NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Part III

When we examine Augustine’s interpretation of this verse, it appears that he was directing his remarks more to his audience than explaining what Jesus meant. It appears that he’s worried over the spiritual condition of many who attended his church, that they have become foolish in their living and are not putting God first. But he goes on to say: “And what is this mocking? ‘Go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves,’ you who never desired to live well but because people praised you, who sold you oil. Who are these who ‘sold you oil?’ They are the ones who sell praises. And who sells praises but flatterers? How much better would it have been for you not to have given in to flatterers, and to have carried oil within, and for the sake of a good conscience to have done all good works.”¹

So, Augustine was basically saying to believers in his day that those who were not really doing the work God willed them to do, yet were still willing to accept praise from their fellow believers, were like these foolish bridesmaids. In other words, this is a satirical way of saying: When resurrection day comes and your good works prove insufficient for you to rise to meet the groom, then go to those who falsely praised you and see if their congratulations will count enough to make up for what you lack.

Finally, Augustine says: “Go then to those who deal in human praise, as you have been accustomed to doing but do not expect the wise to give you oil at this crucial moment. Why? ‘Lest there not be enough for both of you.’ What is ‘lest there not be enough?’ This was not spoken in any lack of hope but in a sober and godly humility. For though the good person has a good conscience, how does he know how the final judge, who is deceived by no one, will judge? He has a good conscience; no sins conceived in the heart argue with him. Yet, though his conscience is good, because of the daily sins of human life, he says to God daily, ‘Forgive us our debts,’ on the assumption that he has already done what comes next, ‘as we also forgive our debtors.’² He has broken his bread to the hungry from the heart; from the heart has he clothed the naked.”³ This is a clear example of someone not practicing what they preach.

While this may fit well as a method of building a sermon on Jesus’ parable, but does not qualify as a full exegesis. We are not told where the ten bridesmaids got their oil, to begin with, whether it was given to them in preparation for their journey. And now that the foolish ones were unable to get additional oil from the original source, they were told to go and try to buy it from somewhere else. In this, I see where Jesus was saying that each believer is given the oil of love at their new birth.⁴ But if they use up that love for the things of this world rather than in their service to God, when the call is heard that the groom is coming, they will need to look for another source to replenish that love. And how impossible it will be to go to the flatterers of this world and find it. Notice, they were told to go buy the oil, not to receive it as a gift as they did in the beginning of their journey. But again, let’s not forget the main point in this parable is the foolishness of not taking the return of Christ seriously enough to constantly remain ready.

Verse 10: So the foolish girls went to buy oil. While they were gone, the bridegroom arrived. The girls who were ready went in with the bridegroom to the wedding feast. Then the door was closed and locked.

So five of the bridesmaids went off with their lamps lit in the direction of meeting the groom, and the other five set off in another direction with their flameless lamps in search of those who might sell them the oil they needed. This must have been difficult since it was still dark outside. No doubt, as the foolish bridesmaids left they were hoping and praying they would be able to get back in time before the wedding ceremony and celebration began.

Keep in mind, this is a part of the story, not the point of the story. The crux of this illustration is that all ten bridesmaids were given the same opportunity to be prepared to go out and meet the groom when he arrived. But only five of them took the time and had the wisdom to make sure they were ready when the time came. Thus, when the announcement was made, those who were prepared went out to meet the groom while they who were not prepared went out in search of what they needed to go along with them. This leads us to consider another factor in this parable. In Biblical days, light was a symbol of wisdom and darkness was a metaphor of ignorance. So it could be applied that all ten bridesmaids started out their journey to meet the groom with sufficient understanding to get them as far as they needed to go in order to wait for the call. But when the call came, only five of them had sufficient wisdom of the Word to know the signs and were, therefore, ready when it happened. The other five had not given enough time to this and were caught off guard and then went in search of more understanding of what just happened. However, once they did realize what took place, it was too late.

Augustine makes this comment: “It is no wonder that precisely while they were going out to buy, while they were seeking for praise from others and found none, while they were seeking for persons by whom to be comforted and found none—just then the shut door opened. Just then the groom came, and the bride, the church, was glorified then with Christ and all its members gathered together into one.”⁵ Then Bishop Hilary writes: “These foolish were not part of the group entering the wedding feast but late and unworthy of entering. They had lost their opportunity.”⁶

So, because the foolish bridesmaids were careless in not maintaining their oil supply, they lost their previously held opportunity to meet the groom when he came. Therefore, the emphasis here is not on the lamp or the oil, but on losing their place in the bridal party because of not being ready when the call to meet the groom was heard. But our Lord was not through with making His point. So He goes on to say:

Verses 11-12: Later, the other girls showed up. They said, “Sir, sir! Open the door to let us in.” But the groom answered, ‘Certainly not! I don’t even know you.’ So always be ready. You don’t know the day or the time when the Son of Man will come.”

The first thing we need to establish is that this parable was not just to tell a story, but about the spiritual lessons that can be learned and derived from the actions and attitudes of the characters in the story. It was a well-established Jewish custom that bridegrooms typically came for their brides in the middle of the night, to “steal them away.”⁷ The bride would have to be in place so the groom knew exactly where to find her. Her sisters or bridesmaids would also be waiting, keeping their lamps trimmed in anticipation of the late night festivities. So it was not a last minute decision. The plans were in place long before the wedding was to start. Only after the arrival of the groom could begin the proceedings.

In one of the lesser known Jewish stories, that may also have a bearing on this parable, as told by a Rabbi named Johanan ben Zakkai. He tells us: “A king summoned his servants to a banquet without setting the exact time. The wise ones adorned themselves and sat at the door of the palace asking, ‘is anything we can do in a royal palace?’ But the foolish ones went on about their work, saying, ‘how can there be a banquet without preparations’? Suddenly the king desired the presence of his servants: the wise entered adorned, while the fools showed up in soiled clothing. The king rejoiced at the wise but was angry with the fools. ‘For those who adorned themselves for the banquet,’ he ordered, ‘let them sit, eat and drink. But for those who did not adorn themselves for the banquet, he said let them stand and watch.’ So Rabbi Meir’s son-in-law said: Then, they would merely look as being in attendance. Even though both are sitting, the former are eating and the latter hungering, the former are drinking and the latter thirsting, for it is said, Therefore, says the Lord God, ‘Behold, my servants will eat, but you will be hungry: behold, my servants will drink, but you will be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but you will be ashamed: behold, my servants will sing for joy of heart, but you will cry for sorrow of heart.‘⁸”⁹

Jesus wanted His disciples to know that the coming of the groom would be a time of celebration for those who were ready. This echoes what we hear from Isaiah: “At that time people will say, ‘Here is our God! He is the one we have been waiting for. He has come to save us. We have been waiting for our LORD. So we will rejoice and be happy when He saves us.”¹⁰ This points out the contrast between those who are ready and those who give it not thought. Those who are ready favor it, while those who are not ready, fear it.

In Malachi, we read: “Then suddenly, the Lord you are looking for will come…Yes, the messenger you are waiting for…is really coming!”¹¹ But this is not good news to those who are lazy and give no time to getting ready for the Lord’s return. Job’s friend, Bildad, has an interesting thought we can compare to this, “Can papyrus grow tall on a dry land? Can reeds grow without water? No, they will dry up before harvest. They will be too small to cut and use. People who forget God are like that. Those who oppose Him are hopeless.”¹²

And Solomon gives us a different graphic in which to see this same principle, “The path of those who live right is like the dawning of a new day. It gets brighter and brighter until it is fully illuminated. But the path of the wicked is like a day that keeps getting darker.”¹³ Then the Psalmist points out another aspect we find taught in this parable, “No one has enough money to buy back [a wasted life], and you cannot bribe God. You will never get enough money to ensure life. You will never have enough to buy the right to live forever.”¹⁴

So in a sense, that’s what these five foolish young women had done, they thought that at the last moment they could make up for lost time but it didn’t work. As for the wise young ladies, it was exciting! This was the hour they had waited for and they were eager to go. And they were not going to risk missing the wedding on account of those who fooled around and didn’t bring along enough oil for their lamps. Therefore, these foolish women became much like those described by Amos, “They will go back and forth looking for a message from the LORD, but they will not find it.”¹⁵ When they finally found their way to where the wedding was taking place, they found the same thing the people did who showed up too late at Noah’s ark, the door was already closed.¹⁶