28:24 The one who robs 1 his father and mother and says, “There is no transgression,”
is a companion 2 to the one 3 who destroys.
30:29 I have become a brother to jackals
and a companion of ostriches. 4
16:1 Jesus 10 also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who was informed of accusations 11 that his manager 12 was wasting 13 his assets. 16:2 So 14 he called the manager 15 in and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? 16 Turn in the account of your administration, 17 because you can no longer be my manager.’
1 sn While the expression is general enough to cover any kind of robbery, the point seems to be that because it can be rationalized it may refer to prematurely trying to gain control of the family property through some form of pressure and in the process reducing the parents’ possessions and standing in the community. The culprit could claim what he does is not wrong because the estate would be his anyway.
2 sn The metaphor of “companion” here means that a person who would do this is just like the criminally destructive person. It is as if they were working together, for the results are the same.
3 tn Heb “man who destroys” (so NASB); TEV “no better than a common thief.”
4 sn The point of this figure is that Job’s cries of lament are like the howls and screeches of these animals, not that he lives with them. In Job 39:13 the female ostrich is called “the wailer.”
5 tn Grk “And after.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
6 tn Grk “after not many days.”
7 tn Or “wasted.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).
8 tn Or “estate” (the same word has been translated “estate” in v. 12).
9 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the sequence of events in the parable. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.
10 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 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.”
12 sn His manager was the steward in charge of managing the house. He could have been a slave trained for the role.
13 tn Or “squandering.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).
14 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the reports the man received about his manager.
15 tn Grk “him”; the referent (the manager) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
16 sn Although phrased as a question, the charges were believed by the owner, as his dismissal of the manager implies.
17 tn Or “stewardship”; the Greek word οἰκονομία (oikonomia) is cognate with the noun for the manager (οἰκονόμος, oikonomo").