Matthew 24:45

The Faithful and Wise Slave

24:45 “Who then is the faithful and wise slave, ¹  whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves ²  their food at the proper time?

Luke 12:42

12:42 The Lord replied, ³  “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, ⁴  whom the master puts in charge of his household servants, ⁵  to give them their allowance of food at the proper time?

Luke 16:10-12

16:10 “The one who is faithful in a very little ⁶  is also faithful in much, and the one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 16:11 If then you haven’t been trustworthy ⁷  in handling worldly wealth, ⁸  who will entrust you with the true riches? ⁹  16:12 And if you haven’t been trustworthy ¹⁰  with someone else’s property, ¹¹  who will give you your own ¹² ?

Luke 16:2

16:2 So ¹³  he called the manager ¹⁴  in and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? ¹⁵  Turn in the account of your administration, ¹⁶  because you can no longer be my manager.’

Colossians 4:1-3

4:1 Masters, treat your slaves with justice and fairness, because you know that you also have a master in heaven.

Exhortation to Pray for the Success of Paul’s Mission

4:2 Be devoted to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. 4:3 At the same time pray ¹⁷  for us too, that ¹⁸  God may open a door for the message ¹⁹  so that we may proclaim ²⁰  the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ²¹ 

Colossians 3:17

3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:1

Exhortations to Seek the Things Above

3:1 Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Colossians 4:10-11

4:10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him). 4:11 And Jesus who is called Justus also sends greetings. In terms of Jewish converts, ²²  these are the only fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me.

[24:45]  ¹ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 8:9.

[24:45]  ² tn Grk “give them.”

[12:42]  ³ tn Grk “And the Lord said.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[12:42]  ⁴ tn Or “administrator,” “steward” (L&N 37.39).

[12:42]  ⁵ tn This term, θεραπεία (qerapeia), describes the group of servants working in a particular household (L&N 46.6).

[16:10]  ⁶ sn The point of the statement faithful in a very little is that character is shown in how little things are treated.

[16:11]  ⁷ tn Or “faithful.”

[16:11]  ⁸ tn Grk “the unrighteous mammon.” See the note on the phrase “worldly wealth” in v. 9.

[16:11]  ⁹ 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.

[16:12]  ¹⁰ tn Or “faithful.”

[16:12]  ¹¹ tn Grk “have not been faithful with what is another’s.”

[16:12]  ¹² tn Grk “what is your own.”

[16:2]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the reports the man received about his manager.

[16:2]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “him”; the referent (the manager) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:2]  ¹⁵ sn Although phrased as a question, the charges were believed by the owner, as his dismissal of the manager implies.

[16:2]  ¹⁶ tn Or “stewardship”; the Greek word οἰκονομία (oikonomia) is cognate with the noun for the manager (οἰκονόμος, oikonomo").

[4:3]  ¹⁷ tn Though προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi) is an adverbial participle related to the previous imperative, προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite), it is here translated as an independent clause due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[4:3]  ¹⁸ tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been rendered as substantival here, indicating the content of the prayer rather than the purpose for it. These two ideas are very similar and difficult to differentiate in this passage, but the conjunction ἵνα following a verb of praying is generally regarded as giving the content of the prayer.

[4:3]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “that God may open for us a door of the word to speak the mystery of Christ.” The construction in Greek is somewhat awkward in this clause. The translation attempts to simplify this structure somewhat and yet communicate exactly what Paul is asking for.

[4:3]  ²⁰ tn Or “so that we may speak.”

[4:3]  ²¹ tn Or “in prison.”

[4:11]  ²² tn Grk “those of the circumcision.” The verse as a whole is difficult to translate because it is unclear whether Paul is saying (1) that the only people working with him are Jewish converts at the time the letter is being written or previously, or (2) that Aristarchus, Mark, and Jesus Justus were the only Jewish Christians who ever worked with him. Verses 12-14 appear to indicate that Luke and Demas, who were Gentiles, were also working currently with Paul. This is the view adopted in the translation. See M. J. Harris, Colossians and Philemon (EGGNT), 207-8.