SERVING GOD OR MAMMON: AN EXEGETICAL ANALYSIS OF LUKE 16: 9-13

Abstract

The pericope of Luke 16:9-13 presents three teachings of Jesus to his disciples. The first is to make friends with the Mammon of injustice, the second is to be faithful and never unjust in the use of Mammon, and the third is to serve God and not Mammon. The last teaching is the climax of the previous two. This article aims to do an exegetical analysis of this pericope using the historical-critical method: starting with the criteria for delimiting the pericope, the translation and structure of the text, and a series of criticisms on the text, its literary aspect, redaction, form and tradition, followed by a content analysis. To conclude, two important antitheses will be presented that explain part of the call to conversion proposed by Jesus in the Gospel of Luke: from accumulation to donation and from service to Mammon to service to God.