Luke 16

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¹He said also to his disciples, There was a rich man, that had a bailiff or a farmer; and this was denounced to him, as he had wasted his goods.

²And he called him, and said to him, What hear I this thing of thee? yield reckoning of thy bailiffship, for thou might not now be bailiff, yield reason of thy farm, or for now thou shalt no more hold the farm.

³And the bailiff said within himself, What shall I do, for my lord taketh away from me the bailiffship? delve may I not, I shame to beg. Forsooth the farmer said within himself, What shall I do, for my lord taketh away from me the farm? I may not delve, I am ashamed to beg?

⁴I know what I shall do, that when I am removed from the bailiffship or from the farm, they receive me into their houses.

⁵Therefore when all the debtors of his lord were called together, he said to the first, How much owest thou to my lord?

⁶And he said, An hundred barrows of oil. And he said to him, Take thy caution or thine obligation, and sit soon, and write fifty.

⁷Afterward he said to another, And how much owest thou? Which answered, An hundred cors or measures of wheat. And he said to him, Take thy letters, and write fourscore.

⁸And the lord praised the bailiff or the farmer of wickedness, for he had done prudently; for the sons of this world be more prudent in their generation, than the sons of light.

⁹And I say to you, make ye to you friends of the riches of wickedness, that when ye shall fail, they receive you into everlasting tabernacles.

¹⁰He that is true or faithful in the least thing, is true or faithful also in the more; and he that is wicked in a little thing, is wicked also in the more.

¹¹Therefore if ye were not true in the wicked thing of riches or in the wicked riches, who shall betake to you that that is very? or that is sooth?

¹²And if ye were not true in other men’s thing, who shall give to you that that is yours?

¹³No servant may serve to two lords; for either he shall hate the one, and love the other; either he shall draw or cleave to the one, and despise the other. Ye may not serve to God and to riches.

¹⁴But the Pharisees, that were covetous, heard all these things, and they scorned him.

¹⁵And he said to them, Ye it be, that justify you before men; but God hath known your hearts or God knoweth your hearts, for that that is high to men, is abomination before God.

¹⁶The law and the prophets till to John; from that time the realm of God is evangelized or is preached, and each man doeth violence into it.

¹⁷Forsooth it is lighter heaven and earth to pass, than that one tittle fall from the law.

¹⁸Every man that forsaketh his wife, and weddeth another, doeth lechery or adultery; and he that weddeth the wife forsaken of the husband, doeth adultery.

¹⁹There was a rich man, and was clothed in purple, and white silk, and ate every day shiningly.

²⁰And there was a beggar, Lazarus by name, that lay at his gate full of boils,

²¹and coveted to be fulfilled of or with the crumbs, that fell down from the rich man’s board, and no man gave to him; but hounds came, and licked his boils.

²²And it was done, that the beggar died, and was borne of angels into Abraham’s bosom. And the rich man was dead also, and was buried in hell.

²³And he raised up his eyes, when he was in torments, and saw Abraham afar, and Lazarus in his bosom.

²⁴And he cried, and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he dip the end of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

²⁵And Abraham said to him, Son, have mind, for thou hast received good things in thy life, and Lazarus also evil things; but he is now comforted, and thou art tormented.

²⁶And in all these things a great dark place or great dark depth is stablished betwixt us and you; that they that will from hence pass to you, may not, neither from thence pass over hither.

²⁷And he said, Then I pray thee, father, that thou send him into the house of my father.

²⁸For I have five brethren, that he witness to them, lest also they come into this place of torments.

²⁹And Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets; hear they them.

³⁰And he said, Nay, father Abraham, but if any of dead men go to them, they shall do penance.

³¹And he said to him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither if any of dead men rise again, they shall believe to him.