Parable of the Ten Minas

Jesus and His disciples were in Jericho and Jesus had just spoken about Zacchaeus and salvation. The people were listening to this. And many thought the kingdom of God would appear imminently because Jesus was coming near Jerusalem. And so, Jesus proceeded to tell the people a parable about the kingdom of God. He said, “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to lay claim to his kingship and then return. Before leaving, the man called ten of his servants and gave each of them a mina—equal to 100 drachmas, enough wages for 100 days of labor. The man told each servant, ‘Conduct business with this money until I return.’

“But the man's citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man to rule over us.’

“When the man returned from obtaining his kingship, he summoned the ten servants to whom he had given the minas, to find out what each one had earned.

“The first servant came forward and said, ‘Master, your mina has produced ten more minas.’

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have proved yourself faithful in a very small matter, you shall have authority over ten cities.’

“The second servant came and said, ‘Master, your mina has made five minas.’

“And to this servant, the man said, ‘You shall have authority over five cities.’

“Then another servant came and said, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I have kept laid away in a soudarion (a handkerchief or head cloth). I was afraid of you because you are a harsh man. You withdraw what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow.’

“His master said, ‘You wicked servant, I will judge you by your own words. You knew that I am a harsh man, withdrawing what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. Then why did you not deposit my money in the bank, so that upon my return I could have collected it with interest?’

“Then the man told the other servants that were standing by, ‘Take the mina from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’

“‘But Master,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’

“The man replied, ‘I tell you that everyone who has will be given more; but the one who does not have, even what they have will be taken away from them. And these enemies of mine who do not want me to be king over them, bring them here and slay them in front of me.’ ”

See Luke 19:11-27