Luke 16:8

16:8 The ¹  master commended the dishonest ²  manager because he acted shrewdly. ³  For the people ⁴  of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their contemporaries ⁵  than the people ⁶  of light.

Ephesians 5:8

5:8 for you were at one time darkness, but now you are ⁷  light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light –

Ephesians 5:1

Live in Love

5:1 Therefore, be ⁸  imitators of God as dearly loved children

Ephesians 5:5

5:5 For you can be confident of this one thing: ⁹  that no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

Ephesians 5:8

5:8 for you were at one time darkness, but now you are ¹⁰  light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light –

Ephesians 5:1

Live in Love

5:1 Therefore, be ¹¹  imitators of God as dearly loved children

Ephesians 2:9-11

2:9 it is not from ¹²  works, so that no one can boast. ¹³  2:10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them. ¹⁴ 

New Life Corporately

2:11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh – who are called “uncircumcision” by the so-called “circumcision” that is performed on the body ¹⁵  by human hands –

¹ tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

² sn Is the manager dishonest because of what he just did? Or is it a reference to what he had done earlier, described in v. 1? This is a difficult question, but it seems unlikely that the master, having fired the man for prior dishonesty, would now commend those same actions. It would also be unusual for Jesus to make that point of the story the example. Thus it is more likely the reference to dishonesty goes back to the earliest events, while the commendation is for the cleverness of the former manager reflected in vv. 5-7.

³ sn Where this parable ends is debated: Does it conclude with v. 7, after v. 8a, after v. 8b, or after v. 9? Verse 8a looks as if it is still part of the story, with its clear reference to the manager, while 8b looks like Jesus’ application, since its remarks are more general. So it is most likely the parable stops after v. 8a.

⁴ tn Grk “sons” (an idiom).

⁵ tn Grk “with their own generation.”

⁶ tn Grk “sons.” Here the phrase “sons of light” is a reference to the righteous. The point is that those of the world often think ahead about consequences better than the righteous do.

⁷ tn The verb “you are” is implied in the Greek text, but is supplied in the English translation to make it clear.

⁸ tn Or “become.”

⁹ tn Grk “be knowing this.” See also 2 Pet 1:20 for a similar phrase: τοῦτο πρῶτον γινώσκοντες (touto prwton ginwskonte").

¹⁰ tn The verb “you are” is implied in the Greek text, but is supplied in the English translation to make it clear.

¹¹ tn Or “become.”

¹² tn Or “not as a result of.”

¹³ tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.”

¹⁴ tn Grk “so that we might walk in them” (or “by them”).

¹⁵ tn Grk “in the flesh.”