Luke 16:9

16:9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by how you use worldly wealth, ¹  so that when it runs out you will be welcomed ²  into the eternal homes. ³ 

Luke 16:11

16:11 If then you haven’t been trustworthy ⁴  in handling worldly wealth, ⁵  who will entrust you with the true riches? ⁶ 

Luke 16:13

16:13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate ⁷  the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise ⁸  the other. You cannot serve God and money.” ⁹ 

[16:9]  ¹ tn Grk “unrighteous mammon.” Mammon is the Aramaic term for wealth or possessions. The point is not that money is inherently evil, but that it is often misused so that it is a means of evil; see 1 Tim 6:6-10, 17-19. The call is to be generous and kind in its use. Zacchaeus becomes the example of this in Luke’s Gospel (19:1-10).

[16:9]  ² sn The passive refers to the welcome of heaven.

[16:9]  ³ tn Grk “eternal tents” (as dwelling places).

[16:11]  ⁴ tn Or “faithful.”

[16:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “the unrighteous mammon.” See the note on the phrase “worldly wealth” in v. 9.

[16:11]  ⁶ sn Entrust you with the true riches is a reference to future service for God. The idea is like 1 Cor 9:11, except there the imagery is reversed.

[16:13]  ⁷ sn The contrast between hate and love here is rhetorical. The point is that one will choose the favorite if a choice has to be made.

[16:13]  ⁸ tn Or “and treat [the other] with contempt.”

[16:13]  ⁹ tn Grk “God and mammon.” This is the same word (μαμωνᾶς, mamwnas; often merely transliterated as “mammon”) translated “worldly wealth” in vv. 9, 11.