Matthew 25:3-4

25:3 When ¹  the foolish ones took their lamps, they did not take extra ²  olive oil ³  with them. 25:4 But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps.

Matthew 25:7

25:7 Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.

Matthew 26:11

26:11 For you will always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me! ⁴ 

Matthew 8:22

8:22 But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” ⁵ 

Matthew 18:31

18:31 When ⁶  his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were very upset and went and told their lord everything that had taken place.

Matthew 21:8

21:8 A ⁷  very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.

Matthew 25:1

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

25:1 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

Matthew 15:30

15:30 Then ⁸  large crowds came to him bringing with them the lame, blind, crippled, mute, and many others. They ⁹  laid them at his feet, and he healed them.

[25:3]  ¹ tn Grk “For when.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[25:3]  ² tn The word “extra” is not in the Greek text but is implied. The point is that the five foolish virgins had only the oil in their lamps, but took along no extra supply from which to replenish them. This is clear from v. 8, where the lamps of the foolish virgins are going out because they are running out of oil.

[25:3]  ³ tn On the use of olive oil in lamps, see L&N 6.202.

[26:11]  ⁴ tn In the Greek text of this clause, “me” is in emphatic position (the first word in the clause). To convey some impression of the emphasis, an exclamation point is used in the translation.

[8:22]  ⁷ sn There are several options for the meaning of Jesus’ reply Leave the dead to bury their own dead: (1) Recent research suggests that burial customs in the vicinity of Jerusalem from about 20 b.c. to a.d. 70 involved a reinterment of the bones a year after the initial burial, once the flesh had rotted away. At that point the son would have placed his father’s bones in a special box known as an ossuary to be set into the wall of the tomb. Thus Jesus could well be rebuking the man for wanting to wait around for as much as a year before making a commitment to follow him. In 1st century Jewish culture, to have followed Jesus rather than burying one’s father would have seriously dishonored one’s father (cf. Tobit 4:3-4). (2) The remark is an idiom (possibly a proverbial saying) that means, “The matter in question is not the real issue,” in which case Jesus was making a wordplay on the wording of the man’s (literal) request (see L&N 33.137). (3) This remark could be a figurative reference to various kinds of people, meaning, “Let the spiritually dead bury the dead.” (4) It could also be literal and designed to shock the hearer by the surprise of the contrast. Whichever option is preferred, it is clear that the most important priority is to follow Jesus.

[18:31]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “Therefore when.” Here οὖν (oun) has not been translated.

[21:8]  ¹³ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[15:30]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then.”

[15:30]  ¹⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.