Holy Bible: Easy-To-Read Version

Matthew 25:21-40 Holy Bible: Easy-To-Read Version (ETR)

21. “The master answered, ‘You did right. You are a good servant who can be trusted. You did well with that small amount of money. So I will let you care for much greater things. Come and share my happiness with me.’

22. “Then the servant who got two bags of money came to the master. The servant said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of money to care for. So I used your two bags to earn two more.’

23. “The master answered, ‘You did right. You are a good servant who can be trusted. You did well with a small amount of money. So I will let you care for much greater things. Come and share my happiness with me.’

24. “Then the servant who got one bag of money came to the master. The servant said, ‘Master, I knew you were a very hard man. You harvest what you did not plant. You gather crops where you did not put any seed.

25. So I was afraid. I went and hid your money in the ground. Here is the one bag of money you gave me.’

26. “The master answered, ‘You are a bad and lazy servant! You say you knew that I harvest what I did not plant and that I gather crops where I did not put any seed.

27. So you should have put my money in the bank. Then, when I came home, I would get my money back. And I would also get the interest that my money earned.’

28. “So the master told his other servants, ‘Take the one bag of money from that servant and give it to the servant who has ten bags.

29. Everyone who uses what they have will get more. They will have much more than they need. But people who do not use what they have will have everything taken away from them.’

30. Then the master said, ‘Throw that useless servant outside into the darkness, where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.’

31. “The Son of Man will come again with divine greatness, and all his angels will come with him. He will sit as king on his great and glorious throne.

32. All the people of the world will be gathered before him. Then he will separate everyone into two groups. It will be like a shepherd separating his sheep from his goats.

33. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34. “Then the king will say to the godly people on his right, ‘Come, my Father has great blessings for you. The kingdom he promised is now yours. It has been prepared for you since the world was made.

35. It is yours because when I was hungry, you gave me food to eat. When I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I had no place to stay, you welcomed me into your home.

36. When I was without clothes, you gave me something to wear. When I was sick, you cared for me. When I was in prison, you came to visit me.’

37. “Then the godly people will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food? When did we see you thirsty and give you something to drink?

38. When did we see you with no place to stay and welcome you into our home? When did we see you without clothes and give you something to wear?

39. When did we see you sick or in prison and care for you?’

40. “Then the king will answer, ‘The truth is, anything you did for any of my people here, you also did for me.’