The Talents
Three servants and their master's money
This parable ends with a servant cast into the darkness as an image of judgment.
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- A verse number shows the Bible’s exact words.
- An underlined word shows what it means.
Story
What happened?
Tap a verse number, like , to read the Bible’s exact words.
Who’s who and what came beforePeople, places, and the story so far. Open it anytime.
Scene Card
Cast
- Jesus: The one the Gospels present as the promised Messiah and the Son of God. He tells this story to his disciples.
- In Jesus's story: A master who goes on a long journey, and three of his servants.
Setting
- Jesus is sitting on the Mount of Olives, a hill across from Jerusalem, with his disciples (24:3). His story takes place in a rich man's household.
When
- A few days before Jesus died, about 2,000 years ago.
Before the Story
This is a parable. A parable is a short story Jesus told to teach something. The people in it are made up, but the point is real.
The disciples asked about the future. They wanted to know when Jesus would come again and when the end of the age would be (24:3). Jesus answered with several stories about a master or a groom who is away for a long time.
A talent was money, a huge amount. One talent was about 20 years of pay for a worker. Today "talent" means a skill. That meaning grew mostly out of this story.
Here's what you know that almost nobody in this story knows: In a few days, Jesus will go away too. He will die, rise, and return to his Father. His followers will wait a long time for him to come back.
Map of the Story
| Scene | Verses | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The master goes away | 25:14-15 | A master trusts three servants with his money |
| 2. Two work, one digs | 25:16-18 | Two servants gain more. One buries his talent |
| 3. The master comes home | 25:19-23 | Two servants hear "Well done" |
| 4. The third servant | 25:24-25 | He says he was afraid of his master |
| 5. The master answers | 25:26-30 | The talent is taken away, and the servant is sent out |
Plain Retelling
Scene 1 of 5The Master Goes Away
A man was about to leave on a long journey. He called his servants together. He entrusted them with his possessions. Entrusted means he handed them over and trusted the servants to take care of them.
Jesus told this story to show what the kingdom of heaven is like. The kingdom of heaven means God's rule, the way God runs things.
The master gave out his money in talents. A talent was a huge amount of money. One talent was about 20 years of pay for a worker.
To one servant he gave five talents. To another he gave two. To another he gave one. He gave them "each according to his own ability" (25:15). The master knew each of his servants.
Then he left on his journey.
Scene 2 of 5Two Work, One Digs
The servant with five talents went right away. He put the money to work and gained five more.
The servant with two talents did the same. He gained two more.
The servant with one talent did something different. He went off and dug a hole in the ground. He hid his master's money in it.
Matthew doesn't say why yet. The servant explained it himself when the master came home.
Scene 3 of 5The Master Comes Home
After a long time, the master came home. He wanted to settle accounts with his servants. That means he checked what each one had done with his money.
The first servant came forward. "Master, you gave me five talents," he said. "See, I have gained five more."
His master answered, "Well done, good and faithful servant!" (25:21). Faithful means someone who can be trusted.
The master said the servant had been faithful with a few things. Now he would put him in charge of many things. Then he said, "Enter into the joy of your master" (25:21).
Five talents was a fortune. The master called it "a few things." This master had much more to give.
The second servant came forward. He had gained two more talents. He said almost the same words as the first servant.
The master gave him the very same answer. Same praise. Same joy. The master did not praise the second servant less for gaining less.
Scene 4 of 5The Third Servant
Last came the servant with one talent.
"Master," he said, "I knew that you are a hard man" (25:24). He said his master reaped where he had not sown. This is a comparison from farming. It means taking a harvest from fields you did not plant.
Then the servant said, "So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what belongs to you" (25:25).
He handed back the one talent. Nothing lost. Nothing gained.
The servant told the reason himself. He saw his master as harsh. That picture made him afraid. And his fear made him hide the money.
Scene 5 of 5The Master Answers
The master answered sharply. "You wicked, lazy servant" (25:26).
The master repeated the servant's own words back to him. "You knew that I reap where I have not sown," he said. If the servant believed that, he should have put the money with the bankers. That way the money would have come back with interest. Interest is extra money the bankers pay back.
Then the master gave orders. He told them to take the talent from the third servant. They were to give it to the servant who had ten.
The master said, "For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance" (25:29). But the one who has nothing will lose even what he has.
Then came the hardest words. "And throw that worthless servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (25:30).
This is picture language. The outer darkness means being outside, far from the light and joy of the master's house. Gnashing means grinding. People grind their teeth in deep pain or grief.
The parable ends there. Two servants heard, "Enter into the joy of your master." One was sent out into the dark. The story leaves a question for everyone who hears it. What is the master really like? The rest of this page looks at that question.
Meaning
What does it mean?
Read It
What Does This Mean?
| The text says | It means |
|---|---|
| "Entrusted them with his possessions" (25:14) | The gift came first. The master gave before he asked for anything. Many Christians see the gift as God's grace and God's word, trusted to God's people. |
| "Each according to his own ability" (25:15) | The master knew each servant. He did not give everyone the same amount. |
| "You have been faithful with a few things" (25:21) | The master praised faithfulness, not the size of the profit. The servants with five and two heard the very same words (25:21, 25:23). |
| "Enter into the joy of your master" (25:21) | The master's goal was to share his joy. The reward was being with him. |
| "I knew that you are a hard man" (25:24) | The servant had a picture of his master as harsh and grabbing. That picture made him afraid. |
| "Everyone who has will be given more" (25:29) | Gifts that are used grow. Gifts that are buried are lost. Jesus said something like this about understanding his teaching too (Matthew 13:12). |
| "The outer darkness" (25:30) | Picture language for being shut out from the master's joy. It is Jesus's serious warning, not a small thing. |
Back Then
A talent was a huge sum. A talent was a large weight of silver or gold, used as money (Easton's Bible Dictionary). Many scholars figure one talent was worth about 6,000 denarii. A denarius was a normal day's pay for a worker (Matthew 20:2). So one talent was about 20 years of work.
Burying money was a way to keep it safe. Jesus also tells of treasure hidden in a field (Matthew 13:44). The Talmud was written down a few hundred years after Jesus. It records the teacher Shmuel saying that money is only truly guarded in the ground (Bava Metzia 42a).
The "servants" were probably slaves. The Bible's Greek word for slave is usually translated "servant" (Easton's Bible Dictionary). In this story, the master trusts them to run his money. Jesus uses a picture from daily life. He is not saying slavery was good.
Luke tells a similar parable. In Luke 19:11-27, a nobleman gives ten servants one mina each, a much smaller sum.
Literal Reader Alert
Did the word "talent" really come from this story? Mostly, yes. In the Bible, a talent is money. By the 1400s, English speakers used "talent" for a gift God trusts someone to use and grow. That meaning came mostly from this parable. By about 1600, it also meant any natural skill (Online Etymology Dictionary). In the story, it means money.
Is Jesus saying God is harsh? No. The master never says the servant's picture of him is true. He does not repeat the words "hard man." He repeats the servant's words to judge him by them. In Luke's version, the master says, "I will judge you by your own words" (Luke 19:22). The first two servants met a master who shared his joy.
What does the ending mean? Christians have struggled with this passage for a long time. Jesus does not soften it. He is warning that it is possible to be shut out from God's joy. Weeping and gnashing of teeth are pictures of deep grief. Jesus uses these words several times in Matthew (8:12, 13:42, 22:13, 24:51). He means them seriously. But this is not the only thing Jesus says. On the cross, Jesus went through darkness himself, for us (Matthew 27:45). See Good News below.
What if I'm afraid I'm the third servant? That fear is common, and you are not alone. Martin Luther was afraid for years that he could never be good enough for God. Feeling afraid does not make you the third servant. The third servant's problem was not a small gift or a small result. He believed his master was harsh, so he hid the money. Jesus told this story to his own friends, people he loved. You can bring your fear straight to Jesus. If this story brings up big feelings, talk with a parent, pastor, or trusted adult. If fear or worry is making daily life hard, a doctor or counselor can help. Getting help is not a lack of faith.
How People Feel
| Who | Feeling | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The master | Glad | Two servants were faithful with what he gave them (25:21, 25:23) |
| The third servant | Afraid | He believed his master was a hard man (25:24-25) |
| The master | Displeased | The servant hid the gift and did nothing with it (25:26-27) |
For you
What does it mean for me?
Your Turn
Which servant feels like you today? Tap one.
I have a lot
Thank God for it. Every talent in the story came from the master. What you have is a gift to share, not a score.
I have one
The master gave one talent to someone he knew. And the servants with two and five got the very same "Well done." Having a small gift does not mean you are loved less.
I'm afraid, like him
The third servant hid the money because he pictured a harsh master. Jesus shows us who God really is. Jesus said he is "gentle and humble in heart" (Matthew 11:29). That means he is gentle all the way through.
I can't produce much
God's love is not earned by output. Faith is the Holy Spirit's gift. Being loved comes first.
It's really bad right now
You can pray, "Jesus, I'm scared." Please also tell a trusted adult today. If you are in danger, call 911 or your local emergency number. In the U.S., you can call or text 988 any time. Outside the U.S., findahelpline.com lists free helplines.
You Might Have Heard
"Use your talents, or God will punish you." Or: "God wants you to grow your money."
What's true: God does give gifts, and they are meant to be used. The letter called 1 Peter says, "each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another" (1 Peter 4:10). Wasting a gift is a real loss.
What the story is mainly about: It is not mainly about skills or money. Many interpreters say the entrusted gift is God's grace and God's word, given to God's people to share. And the story shows what goes wrong. The third servant did not fail because he had less. He failed because he pictured his master as harsh. Then fear made him hide the money. One way to say it, using the story's picture: fear buries the gift, and faith puts it to work. Faith trusts that the master is good.
Where Jesus is: Jesus is the one telling the story, a few days before the cross. Christians see him as the master who goes away and comes back. And he is the one who shows us what God is truly like.
Good News
The gift came first. The master handed over his possessions before he asked for anything (25:14). The servants did not earn the talents.
The same is true for you. You did not earn God's love, and you cannot lose it by being slow or small. Paul wrote, "it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves" (Ephesians 2:8). The two faithful servants heard the same praise for different amounts. God is not grading output.
The third servant feared a harsh master. Jesus shows us the real one. On the cross, "darkness came over all the land" (Matthew 27:45). Jesus cried out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46). Christians believe Jesus went into the darkness so that we would not be left there. "There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear" (1 John 4:18).
Jesus went into the darkness for you, and he invites you into the joy of your master.
Big Idea
God entrusts his gifts to us before we do anything, and in Jesus he frees us from fear to share in his joy.
If this story brings up big feelings, talk with someone you trust, like a parent, pastor, or counselor.
For leaders and parentsLuther, church readings, and notes for teaching.
From Luther
In the Small Catechism (1529), Luther explains the First Article of the Creed. God gives me my body and soul, my reason, and everything I need. He gives all of this out of pure, fatherly goodness and mercy, "without any merit or worthiness in me." So I thank him, praise him, serve him, and obey him (Concordia Triglotta English, 1921). The gift comes first. The service grows out of thanks.
In the Large Catechism, Luther explains the First Commandment. He taught that whatever you set your heart on and put your trust in is really your god (Concordia Triglotta English, 1921). To set your heart on something means to love it and lean on it most. Here is how that applies to this story. The third servant's picture of his master shaped everything he did. So it matters that the Gospel shows us who God really is.
In Church
Many churches follow a reading plan called the Revised Common Lectionary. It reads Matthew 25:14-30 in mid-November of Year A (Lectionary 33, also called Proper 28), near the end of the church year.
We quote Luther for what he got right about grace. He also wrote terrible things about Jewish people. Read our note on that.
Memorize
How do I keep it?
One line from this story to learn by heart. Practice a little now. It will come back later so it sticks.
Well done, good and faithful servant!
How did that feel?