Parable of the Unjust Steward
parable of Jesus (Luke 16:1–13),

The Parable of the Unjust Steward or the Parable of the Penitent Steward is a parable of Jesus which appears in Luke 16:1–13. In it, a steward who is about to be fired tries to "curry favor" with his master's debtors by remitting some of their debts. The term "steward" is common in many English translations of the New Testament; some versions refer to a "manager", or an "accountant". This parable does not appear in the other gospels.
Text
Jesus also said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.' And the manager said to himself, 'What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.' So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' He said, 'A hundred measures of oil.' He said to him 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.' Then he said to another, 'And how much do you owe?' He said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.' He said to him, 'Take your bill, and write eighty.' The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.
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