Gird your loins and light your lamps 36 and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. 38 And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants. 39 Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40 You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” 41 Then Peter said, “Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?” 42 And the Lord replied, “Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants to distribute [the] food allowance at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property. 45 But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 then that servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the unfaithful. 47 That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; 48 and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.
Jesus warned his disciples that they must be vigilant in taking care of the faithful while waiting patiently for the return of the Lord (master). Servants and stewards are those who give service to the Christian community (1 Cor. 4:1-2). To those servants who are vigilant and do the master’s will, the master takes on the role of a slave and serves them (v. 37). At the Last Supper, Jesus told his disciples, “I am among you as the one who serves (Lk. 22:27),” and Jesus demonstrated service when he washed the disciples’ feet (Jn. 13:1-17). Servants (disciples) must be prepared because they do not know when the Son of Man is coming and should not grow weary even if he is long delayed (Mk. 13:33-37). In this case, Luke is referring to the second coming of Christ, not the first as in Lk. 12:10.
Those in positions of authority in the Church must be faithful, vigilant, and attend to the needs of the community (v. 42) so that they can share in the heavenly banquet. Verses 37, 38, and 43 are in the form of beatitudes. Jesus implies three woes (consequences) for the stewards who do not use their authority wisely (vv. 46-48). Some will be punished severely, some will be beaten severely, and some will be beaten lightly. The less severe punishment will be meted out to those who are ignorant of God’s will but act like those who are lazy and indifferent to God’s will.
Almighty God, help us to be good stewards of all that you entrust to our care so that we can guide others in accordance with our capacity to do your will. 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.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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