Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
The Unprofitable Servant

The Unprofitable Servant

Last updated on: April 5, 2016 at 2:45 am by Mary Pezzulo

The Unprofitable Servant 2016-04-05T02:45:31-04:00 Mary Pezzulo

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

gold-207585_640

a meditation based on Matthew 25: 14-30

A man was going on a journey, so he called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To the first he gave ten talents; to the second, he gave five. To the unwise and unprofitable servant, he gave only one talent, and went on his way.

The servants with ten and twenty talents took the gold and went to the nearest city to trade, taking the main road and moving slowly, for their gold was very heavy. They knew just whom to speak to to invest it wisely, and they knew that their gold would double its value in less than a day.

The servant who was given one talent also took his gold and went on his way to the next city. He had so little to carry that he was soon far ahead of the other two. He knew that he was unlike the other two– that he was an unwise and unprofitable servant, and he that he didn’t know the value of money. But he planned to put his master’s gold in the bank, and at least he could return the gold with interest. This is what he was thinking of as he walked along, and so he did not see the thief.

The thief fell upon the unprofitable servant; he beat him, robbed him and left him half dead on the side of the road. Then the thief went back to the master’s city. The unprofitable servant lay on the side of the road, unable to move or cry for help, for the rest of that day. The servant with ten talents passed him, but crossed to the other side of the road so he would not be delayed on his way to the neighboring town. The servant with five talents passed by the same way, and also crossed to the other side of the road. Both of these faithful servants knew of the thief, and they were relieved that the thief had already come and gone. There was no obstacle to their making a wise investment, and the master would surely be pleased. And still, the unprofitable servant suffered on the side of the road. The servant with ten talents traded with them, and received another ten in less than a day’s time. Likewise the servant with five received another five, and the two went back the way they’d come, passing the servant again. He looked dead, and they thought him dead, but they did not stop to make sure. He surely wasn’t of value to the Master, who’d only given him a single talent. The profitable servants left him alone, and went back to the master’s city. There they barred the gates, and it was night.

On the road, there was darkness, and the unprofitable servant saw nothing. There was cold, cold worse than he had ever known, and the cold hurt him until he wished a thousand times that he had been killed. There was wailing and gnashing of teeth, but there was no one to hear.

In the city there was light, and by that light the two profitable servants counted up their earnings. They spent a little on supper, a little on wine, and a little on whores, for they’d earned a little pleasure after all their hard work. The master would understand; there was still a great deal of profit left. Besides, he was so late in coming. The profitable servants needed some diversion to keep themselves awake, or they would not be there to unbar the gate. They were tired from their work, and soon they grew tired of their play. It was the darkest hour of the night when the servants fell asleep with all that was left of their earnings still out on the table. And then the thief came in.
Morning dawned outside the city. The unprofitable servant had not been able to sleep for all his pain, so when the light came, he saw it. He forced himself to his feet, and limped back to the city, but the city gate was still barred against thieves. So the unprofitable servant went back to the side of the road, to await his master.

Dawn was not seen inside the city, for no one was awake. The two unprofitable servants slept on and on. The thief came back several times, for all of that gold takes a very long time to steal. Finally, when it was almost noon, the thief had loaded every bit of it into his cart and made his escape.

Outside the city, the unprofitable servant remained awake, for his wounds did not allow him to sleep. Now he was afraid. He had heard that his master was a hard man, gathering what he had not sown and harvesting where he had scattered no seed. He had had some thought of running away. But the servant recalled that the master had already known he was unwise and unprofitable– he had only given him the one talent to begin with. If he ran away, the master might also think he was dishonest. Better to wait, to run to meet the master, to beg forgiveness and to accept the master’s verdict, whatever it might be. And so he waited.

Inside the city, the profitable servants finally stirred. They found themselves with nothing– not their profits, not the talents they’d had to begin with, not a drop of the wine from last night, none of the company they’d hired, not even the clothes in which they’d fallen asleep. Everything they had had been taken away. And the profitable servants were afraid, and they hid themselves from their master.

The thief left the city in spite of the barred gate, for thieves never leave by the gate. His heavy load of gold was no obstacle to him, for such things never are to a thief. Soon enough, he was outside the city with his carload of gold and everything else he’d stolen from the profitable servants. And there on the road, he saw the unprofitable servant. The thief recognized him, and thought he was seeing a ghost. He left his cart and ran away. He is running still.

It was evening when the master finally arrived home. He found his unprofitable servant to whom he had given the one talent, waiting to welcome him outside the city with a cart containing thirty talents of gold.

“Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enjoy the joy of your master.”

The master tried the gates of the city, but found that they had been barred against him. And so the master and his unprofitable servant left by another road, reaping together what they did not sow and harvesting where they had planted no seed. They are together still, and we await their return. The time will come when no gate can stand against them, and the master will return in Glory– but that day has not yet come, for the master is meek and humble of heart. The two profitable servants were left alone with nothing, hiding in the city. They are hiding still. And it was night, and there was darkness, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.
Some say the thief had been sent by the master, to test the hearts of men. Some say the master really came himself, like a thief in the night. This I do not know. But I know that faithfulness in suffering, even the worst and most unjust of suffering, is worth more to the Master than gold.

(image via pixabay)

Previous Post

April 4, 2016

Those Who Sow in Tears

Next Post

April 6, 2016 Faith Comes By Hearing

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category abortion Abuse Advent America American Christianity angel angels Annunciation Appalachia apparition apparition chaser apparition chasers apparition culture art art review babies baby baby Jesus Bad Lip Reading bad statue contest bath beauty Bible story blog blogkeeping blood book review Brandon Sanderson breastfeeding bus Catholic catholic conspiracy alarmism Catholic Oppositional Disorder Charismatic Renewal Charlie the Cat chastity Christ Christian idenitity Christianity and Judaism Chronic Illness clean clothing COD piece comedy compassion conscience conspiracy theory conversion cop-on-black violence Crucifixion cry of the poor culture Daesh Daily Saints death death penalty devotional diaconate diaper diapers dirty disability Donald Trump Dorothy Day dream drugs Eastern Catholicism Eastern Christianity education election election update Elsewhere on Patheos empathy environment Fear feminism film review fish flashback fluffy buns food Franciscan University of Steubenville Friendship Room fun Gabriel gardening gospel hair-splitting Heaven hell heresy Hillary Clinton history Holly the Witch Holy Spirit holy war Homeschooling homosexuality horror human dignity humor Icon idol immigrants infection inter-religious dialogue Interpretation of Scripture Islam Jesus Jihad Joseph joy laity and lay vocations lamb dinner laundry lent lgbtq literature love manners Mary Medicine and Science Meditation mercy mess milk misogyny Missouri monasticism monster motherhood mourn with those mourn movies movis music mystery nature neurodiversity New Pro-Life Movement news nonsense nostalgia O antiphons obituary objectification Ohio Valley Ordinary Time ordination Ordo Amoris parable paradox Passover peanut butter personal beliefs pets philosophy Planet Charismatic poetry politics polls poop Pope Francis Pope Leo power in the Church prayer prayer request prayers preferential option for non-violence president presidential election priest primary private revelation pro-life prophecy Public face of Catholicism Pure Flix Q and A race racism random rape rape. sexuality reader's request Reckoners refugee religious trauma ressurrection Right to life Saints saints and celebrations same-sex same-sex marriage satire scandal secular feasts seder Seven Joys Seven Last Words sex sexual ethics sexuality silencing six months skid row slavery social justice Speculative fiction spiritual abuse spoon stain story suffering suffrage suffragette Sunday Gospel temple Tenebrae Responsories Terror the exorcist The Friendship Room The New Pro-Life Movement Things I Learned on the Internet tin cup traffic true story tv review Uncategorized USCCB vice and temptation violence Virtue virtue and vice war Way of the Cross whimsy whole life women's ordination work of mercy Year A

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who built the ark?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Noah Solomon David Moses