1. While they were listening, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because His disciples were anticipating the arrival of the kingdom of God.
2. He said to them, "A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then to return.
3. "So, he called ten of his servants and gave them all ten gold coins to use in business until he returned.
4. "But some of the servants hated him and sent a delegation after him saying, 'We do not want you to reign over us.'
5. "When the nobleman returned as a king, he ordered his servants to whom he had given money to be called to him so that he might take account of what they had done.
6. "The first came to him and said, 'I have taken your gold coins and made ten more with them.'
7. "And he said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant, you have been faithful in a little thing, so I will make you ruler of ten cities.'
8. "The second servant came to him and said, 'I took your ten gold coins and made five more.'
9. "And he said to him also, 'Well done; I will give you the rule of five cities.'
10. "But another servant came to him and said, 'Master, here is your ten gold coins, which I have kept in a safe place so that I may return them to you. For I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man. You reap what you did not sow, and you take up what you have not laid down.'
11. "So, the king said to him, 'By your own words shall you be judged, you worthless servant.
12. 'If you knew that I was an exacting man, reaping what I did not sow, and pulling up what I did not lay down, why did you not at least put my money in a bank where it could earn interest?'
13. "Then he said so all could hear, 'Take the gold coins from him and give it to the one who has ten.'
14. "But some said to him, 'Master, he has ten already.'
15. "And he said to them, 'I tell you that to the one who has will more be given, and to the one who has not, even what he thinks he has shall be stripped from him.
16. 'Take this lazy one out and cast him into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.
17. 'And as for those who sent the delegation to tell me not to return, bring them to me and slay them in front of me.'"
18. Then He told them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not lose heart.
19. And He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man.
20. "There was a widow in that city who came to him continually asking that he grant her justice against her adversary.
21. "For a while, he was unwilling to do so, but later he said to himself, 'Though I fear neither God nor respect man, still I will give her what she wants or she will wear me out.'
22. "Listen to what the unrighteous judge has said. And will not God bring justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night, or will He delay?
23. "I tell you that the Father will bring about justice for His elect quickly.
24. "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"
25. Then Jesus and His disciples were passing through a town on the way to the Holy City, and there was a man named Zaccheus. He was the chief tax collector and was very rich.
26. Zaccheus was trying to see who Jesus was, and was unable to because of the crowd, for he was a short man.
27. So, he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for Jesus was about to pass that way.
28. When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, "Zaccheus, come down from that tree, for tonight I am staying at your house."
29. So, Zaccheus climbed down hurriedly and received Him gladly.
30. But when the crowd saw all this, they grumbled, saying, "He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a great sinner."
31. Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, "Behold Lord, I will give half of all my possessions to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give it all back--four times as much!"
32. And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because you, too, are a son of Abraham.
33. "For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost."
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