The Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1–13)

Matthew 25:1-13 (NKJV)

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

 

In every parable, there is the “corpus” (metaphors/imageries used to pass a point across) and the “anima” (the main point or lesson to be gained from the story). The good Bible student must NEVER confuse the two. Sadly, this is the case when some attempt to interpret the Parables of Jesus. Note the corpus and anima used in this particular parable.

 

The corpus:
1) Ten Virgins, five were foolish, five were wise.
2) They all had lamps and oil for the lamps, five took extra oil while the other foolish five forgot to get extra oil
3) The Bridegroom

The anima (lesson):

Reading in context from the previous chapter (observe the capitalized words):

 

Matthew 24:36-44 (NKJV)
36 “But of that day and hour NO ONE KNOWS, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But AS THE DAYS OF NOAH were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and DID NOT KNOW until the flood came and took them all away, SO ALSO will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 WATCH THEREFORE, for you DO NOT KNOW what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house HAD KNOWN what hour the thief would come, he would have WATCHED and NOT ALLOWED his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also BE READY, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you DO NOT EXPECT.

 

It is apparent that Jesus is teaching VIGILANCE; He is telling His audience to be prepared for the Day of Judgment (not the end of the world, but Israel’s Judgment and eventual destruction in AD 70).

 

Observe verses 42-44 AGAIN:

42 WATCH THEREFORE, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house HAD KNOWN what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also BE READY, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

 

He says “watch therefore.” That’s the word “grégoreó” in the Greek which means to be awake, be vigilant, alert, watchful, to be cautious. So Jesus is telling them that Israel will soon be destroyed, and as many Israelites that will listen to Him should be alert so that you can escape when it happens. It is from this that the parable of the ten Virgins flows:

Let’s follow the narrative

 

Matthew 25:1
1 Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

 

The word “virgins” here translates the Greek word “parthenois” (the plural form of “parthenos”). It refers to maidens, or young women. Now, Jesus is alluding to a Jewish custom here. These ten young women are not the bride!

 

In the Jewish custom, the wife had friends who helped her on her wedding day (bridesmaids), they were young virgins who received guests, helped to keep the lamps burning and helped in other menial tasks.

 

The bride of Christ is just one:

 

Ephesians 5:22-24
22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

 

The Church! And her Bridegroom is the Lord. So the ten Virgins are not the bride AT ALL! Who then do they represent? We would see as we go:

 

Back to Matthew 25:2-4
2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

The word “foolish” is “móros” in the Greek. Here, it means “heedless.” One who refuses to regard instructions.

 

The word “wise” is “phronimos.” It refers to the prudent, one who is cautious.”

 

Why are these adjectives used? Because of what they did:

3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

 

The lamps in Jewish custom were used for vigilance, particularly during the wedding feast which usually took place at night, it would help you see. So some were vigilant, the others were not! That is what Jesus is teaching here. Obviously, He is referring to Israel. He had already told them what was about to happen and how they could escape but still some will listen and others won’t. The Church is not in view here AT ALL!

 

Then He continues:

5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. 6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. 11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

 

The bridegroom coming “at midnight” is simply to show an unexpected occurrence. The ones who were vigilant were not taken by surprise but those who were not vigilant were!

 

Jesus is still teaching the destruction of Jerusalem! He is using illustrations to drive home His point — be prepared so that THAT day (in AD 70) does not take you by surprise. So some Israelites will be wise and be vigilant but others will not be:

 

11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

 

This simply means it will be too late then. Those who heeded Jesus’ words fled to the mountains when Jerusalem was destroyed and were saved. But those who didn’t were destroyed in the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70. Observe the closing statements of the parable:

 

13 “WATCH THEREFORE, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

 

So all the parable is teaching is vigilance, not even salvation. The “hour of the coming of the son of man” is not the Rapture. It is when Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70. AD 70 plays a MAJOR role in Biblical Prophecy.

 

© Josh Banks Ministries. 2020.