THE TEN VIRGINS
By
Robert Govett
That the parable
of the wise and foolish virgins has been misunderstood, the following pages are
designed to show. And the misunderstanding is traceable to several assumptions,
which have been silently made by commentators. These assumptions, then, let us
examine, before entering on the interpretation here given.
(a) The main
assumption, nearly universal among writers on this parable, is that “Sincere Christians are the wise virgins, and hypocrites the foolish ones.”
The wise virgins are those “who truly enjoy,”
the foolish, “those who only profess the purity and holiness of His
(Christ's) religion.”
I. From this assumption it immediately follows that the
writers seek to make differences, where Christ has made agreement, in order to
distinguish fundamentally the foolish from the wise. Now the Saviour has stated
that they were alike in eight points, and that they differ in one only.
They agree in (1)
being virgins ‑ (2) and going forth - (3) to
meet the bridegroom ‑ (4) In taking their lamps – (5) In falling asleep ‑
(6) In sleeping till the cry ‑ (7) In rising at the cry ‑ (8) In
trimming their lamps.
The one point of disagreement is that some carried no
oil in another vessel for future supply: for oil in their lamps for present use
they all had.
All these points
of identity are sought to be depressed, or contradicted, in order that they may
wear an unfavourable aspect towards the foolish virgins. But taken simply, and
as the Saviour has stated the matter, the whole bears quite another appearance.
All that is alleged against them is simple foolishness, or want of foresight of
what was expedient towards the securing the desired admission to the wedding
feast. The Saviour would manifest that all previous care and steps taken
towards it were rendered vain by the omission of one. But no hint is dropped of
their double‑dealing or wickedness. On the contrary they are alike in inward character, as to their persons: in external characteristics, as to their works, and in the principle whence they flowed. They were alike as
to their voluntary position of separation, and its motive was the same in all.
2. But secondly, that they are not hypocrites, or formal
professors, is clear from the character given them by the Saviour. They are “virgins”
all. This is the character of the true Christian alone. “I have espoused you to one husband, that
I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” If virgins, then are they not “corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ:” 2 Cor. 11: 2, 3. They
are pure, and purity is combined with the sister graces of “longsuffering,” kindness,”
“the Holy Ghost,” “love
unfeigned,” “the word of truth,” and “the
armour of righteousness:” 2 Cor. 6: 6, 7.
It is joined with things true, honest, just, lovely,
and of good report: Phil. 4: 8. It is
conjoined with the hope of Christ's appearing, and “he
that hath this hope purifieth himself even as Christ is
pure:” 1 John 3: 3.
3. If they were professors alone, or hypocrites, they
would be described as adulteresses. “Ye adulterers, and
adulteresses, know ye not
that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?” James 4: 4. The character given of them, by Him
who cannot err, would have been that, they were, to His eyes, professed virgins
indeed, but really harlots. Thus the Church of Rome, which professes itself the
chaste spouse of Christ, is by Him who truly reads, and truly testifies of
character before Himself, described as “the Great Whore.”
4. Lastly, you cannot wedge in a distinction where
Christ has made none. If the virginity of the foolish be professed only, so is the virginity
of the wise.
(b) It follows
from the same assumption that the case of the foolish virgins, on awaking, is a
desperate one. If they wanted true grace all
through their lives, vain and fruitless must be all hope of attaining it then.
But this does not appear so either to the wise
virgins, or the foolish. Nor do the wise virgins reject as absurd and
impossible the application made to themselves for
oil.
(c) But there is
one point more assumed, which, perhaps, one might say is the radical error,
from which all, or nearly all, the others have flowed. This is, that the rejection by the bridegroom is damnation, and that the separation of the wise and foolish is eternal. Hence
it was argued ‑ since none but the false and insincere will be shut out
from eternal life, those so shut out must be hypocrites. And then follow the
consequences just named, and others afterward to be noticed. But proof is not
given, though so much depends on it. After this assumption, commentators
perplex themselves to make out an adequate reason for the damnation of the foolish, and thus are driven to overstate
the Lord's words, and to make distinctions where He has made agreements. From the same mistake it originates that they confound wisdom
and folly with wickedness and holiness: and loss of privilege with a trust wilfully betrayed.
Again, if the
awaking of the virgins be the resurrection, then the resurrection of the saved
and of the lost occurs at the same time, contrary to the express declaration of
Rev. 20. Or else, awaking must signify death, and the virgins' rising up must signify a sinner's
lying down to die!
(d) Again, the
assumption that the foolish virgins are hypocrites has entirely diverted the
instruction of the parable from those truly concerned in it. For if the foolish
be hypocrites, then are the unbeliever and the formalist the characters to
whom it is addressed: and they who know themselves to
be sincere, pass by this most important lesson, as not bearing on themselves.
To show the falsehood then of the assumption, it is only necessary to observe
that it is a lesson of the Lord Jesus to His true disciples alone. If the foolish be unbelievers, the
lesson is to those that are not Christ's true disciples. But the prophecy on
the
II. On the question of their “taking their lamps and going forth,” misapprehension
again comes in. “They make a show of being ready.”
“All their care is to recommend themselves to their
neighbours . . . not to approve themselves to Christ. Tell them of things not
seen as yet, and you are as
III. The same current of
misrepresentation sets in again with regard to the lamp (properly “torch”). “The lamp is the profession of enjoying the burning and shining
light of the gospel of Christ.” In order that a lamp may be profession
alone, it must be a lamp not lit. But
these are lamps lighted. Nor have
they lamps alone, they go forth with them: and this is practice corresponding with profession. Christians alone “shine as lights in the world.” “Ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord” And to maintain that the foolish are deficient
in the necessary display of good works is to make our Lord's description
preposterous: for He assigns as the characteristic note of folly the not taking
the vessel
of oil which lay unemployed, the
lamp being (if I may so call it) the working vessel, up to the very time of
their awaking. The fact is, commentators blame them as
deficient with regard to the present; Christ, on the other hand, notes their folly only in regard to the future. The unused oil is
the characteristic difference.
IV. We now come to the decisive
question. What is the oil?
1. Is it grace? Is it faith, or love? Then it is internal
grace exhibited in its legitimate effect, the light given. Then cannot the foolish be
hypocrites, or formalists. And to all who believe in the perseverance of the
saints the question is settled, that they cannot finally fall away, and be
lost: and therefore their rejection at the close is not final damnation.
Here the
inconsistency of the interpreters appears. “Grace is
the oil.” Oil is “the grace and salvation of
God, or that faith which works by love.” Then is it monstrous to affirm
of the foolish virgins that “they have no principle
within.” Then is it a dereliction of principle in a Calvinistic
commentator, to speak of their falling away. And then, even in an Arminian expositor, it is a contradiction to affirm that
the lamp was profession alone: for the lamp has oil,
and the oil is grace.
2. But some, seeing this, have adopted an evasion which
more directly contradicts the text. They assume that the foolish had no
oil at all. “The wick that had blazed for a moment, was now burned down” “What a
useless thing is a lamp without oil!”
“All formal
professors are like these foolish virgins . . . forgetting that the lamp
without oil ‑ the outward appearance, without the inward grace, is
useless.” Against this misrepresentation it is enough to state
that the lamps of the foolish were burning for hours, yea till midnight, not
only while they were awake, but while they slept: and that their lamps did not
begin to fail any earlier than those of the wise virgins. And if there were no
oil in the lamps of the foolish, so neither was there any in those of the wise: for all that is stated as a matter of difference in their cases
is, that the wise had “oil in their vessels,” and not in their lamps only.
3. But lastly, would any affirm that the oil (though the
principle within which sustains the light) is something “short of true grace”? then
there is no evidence that the wise were true disciples. For they differ from the foolish only in having more
oil. It is a question, not between those who have some oil and those who
have none, but between those who have little, and those who have more. If then oil be a formal thing, a great deal of it is no better than a little. But if it be real internal grace, then
a little of it is as secure of eternal life, as
a great
deal. It is either true
grace in both, or false show in both.
The parable turns, not on the quality of the oil as good or bad, but on its quantity as enough, or less than enough. Having considered these preliminary points, let us now pass to
the interpretation of the parable.
MATTHEW 25:1.
1. “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins
who took their torches and went forth for the purpose of meeting the bridegroom.”
As regards the question of interpretation throughout the
prophetic parables, this principle is assumed (the very contrary to that which
is so frequently met with in commentaries and expositions) that no part of them is trivial
or useless, and merely intended for ornament. To maintain the reverse
of this seems to me unbelief. It is a manifestation of the incapacity of the
expounder, or of the fallacy of his exposition, but nothing more. It is a
mistake of which even the maker of enigmas among men is not guilty. Would any
one be satisfied with the explanation of an enigma that answered with more or
less adaptation some of the conditions of a riddle, but left others
unsatisfied; and explained them away, as meaning nothing, but mere ornament.
Much less would it be accounted satisfactory if the explanation contradict some
of the statements. But we are not left even to a clear
analogy between the enigmas of God and those of men. Direct instruction of the
Saviour affirms that “the Scripture cannot be broken,”
and “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one little shall in no
wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled:” Matt. 5:18. And if no jot of
the law shall pass, how much less of the Gospel? But more directly still. “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away:”
Matt. 24: 35 ‑ a notice peculiarly
applying to the discourse whence this parable is taken.
It
is vain to say, as some do, that we are to take the general meaning of the
parable alone, in order to obtain the lesson of it. For the
general meaning can only be guessed at, till we have obtained the meaning of
the symbols and action of the parable.
The
first word of this passage is important, and calls for remark. “The” This admits of two interpretations, both, however
nearly agreeing with each other. (1) We may understand it in general of “the time of the end,” or, according to the disciples'
question, of Christ's “presence, and the end of the age,”
as the Saviour says, in the former chapter, “Then shall
the
end come:” Matt. 24: 14. (2) Or we may understand it more
strictly as parallel with the time described before. In days like those of Noah
(Matt. 24: 37‑51), in the hour not
thought of by the wicked servant, at the time when the watchful and unwatchful
shall be suddenly separated – “then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened to ten virgins.”
A
part of the parable is preparatory, or is supposed to be past before the scene
occurs, to which our attention is particularly called. The first five verses
are descriptive of the state of things in their principles, and accounting for
the results which follow. The point of time to which the word “then” at the commencement refers, is, I judge,
contained in the word – “were sleeping.” This
states the condition in which they were found, and which will have its
answering scene in the hour of the Saviour's coming. The effects which follow
on the awaking are those to which the reader's eye is specially drawn as
characteristic of that time.
But what is intended by the expression “Kingdom of heaven”?
I consider the period intended by it the same with that contemplated by
the parables of Matt. 13.; and that it answers in part to
the time of mystery, and the present Church dispensation. The parable begins from the commencement of
the expectation of the bridegroom’s return, and ends with the presence of the
Lord Jesus in heaven, and His marriage supper on high. Thus the whole period, from the first setting
forth of the return of the Lord Jesus as the hope of the believer, to the consummation
of this hope in glory, is taken in. The
same period, I judge, is intended in the parables of the king taking account of
his servants (Matt. 18.); and the parable of
the wedding garment (Matt. 22.).
“Ten
virgins.” The number ten
is used, with reference to the previous “two:” Matt. 24: 40.
The ten represent the dead, the two the living disciples. Ten is the number of the lamps in the
We inquire next, who are the “virgins”?
Most reply, the church in general: the
visible body of professing Christians.
But then the proportion of the wise is far too large. Are the half of
professing Christians wise?
And further, all these are found asleep when
the Lord comes. But it is not so with
the church in general. “We shall not all
sleep.” And this holds, whether the
sleep be supposed a spiritual deadness, or literal
death.
That they are believers,
the Saviour has furnished us with most evident proofs.
1. They are “virgins.” Therefore they are chaste and pure in the
Lord’s sight: 2 Cor. 11:
2, 3.
2.
They “take their torches.” And all those torches are lighted: verse 8.
Then they are “the sons of God
. . . in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation,
among whom they shine as lights in the world:" Phil. 2: 15. And their
light is that of good works. “Ye are the light of the
world." "Let your light so
shine before
men that they may see your good works;” Matt.
5: 14 - 16. Unbelievers are darkness; believers only are “light in the Lord:” Eph 5:
8.
3. They “go forth.”
Then are they children of faithful Abraham, leaving their homes and city
through hope and faith: Heb. 11. Then are
they the children of God, as it is written, “Wherefore come
ye out from among them and be ye
separate . . . and ye shall be my
sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty:” 2 Cor. 6: 17, I8.
4. They go forth, “to
meet the bridegroom.” Then they believe in, and hope for, His appearing:
2 Tim. 4: 8. And to them belongs not only salvation,
but the hope of reward.
5. In these four particulars we have given
us the inward personal character, and the outward display, the act, the
constantly maintained attitude, and the motive. And all are pure. Where is
there room for hypocrisy or lip‑profession?
They have faith as
is manifested by their going forth. They have works, as is manifest by their
lighted torches. They believe with the heart, as is manifest by their going out
to meet the bridegroom. They confess Him before men by their torches. Their
salvation then is certain; for faith and confession make salvation sure:
6. If the sleep be
death, then are they believers, for of none else (I believe) is it spoken in
the New Testament. The proof that the sleep is death will be found in its
place.
7. They all rise
together; and the first resurrection is of believers alone: Rev. 20: 5, 6.
8. The parable was addressed to believers
only.
They represent, I
suppose, those in general who have fallen asleep in Christ, since the return of
Jesus as the Bridegroom began to be preached, and the gifts of the Holy Ghost
were dispensed. Hence the saints of the Old Testament are excluded from the
meaning and lesson of the parable.
The reasons why
the title “virgins” is given to believers in the
present parable, are, I submit, two. First, the
disciple's name is ruled by that which his Master takes. As then the Saviour
Himself as the Bridegroom, the disciple takes the place of the attendant
bridesmaid, or virgin‑companion of the bride. Secondly, because the
parable is designed to represent to us the manner in which a valuable privilege
was lost, through want of foresight; no relation was so fit to display this
loss as the voluntary one of bridesmaid. This seemed to promise a place at the
marriage‑feast, while, notwithstanding, the honour and pleasure were lost
through improvidence.
The subjects of the
parable are female virgins, and as such are marked out as companions of the bride, abiding with her, as the 144,000
virgins of Rev. 14. are
the special companions of the bridegroom, attendant on him in his passage to and fro between the earthly and
the heavenly
Lastly, they arise
at the Saviour’s first approach. Now this is the privilege of “those that are Christ’s:” 1
Cor. 15.
Who took their “torches”
“Torch” rather than “lamp”
is the true translation of the word. It is a light for out‑of‑door
use, while the lamp is fitted for indoor service: (Luke
12: 35) Torches or flambeaux are larger lights than those used for the
house, which last are more liable to be blown out by gust of wind and rain.
Torches were, and are still, in use in the East for nuptial processions. They
were vessels of iron or brass, funnel shaped, ending from a broad mouth in a
point, which point was inserted into a handle of wood that the oil might not
flow down to the hand, or the communicated heat be too great for the bearer to
endure, as would have been the case had the whole been of metal alone. In this
funnel‑shaped cavity rags were placed as the wick, and oil was poured to
maintain the light. We read of such instruments as these in Gideon's adventure
with the Midianites. They were used also by those who
came forth to arrest Jesus in Gethsemane, and the translation there is the same
as is given above – “Judas, having received a band of
men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns
torches,
and weapons:” John 18:3. The
same word occurs again in the account of the meeting of the disciples at
That
the torches were lighted and intended to give light, needs not any proof. It is
assumed throughout, and incidentally affirmed of the foolish, about whose
torches alone could there be any doubt: verse 8.
And the light answers to whatever of Christ's doctrines or practice is
maintained by the believer: Eph. 5: 13. They
have both the inward principle, and its appropriate outward manifestation. The
burning and shining light is the proof of the oil within. And thus faith is
shown by works: James 2: 18.
“And went forth for the purpose of Meeting the bridegwom.” Here is not only Christian
profession, but answerable Christian practice. They not only believed the
bridegroom's coming, but they went forth to meet him. This going forth implies the leaving of their own houses and their city. Thus they
take the position required of the members of Christ. “Let
us go
forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach. For we have here no continuing city, but
we are seeking the one to come;” Heb.
13: 13, 14. The torches and their going forth made them distinct from
the rest of the citizens; they are a body apart, both before and after their
sleep. And both the torch and the act of going forth were a testimony to others
and to themselves that they hoped for the bridegroom's appearing, and looked
for a place in the procession, and at the feast. They go forth in the direction
in which the bridegroom is expected, and wait for His appearing, which is the
attitude of the true believer in Jesus alone. None but he expects, desires, and
“loves His appearing.”
“The Bridegroom.” This is, of
course, the Lord Jesus. “He that hath the bride is the
bridegroom” (John 3: 29): as
John the Baptist testifies, he himself being only the bridegroom's friend,
rejoicing to hear the voice of the bridegroom. “I will
show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife:” Rev. 21: 9. See also Matt.
9: 15; Mark 2: 19; Luke 5: 34.
The going forth of
the virgins to meet the Bridegroom is a mark of respect, love, and delight.
Thus the servants of the centurion came forth to meet and welcome their master
with the joyful tidings of the healing of his son: John
4: 51. Thus also the brethren at
It is worthy of observation
that this mark of respect and love is said to be paid to the Bridegroom, and to
Him alone. The bride is not even once mentioned, though, as the
virgins are her female companions, we might have expected it. And, therefore, a
few manuscripts add to the Saviour's declaration, and read – “They took their lamps, and went forth for the purpose of
meeting the bridegroom and the bride.” But this bears marks of being
unauthorized human addition, attempting to supply a supposed defect of the
word of God.
Yet we are
permitted to know what is to be understood by the bride. It is not the church
universal: for the Saviour supposes it not yet gathered: and the present
chapter describes the manner of assembling it from the earth, and from the “gates of Hades,” when they shall no longer “prevail against it:” Matt.
16. But the bride is the New Jerusalem, the city of
For the parable describes the procession of the bridegroom and bride in company,
when the bridegroom brings home the bride from her father's house. The usual
interpretation supposes the contrary to this, namely, that the bridesmaids came
forth to meet the bridegroom, when he is proceeding to take her. But first,
this coming of the bridesmaids to meet the bridegroom alone is not Eastern; and
secondly, would not be accounted consistent either with their or our notions of
delicacy and propriety. The procession is to the house of the husband, as Jarchi, the
great Jewish commentator, testifies was usual. “It is
the custom in the land of Ishmael, to bring the bride from the house
of her father to that of her husband in the night time, and there were about ten
staves, upon the top of each
of which was a brazen dish, containing rags, oil, and pitch, and this being
kindled, formed blazing torches, which were carried before the bride.”
This is also the scriptural exhibition of the matter. “And
Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh, king of
Lastly, the
structure of the parable shows that the procession is that of the bridegroom and
bride to the house or hall of the former. For it is supposed throughout that
his coming is a rapid and momentary passage, not admitting of delay, and not
offering any opportunity of retrieving the loss if once the brief time be
passed. But if the procession were the bridegroom's going to fetch the bride
from her father's house, then we must suppose that the virgins meet him,
accompany him back to the house of the bride's father, attend him during the
ceremonies of receiving her, and that they then fall into his train as he
retires with the bride from her father's house to his own. All this must
produce considerable delay ‑ a condition of things quite opposed to the
rapidity and directness of the movements indicated in the parable.
2. “And five of them were wise and five were foolish. 3. They that were foolish, took their torches and took no oil
with themselves.* 4. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their torches.”
[* Thus translated, it is seen to be an error to
suppose that the foolish had no oil in their torches . . . Something additional
and distinct is implied by the present words: Matt.
12: 45 ; Mark 9: 8.]
In a due
perception or not of the meaning of these verses lies the comprehension or
misunderstanding of the whole of the parable. Commentators, almost without
exception, confound foolishness with wickedness, and speak of the responsibility of the virgins. This leads to a train
of thought utterly astray from the scope of the parable. The virgins are not
described as entrusted with any thing on behalf of another, for which they were
called on to render account. Then they would have been under responsibility,
and either faithful or unfaithful, and so good or evil. But they are described
as respectively wise and foolish. Now this shows them to be regarded by the
Saviour in quite a different light from the former. Prudence consists in a care
of our
own interests, as
faithfulness consists in watching over the interests of another. Wisdom (or more properly ‘prudence,’ (see Greek)
is concerned in the provision for our own advantage in the future; while
folly is displayed in a careless contentment in the present, and the
disregard of the means necessary to secure a man's well‑being hereafter.
Accordingly wisdom and folly are displayed by the different behaviour of
persons under the same circumstances, in proportion as they act in a manner
adapted to advance their own interests. This, therefore, is evidently
distinguished from the case of the servant, who is not left to his own will,
but is under orders, and is acting not for himself, but for his master's
advantage, under a sense of account to be rendered in. Hence, in the parable of
the talents, the accepted servant is
addressed as “Good and faithful;” the rejected as “Wicked
and slothful.” But the unjust steward, when he is regarded as acting
with a view to advance his own interests, is
praised for his prudence; for he thoughtfully regarded the calamities that
would be likely to fall upon him in the future, and contrived to ward them off. This
example shows us that prudence is by no means
equivalent to holiness. Nay, the
Saviour goes on to say, that the children of light are more deficient in
prudence for eternal glory, than the children of this world are for the present
scene. And believers are
sometimes addressed as being foolish,
or are cautioned against it – “Therefore be ye not foolish;” Eph. 5: 17.
“Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened except it die:”
1 Cor. 15: 36. “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you? Are ye so foolish? " Gal. 3: 1, 3.
Thus then it is
with the virgins before us. They are all the children of light, but some are
deficient in foresight, and the provident securing of their own advantage. And
the advantage to be secured in the present instance,
is the possession of a place at the wedding feast of the Lord Jesus. Now, in
proportion to the value of the privilege ought to be their zeal and
forethought, to assure themselves of it, and to guard against any possibility
by which the desired object might be snatched from their grasp. But this
prudence was possessed by but half of the number. Five only were wise, and five
foolish.
These five were
foolish, because so much pains were spent on attaining the end, and yet in
vain, for want of forethought for the future. Vain the going
forth, the preparation and lighting of the lamp, its first supply, and the
watching for the bridegroom. All the other steps were useless, for want
of the second supply.
They are wise or
foolish in the Saviour's eyes from the very first, and He stamps their
character, before He proceeds to display it. The not taking the vessel of oil
is the one step of folly which draws on the disastrous result, and
this Jesus sets forth as the single point which characterizes them as wise or
foolish to His eye. But the foolish do
not see their error till the close. Nor are its consequences manifested till then; although all the succeeding
parts of the parable are intended to exhibit the results of the error. But
during the time of delay, the improvidence does not appear, for the
bridegroom's tarrying is the time of mystery in which we now live. But at the
coming of the bridegroom, a new state of things ensues, and the wisdom of the
wise is apparent, and their foresight is crowned. But the bridegroom rejects
the foolish, that their folly may appear. A very little prudence would have
sufficed to attain the desired end. They might have been prepared against all mischances, by the simple provision of a little extra oil.
The foolish virgins were indeed prepared, if the bridegroom came at the usual
time; but the wise alone were prepared, whether
his coming were early or late. Under no circumstances of delay could the prize
escape their hold. Their
torches could be made to burn till morn.
But the foolish virgins left a loophole, through which loss might enter; and at
that neglected and unguarded entrance, it did come in. Their want of vigilance
herein was either ignorance, not discerning the need, and not advertised of it;
or, reasoning folly, not receiving the warning when given. Their thought, and
their plea, if asked - Why they had not provided an oil vessel in
case of need? would have been, doubtless, that it was
not essential, not absolutely necessary. They had enough for the present; why should they imagine that anything
more was required? The bridegroom might come very early for anything they could
tell; and then, where would be the wisdom of troubling themselves with an
additional burthen?
Since the whole
force of the lesson of the parable depends on the meaning we attach to the
second supply of oil, I shall consider the point at some length.
First, I suppose
it will be granted, that by oil is meant the grace of the Holy Ghost. And this
is twofold; either sanctifying or miraculous.
1. If then I show that the second supply is not
sanctifying grace, it will follow that it is miraculous endowment, or “the gift by grace.”
(a) That it is not
any difference in degree of sanctification which is in question, is clear from
this ‑ that then the parable would supply us with no rule by which to
discern between wise and foolish. For if you tell me only, that the difference
lies in degree of sanctification,
if you do not point out the degree, I must either be terrified or secure. Terrified, if I think I
have not the degree requisite, while none can satisfy me what the degree
required is; or secure, that I have some grace, and why may not that be enough
to set me among the wise?
(b) It cannot be
any degree of sanctification, for this oil gives no light to the world.
It is unemployed in good works, which is the meaning of the light of the torch.
(c) As being a
distinct supply, it follows that the oil in the torch might be without that in
the vessel, or vice versa. But it is not true that any degree of the
grace of sanctification can be distinct from its display in good works. There
cannot be two supplies of it, independent the one of the other. But miraculous
gift is distinct from, and may be independent of, grace: Matt. 7.
Three other
proofs, arising from (1) the request of the foolish, (2) the answer of the
wise, and (3) the means of repairing the error, will be found in another part.
2. The further relations of the two supplies prove it.
The oil in the torch is essential now, the oil in the vessel is not essential
now. Such is also the relative difference between the present necessity of
sanctifying grace, and of miraculous gift.
3. The second supply is additional, something beside
that of the torch: and such is the place which the gifts
of the Holy Ghost take, as compared with His graces.
4. The second store agrees with miraculous gift in point
of order. It is in succession after it. First the torch, then the vessel of oil. So of gift it is written
– “In whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise;” Eph. 1: 13.
5. If they be all believers, the difference must be one
which is not essential to salvation. And among things not essential to salvation, what so great as the difference between the possession, or the
want of, the gifts of the Holy Ghost?
6. It is met and sustained by fact. Between the believers of modern times and the ancient Church,
there is, in this particular, just the difference supposed: the one possessing,
the other wanting, the gifts of the Spirit.
7. A consideration of the order, in which the wise and foolish appear, beautifully confirms
this. We have the “wise” presented first, then the “foolish:” verse
2. Then again the “foolish,” and lastly the “wise:”
verse 3.
Thus the wise come first and last; the foolish occupy the
intermediate space. And has it not been exactly thus with
the Spirit's gifts? They were possessed at first, and then ceased; and the
whole dreary interval of 1600 years has been taken up by believers destitute of
them. We might conclude, therefore, that as gifted believers began the series,
and ungifted ones have followed, so in the last days gifted believers will rise
again, and close the train. But we can show by Scripture, independently of
inference, that such will be the case. Acts 2: 17,
18; Mark 13:11; Luke 21: 14, 15; Rev. 16: 6; 18: 24; 2 Tim. 3: 8; Jas. 5: 7.
8. On the taking
it or not, the greatest stress is laid throughout the parable. On purpose to set
it in the strongest light possible, the wise and foolish agree together in every
particular but this. And the
difference is optional; for in
things within our power alone, can wisdom or folly be seen. So are the gifts of
the Spirit made to rest upon our asking for them or not. Luke 11: 13; 1 Cor. 14: 1.
In the asking for, and receiving these, therefore, that vigilance may consist,
which is the lesson drawn from the parable by our Lord.
9. They are the “powers of the coming age;” Heb.
6: 5. And answerably thereto, this oil is seen to come into play, when
the new age has begun.
10. They that sleep with the oil vessel,
awake with it. And even thus the “gifts” of God
are unrepented of: Rom.
11: 29.
11. Further, as both are described as oil, so
are the same terms used of each kind of grace. In both cases these powers of
the Holy Ghost are said to “fill” the
individual. “The God of hope fill you with all joy
and peace in believing, that
ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost:” Rom. 15: 13. The same expression is usual of the
miraculous gifts. “
2. Both are said to be “taken” or “received.” “They who receive abundance of grace (sanctifying), and of the gift
of righteousness (the
miraculous gifts attached to justification by faith: Gal.
3.) shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ:” Rom. 5: 17. “The grace of God, and
the gift
by grace, which is by one man,
Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many:” verse
15.
3. Both are called
“grace.” No proof is required of this use of the
word, concerning the sanctifying powers of the Holy Ghost; but of its being
used of the miraculous gifts take these as examples – “Whereof
I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God, given unto me by the effectual
working of His power:”
Eph. 3: 7. “Unto
every one of us was given grace, according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore He saith, When He ascended
up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men:” (Greek) Eph. 4: 7, 8.
12. But more pointedly yet, it can be shown
that the wisdom or lot of the believer is made to turn on or surrendering the
privilege of the gifts of the Holy Ghost. “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not
as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are
evil. Therefore be ye not unwise, but
understanding what the will of the Lord is.
And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit,
speaking to yourselves in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual (or ‘inspired’) songs, singing, and making melody in your heart unto the Lord:” Eph. 5: 15-19. And still more remarkably the third
chapter of Galatians is nothing less than a reproof of the Galatians for their
folly in going back to the Law, and undervaluing thereby the miraculous gifts,
and works of power, which (as the apostle argues) are essentially connected
with justification by faith. It was with an eye to this difference, as
involving wisdom or folly, that Paul asks of the
disciples at
13. The additional oil was the riches of the
wise virgins, ‑ the want of it the poverty of the foolish, at the coming
of the bridegroom. Now this is just the place seen to be occupied by the
Spirit's gifts, in connexion with the coming of the Lord Jesus. “I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace
of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; that in everything ye are enriched
by Him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you (or ‘among you’), so that ye
lack no gift, waiting for the revelation (marg.) of our
Lord Jesus Christ; who also
shall confirm you to the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord
Jesus Christ: " 1 Cor. 1: 4 ‑ 8.
In the possession of the gifts then lies the wisdom
and riches, and blamelessness of the wise virgins at the coming of Christ. But
they who have them not, at His appearing are found lacking.
Exhortations to
seek and to pray for the Spirit's gifts occur not unfrequently,
in token that the additional oil is not vain. “Covet
earnestly the best gifts:” 1 Cor. 12: 31. “Desire
spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy:”
14:1. “As ye are
zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may abound to
the edifying of the church verse 12.
“Covet to prophesy:” verse
39.
The reception of
the Spirit's gifts is an optional thing, not absolutely essential, but promised
to those that ask. The power of procuring it is supposed open to all alike.
Hence it answers to the voluntary taking or omitting to take the second
supply of oil in the vessel. The
Spirit's gifts are not essential to life, or to the Christian's maintaining a
witness for God in the present state of things while the kingdom is a mystery.
But it is the mistake of the foolish to imagine that, because not essential at present, they will be equally needless in the future, at the manifestation of the Lord
Jesus. So widely, however, has this error crept in, that the Saviour describes one‑half
of His believing People, as made foolish by it!
The want of expectation
of the bridegroom's return, and the want of the additional oil, have gone
together, as all Christian history will inform us. But the parable manifests
that even the expectation of the coming of the Lord Jesus may revive, and yet
that there may be no consciousness of the need of extraordinary oil, and no
petition for it.
Watchfulness is a
duty which, as Christ declares, applies to
all. How this should apply to those who fall asleep before Christ's coming
is not apparent. But this lesson supplies the deficiency. If any say ‑ 'Let those watch in whose life the signs predicted are
actually coming to pass, but we shall be dead ere then, and therefore the
question of preparation does not touch us’ ‑ the parable enables
us to answer that there is a preparation required of those that shall be then the
dead in Christ, no less than
of those that shall be alive at His coming. Preparation for death is not
necessarily a preparation for the Lord's coming. Sleep overtook all alike, and
all appeared alike while asleep, and the Bridegroom's coming found all equally
in the same condition of slumber. But at the awaking came the difference. And
then the extra supply of oil, neglected as unnecessary before, is
found indispensable. We see
therefore, that, even as regards those that are fallen asleep in Christ Jesus,
a state of things will come into play at the resurrection, which will
discriminate between those who lived in vigilant preparation for the Lord's
coming, and those that did not; and that it is a mere deceit of a foolish heart
to compose ourselves to rest because Christ will not come in our day.
By the vessel into
which the additional oil was put, we are to understand, I judge, the body. “This is the will of God, even your sanctification . . . that
every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in
sanctification and honour.” Here the body is not only a vessel, but the
vessel in possession of the man – “his vessel.” “Oil in their vessels.”
Again it is said, “We have this treasure in earthen
vessels, that the excellency
of the power may be of God, and not of us:” (2
Cor. 4:7) where, in relation to the power of
the Holy Ghost miraculously displayed by His ministry, they are called “earthern vessels.” And
Paul is said to be a “vessel of election,” who was
to be “filled with the Holy Ghost:” Acts 9: 15, 17; so Rom.
9: 21 – 23. The torch is, I
believe, external witness to others; the oil in the vessel a personal
possession and testimony to themselves.
5. “Now while
the Bridegroom tarried they all became drowsy, and were sleeping:” (See
Greek)
What is intended
by the Bridegroom's tarrying, is easy to apprehend.
The Saviour more than once dropped intimations that His absence would be
prolonged. He was a nobleman going into a “far country
for a
long time:” Luke 20:
9; 19: 12. “After a long lime the Lord of those
servants cometh:” Matt. 25: 19.
The cause of the
delay is not specified, and accordingly the reasons of the Saviour's tarrying
are unknown to us. The seasons and their reasons are known only to God. And the time of this delay answers to the
time of mystery, during which the plans of God are greatly hidden.
This tarrying is
the critical point of the whole on the part of the Bridegroom; just as the additional
supply is the critical point of the parable on the part of the virgins.
Had He come
earlier, He might have found all awake, and the extra supply of the wise would
have seemed needless, nor would there have been any difference of result to the
wise and the foolish, and the wisdom of the wise would not have been displayed,
nor the disasterous consequences of want of prudence
seen. But the Bridegroom’s tarrying
gives occasion to the sleep, which hinders the remedy of
the error: and to the continued consumption of the oil, which makes necessary
the fresh supply of the wise upon their common awaking. It is the delay of the Bridegroom, giving
occasion to the sleep of all, which makes the difference between this case and
that considered by the Saviour before.
Had the virgins been awake at the Bridegroom’s coming, the case would
have been that of the living saints, and thus it would
have been only the very same aspect of the Saviour’s coming which He had
elsewhere considered.
But we must now
investigate a very important question as to the nature of the sleep, and give
proofs of its true signification. There
are two ideas respecting it – (1) One, it is a blameable carelessness with
regard to the Lord’s coming, and a shrinking into spiritual sloth and worldliness. (2) The other, that it is intended to
represent the death of the virgins. Now,
that it is not a blameworthy sleep is evident from these considerations.
1. The sleep is
seemingly apologized for, by the mention of the Bridegroom's delay immediately
preceding, and assigned in a certain sense, as its cause. For the case of the
virgins must be ever kept distinct from that of servants under responsibility,
and charged to watch. To sleep while on guard is faithlessness worthy
of punishment in a servant; and hence
the Saviour warns the servants against being found sleeping. But where sleep overtakes one
desirous of obtaining a pleasure, privilege, or honour, which he is watching for, we at once
ascribe it, not to want of will to resist, but
to want of power; and we
consider the sleeping involuntary. The effect of the Bridegroom's delay is here simply practical,
not a moral one, like that of the evil servant, who, finding his
master's coming delayed, begins to beat his fellow‑servants, and to eat
and drink with the drunken.
2. To suppose the
sleep a falling away to carelessness, worldliness, and disregard of the Lord's
coming, would be to argue utter defectibility of
grace given, for the sleep is continued up to the Saviour's coming; and yet, in spite of this, we have the highest privilege and joy
awarded to those that have so carelessly slept! This would be giving licence to
sin, if the sleep were evil.
3. If blameworthy,
the parable would have been made to turn on it, and the Master's finding some
awake, and others asleep, would have been the natural ground of difference
between the wise and the foolish.
4. It affects all
equally. The foolish and the wise together sleep, and
together wake. But if the sleep were sin, either all the wise would not sleep together with all the foolish, or all the foolish would not wake at once with all the wise.
5. The sleep is
not that of intemperance, nor that of worldly care, for they fall asleep in the
position of waiting and separation which they held at first; their torches
are still burning, and they themselves still undefiled.
6. Were it an
error, then the parable would not (as it does) set forth the result of one single
error committed at the first,
and traced out to its legitimate consequences, but a new mistake is introduced,
and the first lesson is lost, or obscured. But the sleep comes in, not as a
fresh error, but as a circumstance which fixes a period to the opportunity of
remedying the original mistake.
7. The wise sleep
no less than the foolish, and yet retain their character of “wise;” verse 8. Therefore, since the sleep does not affect
their character for wisdom, it was not an unwise sleep.
8. The sleep is not blamed, and the foolish, even when rejected,
are not reproved for it. Therefore it is not criminal. It corresponds therefore most exactly
to the blameless sleep of death. Against this, wisdom and folly are equally
powerless: however willing the spirit may be, the
flesh is weak; they were not suffered to continue by reason of DEATH: Heb.
7: 23. This is that sleep which cannot be resisted, but which happens
(as Solomon tells us) with like event both to the wise and the fool: Eccles. 2: 14.
9. Again ‑
If the oil signify grace, then is not the sleep sinful, especially in the wise.
For worldliness and careless indifference to Christ's coming
are incompatible with the abundance of grace which the wise possess.
10. And if the
sleep be death, then are all the virgins believers; for to none but such is
death a sleep.
The Bridegroom's coming
is not death, for death affects but one at a time, this all at once.
Further ‑ It
is the consequence of their sleep that they do not notice the consumption of
the oil, and consequently do not attempt to replenish the torch. Hence the only
time of repairing the error is before the sleep begins. After that time, there
is no possibility of remedy. For the sleep continues till the resurrection;
and between the resurrection and the entrance into the glory of the feast,
there is no time. However long the interval of sleep, it is incapable of being
applied to remedy the imprudence, because of the inaction of sleep. The time of
mystery, as we should expect on this supposition, runs on indefinitely longer
than their life. But as it regards the virgins, it is occupied by but one
condition ‑ the state of inactivity or sleep. And it is unbroken till the
Bridegroom comes. Till then not one of the sleepers arises. The old age ends to
them in sleep. The new begins by awaking.
Of the two words
that describe the sleep, the one notices
the falling of the eyelids and the nodding of the head, which characterizes the
passing from wakefulness to sleep, and the other describes the state of those
asleep, after that of wakefulness has been abandoned. Thus they correspond respectively
to the act of dying, and to the state into which death introduces the soul.
Of the frequent
places in which the death of the believer is called sleep, a few instances will
suffice. “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word he established.”
“Many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
and came out of the graves after
his resurrection, and went into the holy city and appeared unto many:” Matt.
28: 52, 53. “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.” “Then said Jesus
unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead:” John 11: 11, 14. “After that he appeared unto five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain
unto this Present, but some are fallen asleep:” 1 Cor. 15: 6. Here the very case in question, the constant
lapse of time, is cited as the reason why those who had once beheld Jesus had
fallen asleep. And in the case of Lazarus, we see the tarrying of Jesus to be
the occasion of his falling asleep; while, afterwards, at His voice he arises,
and feasts with Jesus.
Further, this
interpretation presents the Church in the two great and real divisions in which
the Scripture contemplates it at the coming of Christ. The whole Church will
then be composed either of those “who are alive
and remain,” or of those who are “fallen asleep in Christ.” And the passage which exhibits the Church in
this aspect, also teaches us why the sleep of the virgins, which seems the
greatest obstacle in the way of their attendance at the feast, will not he
found to be so. “I would not have you ignorant,
brethren, concerning them that are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even
as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
even so them that sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him. For this we say unto
you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (get the start of) those
which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:” 1 Thess. 4: 13 ‑ 16. And again, “God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation
by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we shall live together with Him:”
1 Thess. 5: 9, 10.
The parable before us then respects the great body of the Church who shall be
found amongst the dead at Christ's
appearing; while in the former chapter the Saviour had addressed himself in
giving signs, which could
apply only to the living. But here, “they all slumbered and slept.”
Accordingly, while
the sleep begins at an indefinite time and at different instants for each of
the virgins, yet the sleep is not shaken off by any till the coming of the
Bridegroom. In the interval of suspense nothing occurs but the dropping off to
sleep of one and another of the virgins, answering to the present successive
decease of the saints of Christ, owing to the time of His return being
prolonged.
We may further
remark, that, as the period embraced by this parable extends for at least the
space of 1800 years, from the time when the Saviour's return began to be
expected, up to the present hour ‑ if the sleep be supposed to be spiritual
sloth, then the virgins must
be regarded as corporate bodies, or churches, for such only could continue from that period till Christ's
return. And on the other hand, if the virgins be individuals, then the sleep is death; for this alone accounts for the condition in which they are found
during the Bridegroom's delay. But it has been already proved that the sleep is
death, therefore the virgins are justly regarded as representatives of
individuals.
6. “But at
midnight a cry took place, Behold, the Bridegroom is coming, come ye forth to
meet Him.”
Midnight is the
midway point between one day and another. The virgins awake
into a
new day answering to the new
or “coming age”. And though it be
midnight to earth, yet to the saints it is the hour of the bridal feast. For
this festal hour of the new age now begun on high, the “powers of the coming age,” must be
highly appropriate, not to say necessary. If earth itself, when the hour of Christ's coming hath
dawned, will be filled with the Spirit's gifts, how can it be fitting that the
sons of heaven be destitute
of them?
It being
proved that the sleep is death, we are prepared readily to answer to the
question – What is intended by the cry, and its accompanying words of
exhortation and command? It is doubtless
the “shout” with
which the Lord descends when the dead in Christ arise. And the words which
follow appear to be those of the Bridegroom’s angelic attendants and
forerunners. They take the place of the
servants sent at supper time to call those that are bidden – “Come, for all things are
now ready.”
The
notice thus given before the Saviour appears, and the interval which succeeds,
prove that this is not the coming of Jesus to the living: for that is a
thief-like approach, with no notice beforehand to hearald His appearing. It is a sudden flash of lightning breaking without
previous warning from the darkness of the light.
The
expression – “The Bridegroom is coming,” represents him as still on his way. He has set forth, but is not yet arrived at
the hall of the feast. This marks
the time at which the dead awake. The
interval between this commenced approach and its ceasing at a distance from the
earth (when it is called his presence) gives the time that
elapses between the rising of the saintly dead and their being caught up (in
conjunction with the living saints) to meet him. That it is very brief, the parable
shows. The Bridegroom’s setting out
takes place while all are asleep. But
his coming is after all are awake.
“Come ye forth to meet
him.” The virgins first
going forth was not enough. Here they
are required to come forth again. And the explanation of the sleep above given,
clears up the point. Their first going
forth was a voluntry separation from the world.
But this second coming forth is from the tombs. The same word is used in Scripture to express
both these ideas. “There met
him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs:” Matt. 8: 28. “The hour is coming in which all that are
in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth, they that
have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil
unto the resurrection of damnation:” John 5: 28, 29. “He cried with a loud
voice, 'Lazarus, come forth.' And he
that was dead came forth:‑“
John
11: 43, 44. Thus we have the very command of the parable addressed to
Lazarus at his resurrection, “Lazarus, come forth!”
They
came forth for the purpose of meeting him. And the place of meeting is the air:
1
Thess. 4: 17. The meeting supposes that the Bridegroom is moving
towards the earth, and that they are to move away from it. The first going forth denotes the
sanctification of the spirit; the second, the redemption of the body. The first
act is voluntary; the second requires an awaking from without.
7. “Then all
those virgins arose and trimmed their torches.”
Such as
the sleep is, such is the awaking, and as the awaking so the sleep. If the
sleep be death, the awaking is the resurrection. And if the awaking at the
Bridegroom's coming be the resurrection, then is the sleep death.
The word
used is that constantly applied to the resurrection, “Young man, I say unto
thee, arise:” Luke 7: 14. “Maid, arise:” 8: 54. “After I am risen again,
I will go before you into
That the
arising is not, as some have imagined, any present awakening among the saints
to the importance of Christ's second coming is seen from these considerations.
1. The awaking takes place by a cry external to the virgins themselves. But
this awakening of believers has been owing to warnings among themselves. 2.
When they awake there is not time for the unready virgins to repair heir
mistake: which is not the case with us.
3. There is no universality in the sleeping or awaking, as in the parable. There
all sleep and all awake
together. But now on the subject of the Lord's advent, some believers are awake
and some asleep.
The virgins all arise at once. This proves them all believers: for
none but the saints rise at the first resurrection. “The rest of the dead
lived not again until the thousand years
were finished.” And their resurrection creates no stir in the city, nor
does the Bridegroom's train enter it. Those who are outside are awakened by the
sound, but none within the city. They rise in the same place in which they fell
asleep: for the resurrection is not
the ascent of the saints.
On
arising, their first care is to trim their lamps. A part of the wick is
consumed to ashes and makes the flame to burn dimly. They all, therefore,
remove this impediment to the brightness of the torch, and the act reveals to
them the state of the supply of oil. The wise, therefore, complete what is
further necessary to the trimming of the torch, by adding the requisite oil.
The
first supply was just failing, having lasted for the same time in all.
Now, therefore the necessity of the second supply began to appear. The wise are
able to meet that necessity. They pour in fresh oil, and the torch is rekindled
as brightly as before.
8. “And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us
of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” (margin.)
With the resurrection a new state of things begins.
Then the difference between those that seemed equally ready before begins to be
perceived. We could draw no argument against the necessity of the
spiritual gifts for the coming day of glory, from the fact that God's saints
have fallen asleep happily, without perceiving their need of them. There was no
difference perceivable between the two companies in their falling asleep, nor
in their continuing so.
But when
the foolish see the wise recruiting with fresh oil the decaying flame of their
torches, they become sensible of a preparedness which they have not themselves.
All need
the fresh supply on awaking, but the wise alone can meet the exigency. The old burns on till midnight, the end of
the former day: but a new stock is needed for the new day that is begun. Then it is painfully felt by the foolish that
the extra supply is not as they vainly imagined, needless. They refused it before as not essential; but
now the “foolishness
of God” in providing the second supply is seen to be wiser than
man's wisdom in declining it. It seemed an unnecessary burthen, for the gifts of
the Holy Ghost must, in an evil world, peculiarly provoke the enmity and perhaps the ridicule of men.
But now
they find their want of foresight. They see at length that enough oil for the present
is not enough for the futre. They that it was folly to imagine that what is not essential now may not
be so at Christ’s coming. They
discern that it is folly to rest content with the present, and not to provide
for the new state of things to ensue on the coming of Jesus and the
resurrection. In the day of the bridal
they find themselves unfit for the especial glory. The Spirit’s powers were witness of the age
to come before it came, but in the age that is now come they find their
especial sphere, and beauty, and brightness.
The want of the glory possessed by the wise will then be keenly
felt. To the content with more than is
absolutely indispensible for the present, while it was thought wisdom for the
time, is now discovered to be folly. The
issue of the whole manifests that while the extra supply is not essential to
the character of a virgin, it is essential to the virgin’s entrance
into the wedding-feast. The only oil
used in the marriage procession is the additional supply. The gifts of the Holy Ghost are “first fruits” now (Rom. 8: 23), but then
they will be poured out “on all flesh”.
The wise
were prepared before they slept; and their wisdom shines brightly now. Whether the Bridegroom came early or late
they were ready: and their torches now show it.
But the torches of the foolish throwe a dying light. They are not gone out indeed, for then
oil alone would not suffice to make them ready, and they would not need a wick,
and would rather have asked for a light than for oil. But the parable supposes all to wake in circumstances
exactly alike, as before they slept under the same circumstances; in order that
the difference of character as wise and folish might be the more openly
demonstrated.
9. “But the wise answered, saying (Not so*), Lest there be not enough for us and for you; but go ye
rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.”
[*
The words “Not so” are added by the translators
to supply a seeming ellipsis. They might
be translated sufficiently closely to our idiom – “Perhaps there would bot be
enough for us and you.”]
It has been
thought by some that this reply of the wise was intended as a keen cutting
rebuke of irony. A strange supposition! Even from a believer to an unbeliever
this were unkind, but between believers impossible. Those who could taunt the
unwise with their folly, when grace alone made them to differ, would not be fit
to enter at once into the wedding‑feast of love! But in truth there is
not a particle of the style of irony about it. And had the words of the wise
been those of derision, the counsel offered would not have been taken by those
to whom it was given; since indeed it were no counsel, but a bitter jest.
Its purport is
very observable, as corroborating the interpretation given. For their answer
to the address of the foolish is not that their request is impossible to be complied with.
This would, this must have been the
reply had the question been concerning the power of the believer to communicate
saving grace to unbelievers. They
do not deny the possibility of granting
their petition, but they gently represent it as inexpedient: that is, they indirectly admit the
power of granting it. And this answers to the fact that one believer is able to
transmit the gifts of the Holy Ghost to another. Nay, the laying on of an
apostle's hands was actually the ordinary way of communicating them: Acts 8: 17; 9: 17; 19: 6. And this difference
answers to the difference of the oil in the torch, and the oil in the vessel. The
oil in the torch could not be communicated, as being already imbibed by the
wick: but the oil in the vessel was in a state to be transferred at the discretion
of the possessor.
The plea of the
foolish is their own necessity. The counter plea of
the prudent is that they need the oil for themselves. Had the thing been
impossible, this, as the most effectual answer, would have been returned; as we
see in the dialogue between Abraham and his evil son. “Send
Lazarus,” is the request. “They that would pass
from hence to you cannot,” is
the reply.
Nor do either of the parties esteem the omission on the part of
the foolish to be irreparable. The wise
do not reply, as they would have done to the unbelieving (were it permitted us to suppose that
the wicked would rise at the same time with the just) – ‘Your case is desperate. It is the day of resurrection. Your hour of grace is gone by for
ever. Do you not see how foolish your request is? Not only have we no more grace than we ourselves require in order to
be saved, but were we disposed to grant you any, as imagining ourselves to have
more than enough, it were impossible.' Instead of this, they suppose that
oil was still procurable. The remedy against the omission of the foolish, as it
was open at the first, so they assume it to be even at last. They take it for
granted that in the city which they had left, there were shops at which oil was
disposed of. And this falls in with what has been shown above, that the
Spirit's gifts will be abroad on earth in the latter days. At this point the
usual interpretations fail. The words of the wise are – “Go ye rather to them that sell.”
It is not said, “To him that sells,” as it must have been, had saving
grace been the matter in question: for who can communicate this but
God? But the power of communicating the gifts of the Holy
Ghost was committed at first (and therefore we may conclude that it will be so
at last also) to more than one. The selling doubtless,
is that kind of sale of which the prophet speaks ‑ “Buy wine and milk without money and without price:” Isa. 55:1.
And we know one who was reproved with awful solemnity for supposing that the
gift of God could be purchased by money.
The sellers are
those who keep more than sufficient for their own supply, and whose office it
is to impart, on certain terms, to others. Such were the apostles; to whom was imparted the power of bestowing gifts on believers
of the first age.
The prudent here
prudently refuse, because the supply, though enough for one, might not be
enough for two.
10. “But while
they were going away to buy, the bridegroom came, and they that were ready went
in with him to the marriage feast and the door was shut.”
The error of the
foolish is not irreparable in its nature, but the parable is intended
to show that it is not repaired in result. It was a question of time, but time was
not afforded. The remedy came too late.
The foolish see
the justice of the refusal of the wise,
and perceive also that their advice is the only alternative that presents
itself under the circumstances. Their
going to obtain a supply is necessary, and is felt to be so; but the very means
adopted to retrieve the error only display it more manifestly. They are compelled to withdraw from the
scene, and to sever themselves from the company of the wise. But this departure, though necessary, carries
with it exclusion. They are not upon the
spot when the Bridegroom arrives, and the procession cannot tarry. The voluntary separation, therefore, is the
first step to an involuntary one. The refusal of oil by the virgins is the
prelude to a refusal of a place at the feast by the Bridegroom.
On purpose to
manifest the wisdom of the wise, and by contrast, their improvidence, as soon
as they have withdrawn, the Bridegroom comes.
In what follows, speed is set forth – ‘The
Bridegroom came – those ready went in – the door was shut.’
By the going in to
the wedding-feast is, I believe, meant the catching up of the saints, that they
may enter into the gates of the New Jerusalem – the bridal city, the wife of
the Lamb.
The feast is on
high, for this is the place of the sons of God raised from the dead. And the parable of the Great Supper informs us that none of those to whom the
wedding-feast was first proclaimed should taste of it; Luke 14: 24.
And hence its scene is not earth, but heaven; not the living in the
flesh, but the saints of incorruptible bodies.
This rapture of
the saints takes place at the thief-like coming of the Son of Man. It is a sudden momentary glance, like the
lightning opening heaven for a moment with its flash, and suddenly shutting it
again. It is “in
a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.”
The open door answers to the glory suddenly shining forth: the closed
door, to the darkness settling on all things again.
The door that is
opened and shut is that of the house of God in heaven. “In my Father's house are many mansions:” John 14: 2.
“For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle
were dissolved, we have a building from God an house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens. For in this
we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from
heaven.” This gives us, however, not so much the general place of
assembly of the saints, as our own special locality in the city. But what
follows casts light, as I suppose, upon the parable. “If
so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked:” 2 Cor. 5: 1 ‑ 3. For the
foolish virgins are in the condition of
those who have not watched and kept their garments. Hence the thief‑like
presence of the Lord is come upon them unawares; though they are clothed with
their immortal bodies, because they are risen again.
Yet are they “found naked;” because in the hour
in which one is taken up and another is left behind, they remain upon the
earth. Thus “they
walk naked, and men see their shame.” The
torches were the proof that they were desirous of entering the wedding, and
seemed to have almost the certainty of doing so; but they are now memorials of
their disgrace. The house has been broken into because not guarded, and the
master has to mourn over his loss, with the melancholy reflection that it was
owing to his own want of vigilance, and not to want of warning.
Of
this part of the parable we have a beautiful illustration in the book of
Revelation. As soon as the Saviour has finished giving to John the counsels and
warnings to the church; as soon as He has threatened His thief‑like
coming, and has made promise with the obedient to sup with him (chap. 3), we read, “After
this I saw and behold a door was opened in
heaven.” He is called
up by a voice like a trumpet, a
token of that which is to awake the dead, and the voice says, “Come up hither.” And the result to himself
was, that he was there “immediately in
the spirit," as
these will be there in the body also.
“The door was shut.”
1. The use of a
door is to shut out those without from sight and hearing. It is the means
recommended by the Saviour, when we would be hidden from men, and in communion
with God: Matt. 6: 6. And even thus the glory of the bridal feast is shut out
from man. It is a magnificent assembly, of which the sleeping world is
ignorant. The shut door hides the brightness from their eyes, and prevents the
melody from reaching their ears.
2. It marks the
determination of the owner to sever between the guests and those without. It
is the signal of full and free communication among those that are within, and
the cutting off of communication and communion with those without. It is an
effectual barrier interposed against entrance from without, as it intimates
also the full acceptance of those within (Luke 11:
7), and is the token that the feast is begun. Heaven has before been
shut from men, as it regarded the outpouring of its earthly treasures of rain.
But this shutting up is for the prevention of those without from entering into
its glories.
If we inquire by
whom it is shut, we shall find it is by the Bridegroom. “A door was opened to me of the Lord:” 2 Cor. 2: 12. “I have set
before thee an open door, and none can shut it:” Rev. 3: 8. As the master of the house, it depends on His will
to admit or to exclude: Luke 13::
25.
11. “Now afterwards
came also the other virgins, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open unto us.' 12. But He answered and
said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not."
Whether they were
successful in their errand is not stated. But if they have obtained at length
the needed supply, it has come too late. The opportunity has slipped by. The
once open door is shut. It is not clear whether they are caught up into heaven
afterwards, or whether they are supposed to return to the same spot at which
they left the wise, and on finding them departed,
perceive the loss they have sustained. The others “entered
in” (see Greek). They “come” (see Greek).
They try their
last and forlorn hope by making a personal appeal to the Bridegroom for
admittance – “Lord, Lord, open unto us.” But
their suit is refused. It is refused in terms so strong, as to make many
suppose that it implies the eternal perdition of those so addressed. But a
nearer examination of the words will show us that this is not intended. Indeed,
in some most important points it stands in contrast to those cases which seem
to resemble it.
First, then, it is
uttered by the Bridegroom to brides-maidens; and it implies, 'I as
bridegroom do not recognize you as guests and companions of the bride at the
feast.' But the characters of
Bridegroom and of brides-maidens are temporary characters. Hence while they have lost that peculiar and temporary privilege represented by the title of
virgins, they may yet be received after the feast is over. And in accordance with this, the
words, “I know you not,” stand in contrast to
those which are addressed to the wicked – “I never
knew you.” The address
to the foolish implies only – ‘During the present period of the feast, my
countenance will not be upon you for joy.’ But it does not add the fearful declaration,
that, 'You are none of my chosen ones; your names are
not in the book of life at all.’
The exclusion is
punishment enough ‑ the loss of privilege consequent upon the neglect of
the call to vigilant preparation is its own sufficient recompense. They have
done much with a view to the desired end, yet for want of forecast have come
short of it. This loss is enough of
itself. There is the being ashamed before Christ at His coming; and shame is the proper recompense of folly.
Punishment is not awarded to folly by a judge. The damage it
brings to a man's own interests is considered sufficient. None is injured but
the man's own self.
A bridegroom is
not judge of brides-maidens. Therefore, there is not, as in the other cases,
the sentence of the judge, "Depart from me."
It is now only – ‘While I am feasting, you cannot enter, but must wait
without. I have the key of
David ‑ I shut and none opens. I open and none shuts.’ Nor is a word
added as to their character. They are not addressed as “workers of iniquity," for
then they would be more than foolish, but now they are the unwise ones among
the children of light, reaping the sad wages of their imprudence. Nor is there
any word of the “outer darkness” and “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” as in the cases of
utter exclusion. For that is the sentence on faithlessness and wickedness, and
want of the wedding garment: Matt. 8: 12; 13: 42,
50; 22: 13; 24: 51; Luke 13: 28. This silence, then, of the Saviour, on
these points, in the present instance, is a true silence: it gives us to understand that the loss of privilege is
all.
The entrance to
the marriage feast of the Lamb is set forth as a peculiar blessedness: Rev. 19: 9. It is not a necessary thing, short of
which is perdition. It is a glory bright but brief, before the Lord Jesus is
manifested from the open heavens: Rev. 19: 11.
It is not intended for all the subjects of the kingdom, but for the household.
The feast may be lost, and yet the loser be the
partaker in the kingdom which is revealed. And he who misses it, does so by an
error answering to want of punctuality; as when a passenger, having paid his
fare by a vessel, and sent on board his goods, arrives after the time required,
and loses both his money and his passage. The vexation and damage sustained
are, in such cases, rebuke enough. Here is a “suffering
loss," a diminishing of the “full reward:” 1 Cor. 3: 15; 2 John 8.
13. “Watch,
therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of man
cometh.”
This is the great
lesson of the parable applied to the disciples, and enforced by the result of
the preceding history. The wise were vigilant that they might not lose the
great object of their desire as brides-maidens, and therefore, being ignorant
at what time the bridegroom might come, they prepared themselves for the latest
hour, and the most unfavourable case, that the expected pleasure might not
escape them. Not only were their lamps furnished with what was indispensable
for present consumption, but they had an eye to future need, and provided
themselves with a second supply. The foolish were ready if the Bridegroom had
come early; but if He came late, their present supply of oil might not be
enough. And this possibility,
against which they neglected to secure themselves, as the wise had done, proved
the inlet to the disastrous result to themselves. But
it was wholly traceable to their own improvidence that
they were excluded from the feast.
The lesson is the
same to us. Do you take, like the wise virgins, the second supply of oil. Go seek, without money, and yet with fervent,
importunate prayers, the gifts of the
Holy Ghost. Buy before you fall asleep in Jesus, for if you have them not
ere then, it will be too late. Be ready, not for the present alone, but provide
for the future of Christ's appearing. And as you know not the day nor the hour
of it, nor whether He shall find you asleep or awake, prepare for either. The
day of His coming will make a separation between the wise and the foolish. The
Spirit's gifts are not indeed necessary for the present, but the parable shows
that for an admission into the guest‑chamber of the wedding, they are. Is
this indeed the lesson of the parable? How important then that we should “covet earnestly the best gifts!” Let me beg the believer to search the
Scriptures and see whether these things are not so.