By David Pyles
And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. - Luke 16:9
This scripture generally takes one totally by surprise upon initial reading. Nothing could be more contrary to the other teachings of the Lord than for one to make friends by the unrighteous use of mammon (i.e. material riches). However, the text will make sense when it is understood that the Lord is here speaking sarcastically to the wicked religious leaders of the Jews.
This statement is found in a parable wherein the Lord described a wicked but extremely clever steward whose fraud had been discovered by his lord. The steward, realizing that his lord would soon fire him and put him out on the streets, sought to secure himself with yet one more act of fraud: He discharged certain debts owed to his lord after accepting from the debtors payments that were substantially less than the amounts truly owed. Obviously, these debtors were of low character themselves for engaging in such business. The steward offered these unauthorized favors in the hopes that the debtors would return the favors by receiving him into their houses after his termination.
It was in this context that Jesus said to the wicked Jews, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. Hence, the Lord was making their case analogous to that of the unjust steward, because they too had been made stewards, though not of an estate but of God's word (1Cor 4:1, Tit 1:7), and they were also unfaithful and fraudulent in the discharge of their duties, and would therefore be removed from their offices. Jesus sarcastically advised them to do as the unjust steward had done in befriending the wicked, because they, like the unjust steward, would have their final residence with men of such character.
Observe that Jesus' advise to them was to make friends of the mammon of righteousness that when ye fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations. Jesus did not say "if ye fail," but when ye fail. The failure was certain, and the context implies that He meant failure in death. When this failure was to occur, they were to be received into everlasting habitations with the wicked. These habitations obviously do not refer to a place of unconsciousness or annihilation. They refer to a place where there will be intercourse between individuals of like kind. This clearly implies the principle of eternal punishment for the wicked, and if this principle were not made clear here, it will surely become clear in the scriptures that follow where the Lord tells of the rich man and Lazarus. Unfortunately, men as clever as the unjust steward himself have devised ingenious ways to avoid the clear implications of this chapter.
Unjust stewards of God's word are similar to the unjust steward of the parable in other ways. It is a prevailing characteristic of such stewards to teach the debtors of God that their debts are less than they actually are - to teach that they can be paid with human works, baptism, indulgences, and other acts of human merit, whereas the true debt is 10,000 talents and we have nothing wherewith to pay (Mt 18:24), and it cannot be paid with corruptible things such as gold and silver, but only with the precious blood of Christ (1Pet 1:18). Further, an unjust steward is seldom content to abide alone in his error but desires that others have complicity with him. They zealously affect (i.e. desire or covet) you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them, Gal 4:17. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them, Acts 20:29,30.
May the Lord bless us to abstain from the errors of the unjust steward, and to abide by His scriptural injunctions:
Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. - 1Cor 4:1-2
For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. - Tit 1:7-9