The Ten Virgins - What is the parable about? Matt 25

[~candice~]

For reference, I do believe in a post tribulation rapture, though I acknowledge difficulties defending that point of view just as much as there are difficulties in the pre trib position.

God bless,

Candice

And I thought you were perfect...

LOL

I am a long way from perfect, unless you look at me through the eyes of my daughter

[enoob57]

And who could argue with that!!!

[back2thebible]

If you notice the whole teaching of all three of these parables (the faithful and evil servant) (wise and foolish virgins) (parable of talents) Is the same in each parable.............To be prepared, and to be doing the will of God

Hi back2thebible,

Welcome to worthy!

I agree with your statement above. But what do you believe the servants need to be prepared for, the rapture or the second coming?

prepared to meet the bridegroom (Jesus)

I have to say my biggest disagreement with interpretations of the wise and foolish virgins has to do with the analogy that the wise virgins had the (Holy Spirit) oil and the foolish did not

as we see they all were virgins, they all were waiting for the return, the Holy Spirit is not a comodity that can be bought or sold nor is it able to run out or be used up.

we see the wise directing the foolish to go buy some Oil (Holy Spirit) from a someone who sells Oil (Holy Spirit) this just is not a good interpretation

rather we see that some in the church are living in such away that they are unprepared for the return of Christ

while biblically Oil is always a representation of the Holy Spirit, in this case its just oil

The alternative is to say some Christians asked others to help us recieve the Holy Spirit and the Spirit filled Christians denied them saying there wasn't enough Holy Spirit to get them all saved as if the Holy Spirit is a limited power like a battery and can only last for so long

I agree. I think people tend to focus too much on the oil and what it represents. It seems that no one even notices that all ten virgins had lamps. The Bible says that God's Word is a lamp unto our feet, so I believe that all ten virgins knew God's Word. The difference is the oil the wise had. The wise were ready because of their preparation in God's Word. They were doers. I believe the foolish ones are also saved. They believed too, but they were too busy doing other things. So when the Bridegroom shows up, He recognizes those that followed His commands. But He doesn't recognize those who went off doing their own thing.

John 14:21

Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

Notice where Christ said that He would show Himself to them who keep His commands. I believe this is, yet, another clue about His appearing (rapture), not His second coming to the earth. This verse also happens to be from the same chapter where Jesus was telling His disciples that He was going away to prepare a place for them, that He would come again and receive them to Himself, that where He was, they would be also (John 14:1-3).

So what happens to the foolish virgins at this point? The wise told them to go buy from those who sell. The trouble is that because they were not ready, they will probably enter into the hour of trial that will come upon the whole world, to test those that dwell upon the earth. Unfortunately, during this time, no one will be able to buy or sell unless they take the mark of the beast. The foolish virgins will know that this is not an option, so they will be overcome by the beast (Rev.13:7-18) and become martyrs (Rev.20:4). But God will not pour out His wrath until after all of the martyrs are killed (Rev.6:9-11).

The only thing I disagree with you on is what happened to the foolish virgins, when the door is shut, it is the end of the road, there are no more chances to get right, or get prepared.............this is also why the left behind series is in error, if your left behind your end has been decided

Hi back2thebible,

Although that is a common view, it creates a stumbling block when we try to see the big picture. If the foolish virgins go immediately to destruction, this parable would then be like the sheep and goat judgment at the end of chapter 25. This creates more problems down the road.

If the wise virgins are raptured to safety, and the foolish virgins go to destruction, then who will be the martyrs that refuse the mark of the beast? And then, who will be left to re-populate the earth? It appears that your view requires that everyone who gets left behind will take the mark of the beast. Or am I misunderstanding you somehow?

yes! I guess that is a dilema if you believe in a pretrib rapture, if you believe Jesus in Revelations 20:5 where its plainly written "This is the first resurrection" and if you believe Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 "We shall by no means precede those who are asleep" (the dead in Christ) then you can see It is crystal clear that the first resurrection had martyrs who refused the mark

bottom line to remain in the truth of Gods word, the timing of the rapture (gathering up) can not happen until at least one martyr is under the throne, because there are only TWO resurrections, and the participants of the first resurrection contain martyrs who refused the mark

these two scriptures make the pretrib rapture completely error.............I was once a big pusher of the left behind series, telling everyone your going to get left behind, its a deception, and I'm afriad its designer wants every christian to follow the antichrist because this doctrine has Christ coming before the antichrist.........and the bible and Jesus all say the antichrist comes before He does

[rollinTHUNDER]

I would like to ask when have virgins ever been attributed to unsaved people?

there may be no other precedents, do there need to be? Let me ask you this, will the bridegroom say to beleivers: ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ ? (Verse 12)

Hi Omegaman,

Look closely to what happens to the believer in Verse 46 below.

Luke 12:35-48

“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. ³⁸ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. ³⁹ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

⁴¹ Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

⁴² The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? ⁴³ It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. ⁴⁴ Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. ⁴⁶ The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

⁴⁷ “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. ⁴⁸ But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

It's very interesting to see that the believers who are ready will go to the wedding supper and be served by the Bridegroom, Himself. But the ones who are not prepared will be cut off and stay with the unbelievers. This should be an eye-opener for those who believe the entire church will go in the rapture.

EXACTLY!

Hi back2thebible,

It seems you caught my point about the believer that was ready, but missed it for the believer that was (left) with the unbelievers. The point is that some believers will be left, as in not ready. And according to the parables, it looks like a considerable number. One is taken, the other left. Five were wise, five were foolish. Both are showing that only half (50%) of the believers who are living when He appears will be ready. The dead in Christ are not in view here, only the living believers.

Then in your other post, you said it was the end of the road, no second chances for those that were not ready or left. But scripture seems to differ with that opinion. The bride is not ready until late (Rev.19:7). And there appears to be two ways to enter (1) rapture; or (2) martyrdom. Look what the angel told John:

Revelation 19:9

Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!' " And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God."

Revelation 14:13

Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' " "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."

Notice it says their works follow them. The two verses above show a glimpse of the (two) rewards for the saints that will be returning with Christ at the second coming. Christ said that He is coming quickly and His reward is with Him, to give to everyone according to his work (Rev.22:12). Not all believers will be ready, but there is still a second chance for those that get left, but it won't be an easy road by any means.

[enoob57]

I would like to ask when have virgins ever been attributed to unsaved people?

there may be no other precedents, do there need to be? Let me ask you this, will the bridegroom say to beleivers: ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ ? (Verse 12)

Hi Omegaman,

Look closely to what happens to the believer in Verse 46 below.

Luke 12:35-48

“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. ³⁸ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. ³⁹ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

⁴¹ Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

⁴² The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? ⁴³ It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. ⁴⁴ Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. ⁴⁶ The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

⁴⁷ “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. ⁴⁸ But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

It's very interesting to see that the believers who are ready will go to the wedding supper and be served by the Bridegroom, Himself. But the ones who are not prepared will be cut off and stay with the unbelievers. This should be an eye-opener for those who believe the entire church will go in the rapture.

EXACTLY!

Hi back2thebible,

It seems you caught my point about the believer that was ready, but missed it for the believer that was (left) with the unbelievers. The point is that some believers will be left, as in not ready. And according to the parables, it looks like a considerable number. One is taken, the other left. Five were wise, five were foolish. Both are showing that only half (50%) of the believers who are living when He appears will be ready. The dead in Christ are not in view here, only the living believers.

Then in your other post, you said it was the end of the road, no second chances for those that were not ready or left. But scripture seems to differ with that opinion. The bride is not ready until late (Rev.19:7). And there appears to be two ways to enter (1) rapture; or (2) martyrdom. Look what the angel told John:

Revelation 19:9

Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!' " And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God."

Revelation 14:13

Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' " "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."

Notice it says their works follow them. The two verses above show a glimpse of the (two) rewards for the saints that will be returning with Christ at the second coming. Christ said that He is coming quickly and His reward is with Him, to give to everyone according to his work (Rev.22:12). Not all believers will be ready, but there is still a second chance for those that get left, but it won't be an easy road by any means.

an interesting aspect of the believers that may remain is possibly to fulfill God's Word in this

Rev 22:18

18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:

If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book;

NKJV

Love, Steven

[back2thebible]

in keeping with the parable of the ten virgins, the five foolish are in comparison with the unfaithful servant and talent burying coward..............with the virgins they are shut out, and told the Lord does not know them

look at the consequences of the unfaithful servant and the talent burying coward..........I'm not sure why you insist the foolish virgins will get a second chance

[rollinTHUNDER]

in keeping with the parable of the ten virgins, the five foolish are in comparison with the unfaithful servant and talent burying coward......

Good observation, I agree completely! We might say that they were lazy servants that did not do what their Lord commanded.

Though parables should not be taken in a literal sense, the Lord has given us many ways to view what's going on here. And these are no ordinary parables. They are very unique, in that He gave us a series of parables to understand the answer to His disciple's question in Matt. 24:3, about the signs of both, His coming and the end of the age, but He also kept the mystery intact.

.......with the virgins they are shut out, and told the Lord does not know them

Again, this is a parable. Try to remember the Lord is coming quickly and bringing His rewards with Him. He is rewarding their works, not their salvation that He purchased with His own blood. Getting saved doesn't make someone ready for the rapture. So when He says He doesn't know them, He does not recognize their works, because they were not doers of what He said to do. If we got rewarded for being saved, then everyone would be ready and there would only be one reward. But according to Paul, there are three (3) rewards for believers and he compared them as; [1] precious stones; [2] gold and silver; and [3] wood, hay and stubble (I changed the order - best to worst). All will be saved, but not everyone will get the same reward.

look at the consequences of the unfaithful servant and the talent burying coward..........I'm not sure why you insist the foolish virgins will get a second chance

Yes, they got left with the unbelievers, but it's only temporarily. They will be killed when they refuse the mark of the beast. They represent the gold and silver (lukewarm), which needs to be purified through the fire to burn off the dross. When you cut a precious stone it displays a brilliant shine immediately. Only the precious stones will be ready when the Lord cuts Him (body of Christ) asunder.

[back2thebible]

in keeping with the parable of the ten virgins, the five foolish are in comparison with the unfaithful servant and talent burying coward......

Good observation, I agree completely! We might say that they were lazy servants that did not do what their Lord commanded.

Though parables should not be taken in a literal sense, the Lord has given us many ways to view what's going on here. And these are no ordinary parables. They are very unique, in that He gave us a series of parables to understand the answer to His disciple's question in Matt. 24:3, about the signs of both, His coming and the end of the age, but He also kept the mystery intact.

.......with the virgins they are shut out, and told the Lord does not know them

Again, this is a parable. Try to remember the Lord is coming quickly and bringing His rewards with Him. He is rewarding their works, not their salvation that He purchased with His own blood. Getting saved doesn't make someone ready for the rapture. So when He says He doesn't know them, He does not recognize their works, because they were not doers of what He said to do. If we got rewarded for being saved, then everyone would be ready and there would only be one reward. But according to Paul, there are three (3) rewards for believers and he compared them as; [1] precious stones; [2] gold and silver; and [3] wood, hay and stubble (I changed the order - best to worst). All will be saved, but not everyone will get the same reward.

look at the consequences of the unfaithful servant and the talent burying coward..........I'm not sure why you insist the foolish virgins will get a second chance

Yes, they got left with the unbelievers, but it's only temporarily. They will be killed when they refuse the mark of the beast. They represent the gold and silver (lukewarm), which needs to be purified through the fire to burn off the dross. When you cut a precious stone it displays a brilliant shine immediately. Only the precious stones will be ready when the Lord cuts Him (body of Christ) asunder.

I'm sorry but I disagree, being put were there is weeping and gnashing of teeth is not purgetory for cleansing and getting yourself right with God, if you find yourself in this place only the lake of fire is ahead of you

[rollinTHUNDER]

in keeping with the parable of the ten virgins, the five foolish are in comparison with the unfaithful servant and talent burying coward......

Good observation, I agree completely! We might say that they were lazy servants that did not do what their Lord commanded.

Though parables should not be taken in a literal sense, the Lord has given us many ways to view what's going on here. And these are no ordinary parables. They are very unique, in that He gave us a series of parables to understand the answer to His disciple's question in Matt. 24:3, about the signs of both, His coming and the end of the age, but He also kept the mystery intact.

.......with the virgins they are shut out, and told the Lord does not know them

Again, this is a parable. Try to remember the Lord is coming quickly and bringing His rewards with Him. He is rewarding their works, not their salvation that He purchased with His own blood. Getting saved doesn't make someone ready for the rapture. So when He says He doesn't know them, He does not recognize their works, because they were not doers of what He said to do. If we got rewarded for being saved, then everyone would be ready and there would only be one reward. But according to Paul, there are three (3) rewards for believers and he compared them as; [1] precious stones; [2] gold and silver; and [3] wood, hay and stubble (I changed the order - best to worst). All will be saved, but not everyone will get the same reward.

look at the consequences of the unfaithful servant and the talent burying coward..........I'm not sure why you insist the foolish virgins will get a second chance

Yes, they got left with the unbelievers, but it's only temporarily. They will be killed when they refuse the mark of the beast. They represent the gold and silver (lukewarm), which needs to be purified through the fire to burn off the dross. When you cut a precious stone it displays a brilliant shine immediately. Only the precious stones will be ready when the Lord cuts Him (body of Christ) asunder.

I'm sorry but I disagree, being put were there is weeping and gnashing of teeth is not purgetory for cleansing and getting yourself right with God, if you find yourself in this place only the lake of fire is ahead of you

No need to be sorry, brother. We're talking about a profound mystery here!

I know it's not easy to grasp what I've been saying in little bits and pieces here and there. However, the Lord has given me a brand new rapture theory. The funny thing about it is that I never even planned on creating another rapture theory, not at all. I didn't even realize it until I had finished writing my book, after I read the first proof. All I knew was that in the summer of 1989, the Lord told me I was going to write. I wasn't even a writer and had no desire to write. Then about a year later, I got my first taste of end time Bible prophecy when I read Hal Lindsey's book, The Late Great Planet Earth.

That interest grew and then I discovered the forums where I learned to develop my writing skills, not that I expected to ever write a book, because it took years to reach that point. I didn't even feel qualified to write a book. I thought I was already fulfilling the Lord's promise just by studying and writing threads online. Then one day I stumbled over a major discovery in God's Word in 2005. That's when it hit me. I knew I had to write the book, and shame on me if I didn't. So I wrote it little by little in my spare time. It took me seven years to complete it. But here it is, just as He promised years ago. You never know where your path will lead when you answer the Lord's calling.

It is God that chooses the things that are not, to nullify the things that are. I don't know why He chose me to do this. It just seems like a crazy dream. One day I offered to sing for Him. And He said, "No, you're going to write." It may have taken me twenty-one years, but He was faithful to complete it, just as He promised. Praises to His name!!!

[back2thebible]

I would like to discuss the the 10 virgins. I do not believe the 5 foolish virgins are the unsaved. Why would the unsaved be waiting for a bridegroom they want nothing to do with? IF they have rejected Him all through life, what is their reason to be waiting for His return? I see these are fence sitters who do not live according the the Lord, but just wander through life claiming to be a Christian while not living for the Lord. They are not ready because they have not done His will in their life.

Before we continue, I do not believe in a pretribulation rapture, but the rapture at the last trumpet.

Just thought I would grab this opportunity to say I agree with Onelight!........lol.... its not often but it happens