16:1 Jesus 9 also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who was informed of accusations 10 that his manager 11 was wasting 12 his assets.
1 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
2 tn See L&N 13.154 for this use of the middle voice of φυλάσσω (fulassw) in this verse.
3 tn Or “avarice,” “covetousness.” Note the warning covers more than money and gets at the root attitude – the strong desire to acquire more and more possessions and experiences.
4 sn The call to sell your possessions is a call to a lack of attachment to the earth and a generosity as a result.
5 tn Grk “give alms,” but this term is not in common use today.
6 tn Grk “in the heavens.”
7 tn Or “an unfailing treasure in heaven,” or “an inexhaustible treasure in heaven.”
8 tn The term σής (shs) refers to moths in general. It is specifically the larvae of moths that destroy clothing by eating holes in it (L&N 4.49; BDAG 922 s.v.). See Jas 5:2, which mentions “moth-eaten” clothing.
7 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 tn These are not formal legal charges, but reports from friends, acquaintances, etc.; Grk “A certain man was rich who had a manager, and this one was reported to him as wasting his property.”
9 sn His manager was the steward in charge of managing the house. He could have been a slave trained for the role.
10 tn Or “squandering.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).
10 sn Zacchaeus was a penitent man who resolved on the spot to act differently in the face of Jesus’ acceptance of him. In resolving to give half his possessions to the poor, Zacchaeus was not defending himself against the crowd’s charges and claiming to be righteous. Rather as a result of this meeting with Jesus, he was a changed individual. So Jesus could speak of salvation coming that day (v. 9) and of the lost being saved (v. 10).
11 tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text. It virtually confesses fraud.