PARABLE 5 - The Money Lender

PARABLE 5 — LUKE 7:41-43 — THE MONEYLENDER 

 (The parable is only 3 verses; the 10 verses before and after put it in context.) 

36 And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat. 37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, 38 And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.

39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.

40 And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.

41 There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?

43 Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.

44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. 45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

48 And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.

 Discussion Questions – Parable 5

PARABLE 5 — LUKE 7:41-43 — THE MONEYLENDER 

1. What options did the moneylender have with people who owed him money? 

The moneylender could demand payment, possibly in a form other than money such as livestock or valuable objects. He could have the debtor put in prison until the debt was paid by his family or friends. Or he could actually make the debtor his slave. Or, of course, he could forgive the debt, which was actually required in Old Testament law: at the end of every seven years, creditors were to cancel all the debts they were owed by fellow Israelites. 

The Bible contains hundreds of verses on how God wants us to treat money, and this includes the lending of it. Moses addressed this issue in Deuteronomy several times. Essentially, the Israelites were not permitted to charge interest when they loaned money to an impoverished brother. Apparently, however, they could charge interest on loans made to other, more affluent Jews and to foreigners. This rule was part of the Mosaic Law: “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest.” (Exodus 22:25) 

Depending upon the amount owed, a moneylender might have quite different responses, which is, of course, also true today. The loan of 500 pence was a huge amount, equivalent to about two years wages for a day laborer. In first century Galilee, poor people were often heavily indebted to the wealthy. 

2. Why do you think the woman came to the Pharisee’s house? 

(a) to upset the Pharisee, 

(b) to ruin the party, 

(c) to seek forgiveness, 

(d) to minister to Jesus,
(e) to confront her oppressors, 

(f) something else. 

This question could be difficult to answer, except the short parable in the middle of the story makes it much easier. We can obviously rule out answers a, b, and e but then we have to decide whether she was (c) seeking forgiveness, (d) ministering to Jesus, perhaps in thanks for the forgiveness that she perceives she has already received, of (f) something else. Another hint: forgiveness from God and Jesus is free—you can’t buy it. So now, what’s the answer? (d)

3. Jesus’ parable about the moneylender seems an odd response to the Pharisee who was thinking that it was strange that Jesus allowed a sinful woman to touch him. What was Jesus actually saying to Simon? 

(a) you can’t know grace because you don’t think of yourself as a sinner, 

(b) you are a bigger sinner than the woman but you don’t know it, 

(c) you may have sinned less than the woman, but you still need forgiveness, 

(d) the more you’ve sinned, the more your love for God, 

(e) the more you’ve been forgiven, the more your love for God. 

Stuck into the middle of a story about a dinner and sinful woman, the parable itself is almost trivial: forgiving a large debt means more than forgiving a small one. That’s true today too: if someone forgives you a debt of $1,000, you’re going to feel more loving toward him than a person who forgives you a debt of $100. But let’s go beyond that and see how Jesus extends it. 

Look at what Jesus says in Verses 44 to 46. He points out that Simon did not provide water (or a servant) to wash Jesus’ feet. He probably didn’t provide it to the other guests either. It was a common courtesy in those days on dusty roads. You’d then normally greet a guest with a kiss on both cheeks, something still common in much of the Middle East. It was definitely rude for Simon to ignore that custom. Anointing a person’s head with olive oil was a way to honor a respected guest. Although Simon invited Jesus to dinner (vs 36), he may not have regarded him as the guest of honor. All in all, Simon was definitely rude but not guilty of any major sin. More to the point, in Verse 39 it seems clear that Simon was judging the woman as being a sinner and, in a sense, putting himself above it. 

Concluding his remarks in Verse 47, Jesus put the message of the parable in perspective when he says to Simon, “Her sins, which are many, have been forgiven; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” For his rudeness, Simon was in the position of having been forgiven little, but the message that he also loved little must have been sobering to him. In the context of the narrative, the woman’s lavish actions are the result of her great debt that has been forgiven; in contrast, Simon’s stingy actions stem from his failure to realize that he needs to be forgiven. 

[In Verse 47, the first sentence ends by saying “...for she loved much,” it was not that her great love for Jesus caused him to forgive her but that the forgiveness that she had already received from Jesus prompted her love.] 

To Luke’s original readers, the parable and the narrative clearly interpreted each other. It would have been very easy for them to identify the sinful woman of the story as the debtor forgiven much in the parable. They would also compare Simon the Pharisee with the debtor forgiven little. 

The next step for the original reader would be to see the incredible graciousness, mercy, and forgiveness of God, like the creditor who forgave both debtors. Thus, the theme of the parable is one of God’s forgiveness and grace. 

To apply this parable to our lives, we also must see the incredible forgiveness of God. For some, seeing God’s mercy is easy because their past is like that of the sinful woman or the debtor with the large debt. They know their past made them unworthy to be in relationship with God; and yet out of His great love, they have been welcomed into His presence. Out of incredible gratitude and love, they respond lavishly, honoring Jesus in every imaginable way. 

However, some of us have “grown up in the church.” We paid attention in class. We weren’t the bullies in school. We are much more like Simon the Pharisee, who was compared to the debtor with the smaller debt. Like Simon, we too have difficulty seeing that we need forgiveness. Also, like Simon, we perhaps fail to honor Jesus. He is simply not the number 1 “guest of honor” in our lives.

We struggle to realize that our “little debt” is still beyond our ability to pay, which puts us on equal ground with those that have “big debts.” We stand in need of a Savior, who is willing to forgive, if only we will accept His grace. Then, we can respond to Jesus in love, out of gratitude for what He has done in our lives. 

4. Have you ever felt like Simon when confronted with a person of questionable morals?

5. Who do you identify with in the parable (moneylender, small debtor, large debtor)? 

6. Parables make you peel off layers of meaning, but usually have a basic lesson. What is the fundamental lesson of this parable? 

As mentioned above, the basic theme of the parable is one of God’s forgiveness and grace and the love for God that should come as a result of this forgiveness.