The Life of Jesus

like people waiting for their master’s return after a wedding feast; so that when he comes and knocks, they will open the door for him without delay.

Happy the slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes! Yes! I tell you he will put on his work clothes, seat them at the table, and come serve them himself!

Whether it is late at night or early in the morning, if this is how he finds them, those slaves are happy.

“But notice this: no house-owner would let his house be broken into if he knew when the thief was coming.

You too, be ready! For the Son of Man will come when you are not expecting him.”

Kefa said, “Sir, are you telling this parable for our benefit only or for everyone’s?”

The Lord replied, “Nu, who is the faithful and sensible manager whose master puts him in charge of the household staff to give them their share of food at the proper time?

It will go well with that servant if he is found doing his job when his master comes.

Yes, I tell you he will put him in charge of all he owns.

But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking his time coming,’ and starts bullying the men- and women-servants, and eating and drinking, getting drunk,

then his master will come on a day when the servant isn’t expecting him, at a time he doesn’t know in advance; his master will cut him in two and put him with the disloyal.

Now the servant who knew what his master wanted but didn’t prepare or act according to his will, will be whipped with many lashes;

however, the one who did what deserves a beating, but didn’t know, will receive few lashes. From him who has been given much, much will be demanded — from someone to whom people entrust much, they ask still more.

“I have come to set fire to the earth! And how I wish it were already kindled!

I have an immersion to undergo — how pressured I feel till it’s over!

Do you think that I have come to bring peace in the Land? Not peace, I tell you, but division!

For from now on, a household of five will be divided, three against two, two against three.

Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

Then to the crowds Yeshua said, “When you see a cloud-bank rising in the west, at once you say that a rainstorm is coming;

and when the wind is from the south, you say there will be a heat wave, and there is.

Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky — how is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?

Why don’t you decide for yourselves what is the right course to follow?

If someone brings a lawsuit against you, take pains to settle with him first; otherwise he will take the matter to court, and the judge will turn you over to the bailiff, and the bailiff will throw you in jail.

I tell you, you won’t get out of there till you have paid the last penny!”

Just then, some people came to tell Yeshua about the men from the Galil whom Pilate had slaughtered even while they were slaughtering animals for sacrifice.