Of all the Scripture, this one is one of those whose meaning I've yet to grasp. Why was the "evil" servant afraid that his master would "reap where he has not sown"?
The one who reaps where he has not sown.........
- Thread starter pumpkinbread1567
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I'm asking about the reaping where he has not sown part. I should then change the question to what does it mean?
The Passions Translation (TPT) has a footnote about the parable in Matthew 25:
"By implication the parable is stating, “The one who has [a heart of faithful stewardship] will be given more [to manage]. And the one who has very little [faithfulness, wisdom, integrity] will lose the little he has [failed to manage well].”"
“Then the one who had been entrusted with one thousand gold coins came to his master and said, ‘Look, sir. I know that you are a hard man to please and you’re a shrewd and ruthless businessman who grows rich on the backs of others.[f] I was afraid of you, so I went and hid your money and buried it in the ground. But here it is—take it, it’s yours.’" - Matthew 25:24-25 TPT
Compared to KJV:
"Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine." - Matthew 25:24-25 KJV
"By implication the parable is stating, “The one who has [a heart of faithful stewardship] will be given more [to manage]. And the one who has very little [faithfulness, wisdom, integrity] will lose the little he has [failed to manage well].”"
“Then the one who had been entrusted with one thousand gold coins came to his master and said, ‘Look, sir. I know that you are a hard man to please and you’re a shrewd and ruthless businessman who grows rich on the backs of others.[f] I was afraid of you, so I went and hid your money and buried it in the ground. But here it is—take it, it’s yours.’" - Matthew 25:24-25 TPT
Compared to KJV:
"Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine." - Matthew 25:24-25 KJV
Then my question is, if this is the correct interpretation of this passage, why then is this servant depicted to have thought that his Master was a ruthless business man who grows rich on the backs of others?
Is it because Jesus' army is taking back Earth from the devil? I just do not understand this servant's psychology. Perhaps this is a way of slandering the righteous One? Why did he become His servant in the first place then?
I suppose it could be said that He DOES reap the grain of Gentiles which were not sown in the former time.
I suppose it could be said that He DOES reap the grain of Gentiles which were not sown in the former time.
yeah... I suppose slandering is a possibility. But in fact, the Master does admit that He reaps where he has not sown and gathers where he has not scattered seed, so...
It means he sent his NT servants to reap what his OT servants sowed, the word of the Lord,
I sent you to reap that on which ye bestowed no labor: other men labored, and ye have entered into their labors. Jn.4:38
These words are more like one lead a church beginning with 500 believers, and then developing 500 believers.
But there was a man who thought God had the heart willing to see the Unbelievers being reaped,There were 1000 believers in his church at first, but it was still 1000 believers in the end.
But there was a man who thought God had the heart willing to see the Unbelievers being reaped,There were 1000 believers in his church at first, but it was still 1000 believers in the end.
the parable is about being unfruitful like several others. We’re given a measure of faith when we accept Christ and we can’t ignore it or not use the gifts he gives us for the purpose of spreading his gospel bRinging his name to others who will believe
each receives a different call within Christ one receives much understanding other receives less but still some and another receives just enough to call it some . Each isn’t going to produce a massive identical crop but each must produce measure of fruit according to their faith and understanding
the one who is afraid doesn’t act on what he knows about his lord. That’s what made him guilty he knew me didn’t act to provide the lord his harvest even a small one the wicked servant was unfruitful with the talent given the others out thiers to service and the lord reaped fruit because of investing in them so they are invited into the joy and sabbath of the lord in his kingdom
fear of Gods image in the ot can keep us from coming close enough to hear his words of instruction that make us fruitful that make our invesments grow with what he’s given us
some have little d only require little fruit , others have much and need to produce a harvest with thier much received
He goes on to say "you should have put My money with the bankers so that I might have had interest" [my paraphrase]
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pottersclay
Guest
I believe jesus was referring to the Pharisees of his time.
My house is a house of prayer...you have made it a den of thieves.
Adding to the law they made it impossible for anyone to be excepted.
That's why jesus (fulfilled prophecy) by cleaning the temple.
They would slight people with faulty scales, sell sacrificial animals for profit.
They hid the truth of God's word from the people. They lorded over the people. Sent spies out to look for wrong doings. So many things.
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pottersclay
Guest
The reflection of what went on in the temple made the servant think that God was this way Causing him to fear if he failed he hid what was intrusted to him.
The answer is simple....not complicated with human reasoning....so simple you almost answered it yourself....
The “evil” servant acted in FEAR....fear is evidence of pride....NO FAITH. The “evil” servant is relying on himself/herself....there is NO PROFIT in self reliance....only fear.
Let LOVE be the reason WHY we do what we do....
There is NO FEAR in Love...if we love God, we will not give in to fear. We can only promote the Kingdom of God with love.....
I indeed thought that, and I think that's most likely the case... But then, why is this evil servant saying he was scared because of that? He's so open about it.
And also does this mean the servant here is an Israelite?
Because he understood what a warrior our King is, rock steady, and when it came to joining the battle, the evil servant was a coward. In fact, the good servants gained because our Lord blessed their faithfulness. He gives the increase,
I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. 1Cor.3:6-7
No. Race is a matter of the flesh and has nothing to do with faith.
[QUut it.[/QUOTE]
Ah. Cowardice is a good suggestion. It'd make sense that he knew what the Master would do and it made him afraid. ...It still doesn't make a whole lot of sense though. I might not see it perfectly fit in the context. Or perhaps there is some factor missing there. The fact that the Master's reaping Gentiles which the Old Prophets did not sow should not simply make him afraid if it were a simple task to multiply given talents, nor the nature of the Master, which is a warrior. The servant seems to have been afraid of the fact that He reaps Gentile grain, and that He was a man hard to please (requiring a fair bit from servants). So logic dictates that there was something intimidating about how he was supposed to increase the one talent. Perhaps he was afraid of the persecution that would follow? (He still sounds like an Israelite who received the first seeds from his mentioning "a hard man to please'.)