Due to the proximity of the Lukan version to previous encounters with Pharisees, as Zacchaeus (Luke 19, 1-10), is also frequently seen the parable as a criticism of this group. With the form of the traveling king candidate the parable of a bridge to the subsequent entry into Jerusalem (Luke 19:28 ff) as the way of the aspiring king of the Jews to his proclamation. Jesus tells the parable on the way to Jerusalem. The listener or reader of the parable falls close to the Lord Jesus in the parable. Thus emerges a further, albeit metaphorical announcement of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus in the parable.

Luise Schottroff however, the parable in Luke interpreted to mean that it does not handle himself with the king contender to Jesus of Nazareth, but one of the Herodian kings, who had to be equipped with the kingship in Rome. This proves that with extracts from Flavius ​​Josephus, who reports of such delegations and how to deal with the resistance against it. Thus the eschatological interpretation is interpreted away from the talent (in the sense of skills ), towards the counter-image of the messianic kingship of Jesus of Nazareth: not the immediate coming of the kingdom of God is in this context at the center of Jesus' statement, but the message that the " will go on turning to God after Jesus' death " ( Schottroff, Luise: The parables of Jesus, Gütersloh 2010, p.245 ).

Trivia

The phrase "He who has, more will be given " has been called " Matthew effect ", a " basic law" of each action-related sociology, known.