Matthew 25:14-30 NRSVue
14“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; 15to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. At once 16the one who had received the five talents went off and traded with them and made five more talents. 17In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. 18But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. 20Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ 21His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 22And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ 23His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 24Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you did not scatter, 25so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not scatter? 27Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. 28So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. 29For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 30As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
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Reflection on Matthew 25:14-30
Inspiration from 2026-11-15 Daily Prayer
- Jesus has already announced to his followers what will happen when he gets to Jerusalem, and expectation and excitement have been high on the agenda. Those who want to enter the kingdom must be ready to venture – risk-taking is at the core of the talents narrative and is the symbolic meaning contained within. The fearful servant who returns his unused talent or coin to the master is similar to the potential follower of Christ who is unwilling to risk very much for the sake of the kingdom.
- What am I like at risking myself, Lord, or do I prefer to leave things as they are? What might the Master say to me when I’m presenting my case? I certainly don’t wish to find that I have unused talents still hanging around when he calls me to account.
Further reflection
Focus firstly on all those servants who did a fine job for their master. Their reward? To enter into the joy of their master. You can imagine all sorts of celebrations, gifts, sense of fulfilment and general happiness all around. A “talent” was a huge amount at the time of the Gospels, so the master was entrusting a great deal to his servants. He must have been delighted with their work. Except for the one who only received one talent. There’s no reason to believe that he was a bad man. But he opts for security and not for risk.
As Pope Francis puts it about those who live a “tomb-psychology” in the church: "Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the joy of evangelisation! Disillusioned with reality, with the Church and with themselves, they experience a constant temptation to cling to a faint melancholy, lacking in hope, which seizes the heart like “the most precious of the devil’s potions”. Called to ra¬diate light and communicate life, in the end they are caught up in things that generate only dark¬ness and inner weariness, and slowly consume all zeal for the apostolate. For all this, I repeat: Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the joy of evangelisation!" (Evangelii Gaudium I, 3; II, 83)