Parable of the Ten Virgins

Mtthew 25:1. “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.”

This parable, like the parable of the householder, is a picture of the condition of Christendom when there will be those who are true possessers of the faith, and those who merely profess Christ.

There are many partially correct as well as completely incorrect teachings on this parable. As I have said before, it is vital to compare all scripture with other scripture in order to understand what Jesus was teaching with this parable. Scripture is never inconsistent with itself, and Jesus was certainly never inconsistent in His use of parables to teach truth.

I have chosen not to go into all the misapplications of this parable.  I feel it would cause confusion, and I do try to keep these posts as clear and uncomplicated as possible.

I heard a saying years ago that bears repeating:  “If the plain sense makes common sense, then any other sense is nonsense.”  When we contrive to make these parables fit what we already believe to be true, we can end up in a mess.  We don’t have to “make them fit.”  We have only to understand the clear truth.  For instance, there are those who want to spiritualize every single thing in a parable, whether it be a blade of grass or a grain of sand. This is unneccesary, and often leads one down  the rabbit hole.

Stay with me. I’ll do my best to make this parable as simple and clear as I believe Jesus meant it to be.