and "left" mean? Some interpret the words as taken for judgment and left for blessing.

Others reverse this.  Paralambano "taken" is generally used in a good sense (see

Matthew 1: 20, 24; 17: 1; John 14: 3 translated "receive").  It is better therefore to

understand it to mean "taken" (for blessing). The word "take" in Matt. 24: 39 is not

the same. Luke's addition "in that night there shall be two men in one bed" (17: 34)

completes the whole day and night.

The Lord now stresses the need for readiness:

The word "keep watch" literally means "keep awake". This is no time to be drowsy,

but rather to be constantly on the alert. The world around sleeps the sleep of the drugged

and is impervious to the solemnity of the times, with their many signs pointing to the

nearness of the end. The Lord's people in this period will be in two classes, those who

are watchful and ready, and those who are not. It is this all-needed readiness that is now

going to be stressed by the Lord Jesus. He gives two illustrations, the first of the house

owner who failed to keep watch and therefore gave the burglar the opportunity to thieve

(43, 44). The second is that of the servants who are put in charge of their master's

property when he is absent. Some are loyal and on the alert; others are careless and

indulge in drunkenness and fail to do their duty, so when the master returns suddenly they

are severely punished, while the loyal ones are rewarded (45-50).

The same stress on readiness is found in I Thess. 5: 4-7; Rev. 3: 3; 16: 15, and it is

the key to the parables of the Virgins and the Talents in the next chapter which now

It is very important that we are not led astray by the chapter division. Once more the

adverb tote appears, which means "then", "at that time", and refers back to the times of

the day of Noah and the events described by the Lord in the 24th chapter. It does not

refer to this age of grace and the history of the Christian church, or teach that this is the

setting for the parable of the Ten Virgins. Rather it says "then, at that time" (when

Antichrist is dominating and the Great Tribulation a terrible reality), "the kingdom of

heaven will become like ten virgins". We must remember that the Lord Jesus is still

answering the threefold question of the disciples raised in 24: 3 concerning His

Second Coming, and the end (sunteleia, harvest) of the age.

At this time the parable states that ten virgins took their lamps and went out to meet

the bridegroom. There is no suggestion that the five foolish virgins were unsaved or

hypocrites. The whole point is that they were unready, unprepared for meeting the

bridegroom. This was a warning, not to unsaved sinners, but rather to saints. Hence the

stress of preparedness to the disciples.