Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, 4 but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 6 At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. 11 Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ 12 But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Jesus addressed the future life of the Church and explains that time should be spent carefully winning converts for the kingdom of heaven until the Parousia, the return of the Son of Man, whose exact day or time is not known (v. 13; Mt. 24:36). The bridegroom represented the return of the Lord. The imagery of a wedding was used by Rabbis to describe the relationship between God and His people. The ten virgins, five wise and five foolish, represented the mixed nature of the Christian Church (Mt. 13:36-43) whose members were expecting the imminent coming of the kingdom of heaven.
“The bridegroom was long delayed (v. 5);” Matthew was telling Church members to wait on the promise of the kingdom. But waiting may cause the love of God and love of neighbor (Mt. 22:34-40) in some hearts to grow cold so it was important that they be vigilant and not fall short in judgment, mercy, and fidelity (Mt. 23:23). The Lord will return at a time they do not expect. The oil represented good works, and the foolish virgins were lacking in sufficient good works. Since good works are not transferrable, the wise virgins could not give the foolish virgins any of their good works. The foolish virgins went out to do more good works, but in the meantime, the bridegroom came, and they were not ready to be welcomed into the kingdom. The locked door means that acceptance into the kingdom is not automatic. We must be patient, prepare ourselves and do good works for the kingdom. St Paul said, “So then, my beloved, work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12).”
Almighty God, help us to seek you with our whole heart for your kindness and mercy are a greater good than life itself. Grant us the grace to be righteous in our good works with the assurance that we will be welcomed at the heavenly banquet. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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