Parable of the Faithful Servant

Etching by Jan Luyken illustrating the parable, from the Bowyer Bible.

The Parable of the Faithful Servant or Parable of the Door Keeper is a parable told by Jesus in the New Testament, found in Matthew Matthew 24:42–51, Mark Mark 13:34–37, and Luke Luke 12:35–48.

In Matthew, it immediately precedes the Parable of the Ten Virgins, which has a similar eschatological theme: be prepared for the day of reckoning.

Narrative

In Luke, the parable is as follows:

"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."

Peter asked, "Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?"

The Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, 'My master is taking a long time in coming,' and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

— Luke 12:35-48, New International Version

Interpretation

In Matthew, the parable opens with the injunction "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come" (niv Matthew 24:42). In other words, "the disciple must remain prepared for his Lord's coming, remaining alert and awake at his post." Even though there may be general signs of Jesus' Second Coming, the exact time is unknown. This is a theme which has also been discussed earlier in 12 Luke 12. The reference to a wedding banquet in 12:36 Luke 12:36 suggests a heavenly banquet, and recalls the parable of the Ten Virgins which follows this parable in Matthew.

The second part of the parable includes a caution that, to whom much is given, much will be required. J. Dwight Pentecost writes that this parable "emphasizes that privilege brings responsibility and that responsibility entails accountability." This applies particularly to religious leaders.

Hymns

The parable is the theme for several hymns, including Philip Doddridge's "Ye Servants of the Lord," which ends:

Christ shall the banquet spread
With His own royal hand,
And raise that faithful servant’s head
Amid the angelic band.