1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a steward, and the steward was accused before him of squandering his possessions. 2 He called him and said, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’ 3 The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I know what I will do, so that when I am removed from the stewardship, people will welcome me into their homes.’ 5 He called in each of his master’s debtors and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He said, ‘About eight hundred gallons of oil.’ He told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and write about four hundred gallons.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘About a thousand bushels of wheat.’ He told him, ‘Take your bill and write about eight hundred bushels.’ 8 The master praised the unrighteous steward because he had acted shrewdly. For the children of this age are shrewder in dealing with their own generation than the children of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails, they may welcome you into eternal dwellings.

10 Whoever is faithful in very little is faithful also in much, and whoever is unrighteous in very little is unrighteous also in much. 11 So if you have not been faithful with unrighteous wealth, who will entrust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13 No household servant can serve two masters, for he will either hate the one and love the other, or hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and ridiculed him. 15 He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before people, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among people is an abomination before God.

16 The law and the prophets were until John. Since then the good news of the kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everyone presses into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for a single stroke of the law to fall.

18 Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

19 There was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted splendidly every day. 20 A poor man named Lazarus had been laid at his gate, covered with sores, 21 longing to be filled with what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, being in torment, he lifted his eyes and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you received your good things in your lifetime, and Lazarus likewise his bad things. Now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’ 27 He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’ 30 He said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’ ”