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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Luke C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24
Luke 16 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31
OET (OET-LV) Then to_another he_said:
And how_much are_ you _owing?
And he said:
A_hundred koros/(kor)_measures of_wheat.
He_is_saying to_him:
Receive of_you the bills and write eighty.
OET (OET-RV) Then he asked the next one, ‘How much do you owe?’ ‘A hundred containers of wheat,’ the man replied. ‘Get the contract form and change it to eighty,’ said the manager.
In the main part of this section, 16:1–8b, Jesus told a parable that appears only in Luke. In this parable a rich man had hired a man to manage his money and possessions for him. The manager was dishonest in his work, so the rich man said that he could not continue to be his manager. But before the manager left this work, he used his position and money to cause other people to like him. He did this so that they would help him when he no longer had an income.
The main point of this parable is that the manager knew how to use money to make things better for his own future. In this way he was a good example for Jesus’ disciples. The parable does not mean that Jesus approved of the manager’s dishonesty.
In 16:8c–16:9 Jesus commented on the parable and applied it to his disciples. In 16:10–13 he gave other teachings about the proper use of wealth.
Other possible headings for this section are:
The Parable of the Shrewd Manager (NIV)
The dishonest man who was in charge of a rich man’s wealth
Then he asked another,
Then he asked another debtor/person,
When the next man came/arrived, the manager/employee asked him,
Then he asked another: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates literally as another refers to another of the men who owed something to the rich man. While versions such as the NET and NIV describe this as “the second” debtor, he was not necessarily the second one who spoke to the manager. Here is another way to translate this:
Then he said to another (REB)
‘And how much do you owe?’
‘And as for you,(sing) sir, what is your debt to my employer?’
‘How much do you owe my boss?’
And how much do you owe: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates as And introduces the same question as in 16:5b. The manager was now asking it to a different person. In some languages it may be natural to indicate the change to a different person by putting the pronoun you in a more emphatic position. For example:
And you, sir, how much do you owe? (NJB)
‘A hundred measures of wheat,’ he replied.
And the man said, ‘One thousand bushels of wheat.’
He answered, ‘I owe him one hundred large sacks of grain.’
A hundred measures of wheat: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates literally as A hundred measures of wheat refers to a “measure” that was a dry measure of about ten bushels.In terms of a metric measure, a bushel was about thirty-seven liters. In terms of money, a “measure” of wheat was worth about twenty-five to thirty days’ wages for a workman. Some ways to translate this quantity are:
Use a standard dry measure. For example:
A thousand bushels of wheat (NIV)
Use a measure of weight. For example:
44,000 pounds
20,000 kilos
Use a commonly known local container or unit of measure for wheat or other grain. For example:
One hundred bags (NLV)
A hundred containers (NRSV)
one hundred sacks/baskets
wheat: In this context the word wheat refers to just the grain kernels, not to the stalks. In some areas wheat may not be known. If that is true in your area, other ways to translate it are:
Use a more general term. For example:
grain
Use a different type of grain that is grown in your area and is similar to wheat. For example:
barley/rice
See the note and picture of wheat in 3:17b.
‘Take your bill
Then the manager/employee said to him, ‘Here is your(sing) written/loan agreement/contract.
and write eighty,’ he told him.
Write that you(sing) owe him eight hundred bushels of wheat.’
Replace what is written here with eighty large sacks of grain.’ And the man did this.
Take your bill and write eighty: This command is similar to what the manager told the first man (see the notes on 16:6b and 16:6c). The second man had to pay only eighty measures of wheat instead of one hundred measures. Whatever amount you use in 16:7c should be reduced by one-fifth in 16:7e. In other words, 16:7e must be four-fifths (80%) of whatever measure you use in 16:7c.
If it is necessary to understand the parable, you may need to put the following implied information in a footnote:
The manager helped in a similar way each of the men who owed things to the rich man.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / quotesinquotes
ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν, σὺ δὲ πόσον ὀφείλεις?
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν σύ Δέ πόσον ὀφείλεις ὁ Δέ εἶπεν Ἑκατόν κόρους σίτου Λέγει αὐτῷ Δέξαι σοῦ τά γράμματα καί γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα)
If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate this so that there is not a quotation within a quotation. Alternate translation: [Then the manager asked another debtor how much he owed]
Note 2 topic: translate-bvolume
ἑκατὸν κόρους
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν σύ Δέ πόσον ὀφείλεις ὁ Δέ εἶπεν Ἑκατόν κόρους σίτου Λέγει αὐτῷ Δέξαι σοῦ τά γράμματα καί γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα)
The word cors is the plural of “cor,” an ancient measurement equal to about one fifth of a metric ton or about ten bushels. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use the equivalent modern measurement in your translation. You could also use a general term, as UST does. Alternate translation: [20 tons] (metric tons) or “1,000 bushels”
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / quotesinquotes
ὁ δὲ εἶπεν, ἑκατὸν κόρους σίτου λέγει αὐτῷ, δέξαι σου τὰ γράμματα καὶ γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα
he (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν σύ Δέ πόσον ὀφείλεις ὁ Δέ εἶπεν Ἑκατόν κόρους σίτου Λέγει αὐτῷ Δέξαι σοῦ τά γράμματα καί γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα)
If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate this so that there is not a quotation within a quotation. Alternate translation: [He told the manager that he owed 100 cors of wheat. The manager told him to take his bill and change that to 80 cors]
λέγει αὐτῷ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν σύ Δέ πόσον ὀφείλεις ὁ Δέ εἶπεν Ἑκατόν κόρους σίτου Λέγει αὐτῷ Δέξαι σοῦ τά γράμματα καί γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα)
To convey vividness and immediacy, the parable uses the present tense in past narration here. See how you decided to approach this usage in [7:40](../07/40.md). If it would not be natural to use the present tense in your language, you could use the past tense in your translation. Alternate translation: [He said to him]
Note 4 topic: translate-unknown
σου τὰ γράμματα
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν σύ Δέ πόσον ὀφείλεις ὁ Δέ εἶπεν Ἑκατόν κόρους σίτου Λέγει αὐτῷ Δέξαι σοῦ τά γράμματα καί γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα)
See how you translated your bill in [16:6](../16/06.md). Alternate translation: [your statement] or [your note]
Note 5 topic: translate-bvolume
ὀγδοήκοντα
eighty
If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent modern measurement in your translation. Alternate translation: [16 tons] or [800 bushels]
OET (OET-LV) Then to_another he_said:
And how_much are_ you _owing?
And he said:
A_hundred koros/(kor)_measures of_wheat.
He_is_saying to_him:
Receive of_you the bills and write eighty.
OET (OET-RV) Then he asked the next one, ‘How much do you owe?’ ‘A hundred containers of wheat,’ the man replied. ‘Get the contract form and change it to eighty,’ said the manager.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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