What did Jesus say about Riches?

²⁰ “Blessed are you who are poor, for God’s Kingdom is yours.

²¹ Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

²² Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude and mock you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.

²³ Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets.

²⁴ “But woe to you who are rich! For you have received your consolation.

²⁵ Woe to you, you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.

²⁶ Woe, when men speak well of you, for their fathers did the same thing to the false prophets.

¹⁴ “Man, who made me a judge or an arbitrator over you?”

¹⁵ “Beware! Keep yourselves from covetousness, for a man’s life doesn’t consist of the abundance of the things which he possesses.”

¹⁶ “The ground of a certain rich man produced abundantly.

¹⁷ He reasoned within himself, saying, ‘What will I do, because I don’t have room to store my crops?’

¹⁸ He said, ‘This is what I will do. I will pull down my barns, build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.

¹⁹ I will tell my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry.”’

²⁰ “But God said to him, ‘You foolish one, tonight your soul is required of you. The things which you have prepared—whose will they be?’

²¹ So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

¹⁹ “Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day.

²⁰ A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was taken to his gate, full of sores,

²¹ and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores.

²² The beggar died, and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.

²³ In Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus at his bosom.

²⁴ He cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue! For I am in anguish in this flame.’

²⁵ “But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and Lazarus, in the same way, bad things. But here he is now comforted and you are in anguish.

²⁶ Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that no one may cross over from there to us.’

²⁷ “He said, ‘I ask you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house—

²⁸ for I have five brothers—that he may testify to them, so they won’t also come into this place of torment.’

²⁹ “But Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’

³⁰ “He said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’

³¹ “He said to him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.’”

¹⁴ “To the angel of the assembly in Laodicea write: “The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of God’s creation, says these things:

¹⁵ “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot.

¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of my mouth.

¹⁷ Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing,’ and don’t know that you are the wretched one, miserable, poor, blind, and naked;

¹⁸ I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich; and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see.

¹⁹ As many as I love, I reprove and chasten. Be zealous therefore, and repent.

²⁰ Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me.

²¹ He who overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

²² He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.”

²⁶ “If anyone comes to me, and doesn’t disregard his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he can’t be my disciple.

²⁷ Whoever doesn’t bear his own cross and come after me, can’t be my disciple.

²⁸ For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and count the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?

²⁹ Or perhaps, when he has laid a foundation and isn’t able to finish, everyone who sees begins to mock him,

³⁰ saying, ‘This man began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

³¹ Or what king, as he goes to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?

³² Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends an envoy and asks for conditions of peace.

³³ So therefore, whoever of you who doesn’t renounce all that he has, he can’t be my disciple.

¹² “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.

¹³ He called ten servants of his and gave them ten mina coins, and told them, ‘Conduct business until I come.’

¹⁴ But his citizens hated him, and sent an envoy after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man to reign over us.’

¹⁵ “When he had come back again, having received the kingdom, he commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by conducting business.

¹⁶ The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten more minas.’

¹⁷ “He said to him, ‘Well done, you good servant! Because you were found faithful with very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’

¹⁸ “The second came, saying, ‘Your mina, Lord, has made five minas.’

¹⁹ “So he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’

²⁰ Another came, saying, ‘Lord, behold, your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief,

²¹ for I feared you, because you are an exacting man. You take up that which you didn’t lay down, and reap that which you didn’t sow.’

²² “He said to him, ‘Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant! You knew that I am an exacting man, taking up that which I didn’t lay down and reaping that which I didn’t sow.

²³ Then why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank, and at my coming, I might have earned interest on it?’

²⁴ He said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to him who has the ten minas.’

²⁵ “They said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’

²⁶ ‘For I tell you that to everyone who has, will more be given; but from him who doesn’t have, even that which he has will be taken away from him.

²⁷ But bring those enemies of mine who didn’t want me to reign over them here, and kill them before me.’”

¹⁴ “For it is like a man going into another country, who called his own servants and entrusted his goods to them.

¹⁵ To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his own ability. Then he went on his journey.

¹⁶ Immediately he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.

¹⁷ In the same way, he also who got the two gained another two.

¹⁸ But he who received the one talent went away and dug in the earth and hid his lord’s money.

¹⁹ “Now after a long time the lord of those servants came, and settled accounts with them.

²⁰ He who received the five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Behold, I have gained another five talents in addition to them.’

²¹ “His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

²² “He also who got the two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Behold, I have gained another two talents in addition to them.’

²³ “His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things. I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

²⁴ “He also who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you that you are a hard man, reaping where you didn’t sow, and gathering where you didn’t scatter.

²⁵ I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.’

²⁶ “But his lord answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I didn’t sow, and gather where I didn’t scatter.

²⁷ You ought therefore to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received back my own with interest.

²⁸ Take away therefore the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents.

²⁹ For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him who doesn’t have, even that which he has will be taken away.

³⁰ Throw out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

¹¹ “A certain man had two sons.

¹² The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of your property.’ So he divided his livelihood between them.

¹³ Not many days after, the younger son gathered all of this together and traveled into a far country. There he wasted his property with riotous living.

¹⁴ When he had spent all of it, there arose a severe famine in that country, and he began to be in need.

¹⁵ He went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs.

¹⁶ He wanted to fill his belly with the pods that the pigs ate, but no one gave him any.

¹⁷ But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough to spare, and I’m dying with hunger!

¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father, and will tell him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight.

¹⁹ I am no more worthy to be called your son. Make me as one of your hired servants.”’

²⁰ “He arose and came to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion, and ran, fell on his neck, and kissed him.

²¹ The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²² “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.

²³ Bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let’s eat and celebrate;

²⁴ for this, my son, was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found.’ Then they began to celebrate.

²⁵ “Now his elder son was in the field. As he came near to the house, he heard music and dancing.

²⁶ He called one of the servants to him and asked what was going on.

²⁷ He said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and healthy.’

²⁸ But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and begged him.

²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Behold, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed a commandment of yours, but you never gave me a goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.

³⁰ But when this your son came, who has devoured your living with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’

³¹ “He said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.

³² But it was appropriate to celebrate and be glad, for this, your brother, was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, and is found.’”