Ten Virgins

Line by Line - Matthew 25:1-13
Post 219

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

Pre- Ten Virgins:

Leaving the very first word of this verse for a later post, we note this entire parable is describing what the kingdom of heaven is like after the “then”. But before we can really apply what it is like we must ask the question: “what IS the kingdom of heaven in the first place?”

This is not as easy to answer as first thought. For some reason we all assume we know what the kingdom of heaven is without ever trying to define it. So go ahead, take a moment and discuss with yourself the question until you provide some expressible idea you feel reasonably happy with, or discover you don’t know.

I find asking; “what IS the kingdom of heaven?” is a lot like asking; “what is truth?” The mind is so sure it knows but doesn’t really want to exercise too much to get the actual answer. But again, the arrival at the answer is exposed in the first word of the verse; “Then”, which I intend to cover in a post called “Pre Ten Virgins”. It is not a quick answer but the study is actually a big part of getting past Revelation 17.

* * *

The kingdom of heaven is like:

So moving on with the understanding that this parable is describing what the kingdom of heaven is like, we must read everything in it with this foremost in mind. The virgins are not representing the kingdom of heaven, nor are the lamps, or the bridegroom, etc. All these are but elements that make up the representation of what the kingdom of heaven is like, so that we can begin to grasp the concept of the kingdom itself.

Since the story is about virgins and a bridegroom we are obligated to learn just a little about the Jewish wedding customs regarding such an occasion. Since Jesus was raised in a Jewish culture that was originally designed to imitate this kingdom, he used a Jewish concept that was readily understood and could be readily applied, whereas we in a modern western culture have little idea how to apply this as it has little ready meaning to our lifestyle understanding.

When I was a child I was under the (now questioned) understanding that “engagement” was a period of commitment promising a future marriage. It never crossed my mind that perhaps this happy couple would engage in acts reserved for marriage, especially a Christian couple, but today our Christian youths are unashamed to explore their sexuality long before even engaged. And I am sorry to say this is found also among the Paganized Jews today.

The Jewish custom of betrothal (from which the west originally got its custom of engagement) was not just some arbitrary idea of an old frustrated priest, but was directly given by the law of God. Not as an arbitrary rule to make young people suffer under their raging passions but because it had an eternal message; "The kingdom of heaven is like..." And while Leviticus chapters 18-21 are instructions regarding sexuality for health reasons; (mental, emotional, spiritual and physical) the righteous perspective of the Jewish marriage custom was a representation of how we are to perceive the kingdom of heaven. This is not some lesson you learn one year in Sunday school and move on, the marriage process takes place over and over again as each generation of young couples reach that wonderful phase in their lives after the long wait.

If you will permit it, the marriage ceremony is a phylactery we keep always instantly available in our minds as we wait for it, and observe the glorious event, remembering that it shows us the practical understanding of what the kingdom of heaven is like.

The constant phrase "Next year in Jerusalem" for the long exiled Jews was just such a phylactery for the same reason.

As an instructional preservation, God wanted to make sure that even when the marriage concept was eventually corrupted by society, there would remain a pure message that could be found, and so he established the chapter of Leviticus 21 governing the marriage of priests.

“And he shall take a wife in her virginity. A widow, or a divorced woman, or profane, or an harlot, these shall he not take: but he shall take a virgin of his own people to wife”

Leviticus 21:13 (see also II Corinthians 6:14-17).

Today in ignorance of God’s wonderful design we read this and in ignorance of what Jesus was getting at we immediately use such passages to condemn these less qualified women and so miss the actual purpose of the rule: it is God’s pure example as a tool of comprehension to understand the parable showing us what the kingdom of heaven is like. Don’t be confused; the priest's marriage is not the example, just the tool needed to understand the example. The example is the singular committed waiting for "the one" while remaining uncompromised in the long delay.

Jewish marriage custom:

I am no expert on this custom but glean enough from the study of others, to better understand this parable, and so share it with you for the same ends.

Even more binding than our own “engagement”, the Jewish custom viewed “betrothal” as simply the first phase of marriage and in this way the couple was already regarded as “eventually married” though the marriage was not yet completed. The western culture has somewhat diminished the view but nonetheless retained the notion that with an engagement ring the girl was already “taken off the field” and committed to one particular man. “I’m going to be married to HIM” was her joyful proclamation and confidence, though consummation and the life of marriage was yet to be experienced.

Likewise the requirement of virginity: God had an eternal thing in mind when he established that a woman should be a virgin upon marriage. Yes, in our temporal minds we might comprehend a myriad of very solid reason why virginity at marriage is a good idea; avoiding diseases, lack of baggage (clinging history), uncomplicated future (pure unsoiled heart), avoiding fatherless children, and alimony and "bad Xs", etc., but all these are just examples of the spiritual concept showing even greater importance as these directly translate to our relationship with God and the ways we can damage the exclusive relationship even before it begins.

Originally, and even in America’s own recent past, the fallen woman was looked upon as undesirable regarding marriage because it was understood that our marriage is the image of our relationship with God and what we do should reflect that image as best as possible. The fallen woman is less able to represent that image in marriage.  Having no complex variety of past experience, the virgin can openly devote her undamaged heart to her husband without cause of reservation or division instilled by previous failed examples. This virginity is likewise how we can best respond to God, and so this is recommended in both life and faith.

So is it forbidden for a common man to marry such a woman? No. As Jesus our groom makes us spotless through forgiveness, so we too have that option (Ephesians 5:25-27) and might be so willing if her heart is repentant. Even God himself has often shown in scripture his willingness to forgive his whoring wife (the Jews) if she would only repent and return (Hosea), but we see the damage she has done to that relationship and so by understanding, this is the condition that men once desired to avoid by marrying a woman without baggage: a heart undamaged for him alone.

 Young women fall in love so easily and so hard because they have not experienced the consequences of bad choices yet. “Mature” women have, and so are far more self-protective and leery, resulting in a lack of trust that actually damages even a good marriage. God desired us to avoid all that as far as is possible by remaining pure until marriage.

This also carries over in our faith not as a byproduct but as the actual reason. If we are raised to commit to God before we run wild, we will have the advantage of avoiding lots of hurtful history that cannot then be easily overcome. The pain and resulting self-preservation through lack of trust by experience, is actually damaging to the relationship with God.

Continuing the Jewish marriage custom; it was common for a groom to betroth his wife while young, then leave her with her father, to prepare himself (grow up), and make his livelihood and home secure for them once they were married. In that time she prepared herself learning how to be a good wife and homemaker for him. Once he was ready he would return for her and they would be married.

* * *

Waiting:

So with this knowledge we read our parable. We find ten virgins having been betrothed, all prepared ready and waiting for their groom to arrive *1.

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

But look! These virgins went forth to meet him, why would they do that? Clearly the verse makes it important that they took lamps because of the darkness they would encounter. So where did they go and why go and not wait? I hate to keep coming back to it, but the answer is made available in the first word, so lets leave that alone for now and move on.

“And five of them were wise, and five were foolish” Matthew 25:2.

Hold on here! We have ten virgins, not fallen women, committed to the groom in betrothal. They all have their lamps, and they all go out together, and so far we see virtually no difference between them (Matthew 13:30?), so what makes five foolish; they all appear to be the same. Since we remember this is representing what the kingdom of heaven is like, are we to assume there is such a thing as foolish genuine Christians who are betrothed to Christ and have their hope in Christ’s coming for them? It sure appears plausible, let’s continue:

“They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps” Matthew 25:3-4.

Nice! We are clearly shown what distinguishes the foolish from the wise; It’s all about the quantity of oil. Note: that all ten are virgins, all ten virgins have lamps, all ten lamps have oil, and all ten lamps are lit, this is not the problem. You would think this would be commendable but instead five are called foolish. Why? Let’s continue:

“While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept” Matthew 25:5.

Isn’t it strange how this is not written as some unusual or unexpected delay (tarrying), and because the five are called foolish we are assured that all ten had been given warning that the bridegroom would in fact tarry (in fact the tarrying is built right into the betrothal/engagement concept). The five wise betrothed virgins had preplanned for the long wait by taking extra oil in a separate vessel while the five foolish betrothed virgins planned only for the short term. This appears to be the only difference between them as all ten slumbered and even slept while waiting.

Since we know the wise five were not rebuked for their slumbering it seems apparent that they had all completed their tasks of preparation and were now simply waiting patiently. The five foolish had simply done an insufficient job in preparing for the longer than expected wait.

“And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him” Matthew 25:6.

Since we remember that this is showing us what the kingdom of heaven is like; Christians quickly see that the cry made is representing the trumpet that calls the Christians to Christ in the rapture (I Corinthians 15:52) and I am not declaring them to be wrong, but there is far more here because of the context of the previous chapter and because this is describing what the kingdom of heaven is like. Is the rapture event the kingdom of heaven? No, but it is a part. But this whole parable is not about just a part, it is about the whole thing; “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto…” the wording is becoming more apparent as specifically important; “At this specific time after all the previous events that bring it to this state, the kingdom of heaven can be comparable to ten virgins...”

This is not a matter of “at the end of a string of events, the kingdom will be likened” but rather “after understanding all these events as a whole, the kingdom will be likened”.

So yes, the rapture is included here, but there is much more also included here in this parable. This is not a parable about the rapture as in; “Then shall the rapture unto the kingdom of heaven be likened…” NO. This is not the meaning of the parable, and so again I ask; “What IS the kingdom of heaven?”

* * *

In verse 1 we saw the virgins go forth to meet the groom, so why do we see them later commanded to go out to meet him? Go out from where after they already went out? Go where now?; Where did they slumber?

It is important that we don’t just blow off the parable as a general story to get a general idea across. God does not waste words. Understanding this parable is crucial if we are to be counted among the wise!

But perhaps it doesn’t really matter; a betrothed virgin is a betrothed virgin, all are eventually made safe in Christ through faith, right? Let’s keep reading to discover the truth:

“Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps” Matthew 25:7.

Here we see the event that proves their preparation; as all ten are awakened and in eager excitement to see the fulfillment of all their long awaited hopes, they trim their lamps together!

What does it mean to trim a lamp?

An old oil lamp was a bath that had a wick protruding from the oil. As the thirsty wick that bore the oil was consumed by the flame, it became burnt ash no longer able to bear much oil, and the flame was dampened down by the encumbrance to the fuel. To trim the lamp was to cut away the ashen part to reveal the oil rich wick, and pull a little more wick from the reservoir. Then the oil rich flame sprang to life to light the way. There is no need for a bright flame while you are slumbering as long as the flame is present all you need to do is trim the lamp to get a ready light.

“And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out”

Matthew 25:8.

Here we see the first consequence of their lack of proper preparation. Everything went smooth and all ten girls had exactly the same results of their mission of waiting… right up until the event they were all waiting for! Until then no one could have told them anything that would show them the consequence of their foolishness; they were virgins, they had prepared, they had lit lamps, and oil, and went out to meet the right groom, and patiently waited the delay. In every way, preparation for preparation, they lay down in confidence just as the others did. All was well with the world as they waited in excited expectation.

The parable does not even mention all the virgins left behind who did not go out to meet the groom, or all the girls who already gave their virtue elsewhere. No, the parable showing us what the kingdom of heaven is like (after understanding all that was described in the previous chapter), uses only these ten virgins to describe it... but it uses all ten, not just five. And we are to comprehend what makes them different, as this is the whole topic of the parable.

We must at least touch on the whole “spreading the wealth” socialist mentality of the foolish, which is another deep lesson found here, so let’s simply understand that the kingdoms of men are an image of the kingdom of heaven and we can see the parallel apply; The request of the foolish five is the cry of the Socialist Progressives, apparently the foolish five got their idea from hanging out with them.

“But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves” Matthew 25:9.

This is a hard saying in today’s confused socialist society of unending compassion regardless of cost. Compassion is a truly wonderful thing and commanded by God himself in many places such as the Good Samaritan of Luke 10:25-37, but compassion is to spring in wisdom, out of our abundance. Do you take the food from your children to give to the soup kitchen? No, you give of your pantry so that your children can also eat. There is so much wealth in America that few yet know what it’s like to have so little that they cannot come up with something to share with those less fortunate, and to their credit America has long been a nation of incredible benevolence. But what we see in this parable is a waiting that lasts so long that even the well prepared have only enough to sustain themselves, there is simply not enough to sustain others. I am confident that as the five departed to purchase more oil, the hearts of the five wise were broken for the foolish and their own inability to help them.

It is my silly belief that the wise virgins actually gave the foolish money by which to purchase the needed oil, because ministers share their knowledge of God to aid the foolish to purchase the needed faith. But the purchase is theirs to do.

Oh, didn’t I tell you? The lamp is your soul, the oil is your faith, and the flame is the Holy Spirit in your soul lighting the face of Jesus when he comes so that you can recognize him and be seen of him.

* * *

So let’s think about the wait:

After careful preparation, they eagerly went out to meet their groom when they got the sign it was time (Matthew 24:30). And the waiting began again on a new level. They were no longer at home and could not continue preparing if the need became apparent, they had nothing to do now but wait. They slept some, and they slumbered some, and still they waited, and the wait was long. Then finally there was a shout; the time had come, but no! They still needed even what oil was left to meet the groom as they were told to do by the shout. Just how long does it take to actually unite with the bridegroom anyway?! Clearly a significant period of waiting even after the waiting is over (Daniel 12:11-12). Half the girls simply did not have the oil needed to sustain the final wait.

“And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; (don’t it figure?) and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut” Matthew 25:10.

It almost seems as if God himself is trying hard to keep them out! But while the complaint is argued that he is just not fair for this, the “Battle of the Brides” (or whatever new reality TV show) proves the concept of competition to weed out all the candidates that don’t measure up, is alive and well among the population today. The Marine Corps slogan “The Few, The Proud” suggests the many who do not measure up, by the recognition of those who do in comparison: "The Few".

God has often and clearly used the term “remnant” also described as a very small percentage of the whole. Beginning with Noah (Genesis 7:23) and carrying through to the last verse of Zechariah (as the few families left after the great wars), the concept is repeated 231 times in the Old Testament and seems to only be missing from the “love books” of Ruth, Esther, Song of Solomon, Hosea, Jonah, Nahum, and Malachi expressing God’s compassion for his loved.

It greatly saddens me to know there are those ten that made it to the final selection process, but only five will make it. Who gets weeded? Those who were not prepared for the long delay in their hopes. In the sports world these that make it so far but fail in the clinch are said to have choked; they did not hold up under pressure. In this kingdom description parable it is not a matter of skill or talent or natural gifting. It is all about preparation for the delay.

But lets think about those five who went away but did not give up, they went to buy more oil so they could finish the job they started. But time for preparation had passed and they had failed to meet the challenge. After a long and diligent wait of happy preparedness, the groom came when they exhausted their oil and were no longer ready. How many times do we see this in our lives as "unlucky circumstance" and miss the lesson of extended perspective needed? It wasn't unlucky, it was planned! Jesus is not something you try in college with your circle of friends, to then grow out of as you mature, Faith is who you are, and the faith needed in your lamp only runs out when you're dead! This is not simply a choice of determination, the oil you collect is gathered as you deepen your prepared faith. If your faith is shallow it burns up as the tough times don’t seem to let up. The foolish virgins were in it for what they could get out of it in shallow faith whereas the wise, having a single eye on the groom, prepared to wait as long as it took, and by understanding, they knew it was going to take some time (Hebrews 11).

It heartbreaking to know there will be many whose faith is so shallow that this post will discourage them. They are barely holding it together now, what hope is there if it gets worse and lasts a long time? These are the foolish virgins who by all accounts appear to start off well but are actually missing the whole concept of the faith and the reason for the long wait (Hebrews 10:35-39). Quick, wake from your slumber, run, diligently purchase deep oil as if your life depended on it because you might actually get back in time to not be counted as one of the foolish five!

The wise five on the other hand were betrothed to the groom while they waited but the consummation of the marriage took place after he opened the door to them. Representationally Christians are saved now by the engagement ring of the Holy Spirit (II Corinthians 1:22,5:5-6), but the consummation does not take place until we join the Messiah in his father’s kingdom.

* * *

Latecomers:

“Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us” Matthew 25:11.

Oh how tragic to see them try and fail. These are those who have been taught the right way and know it’s the right way, but in failure of confused trying, can’t figure out how to choose it until it is too late. These are the Exodus people who failed to enter in, but later diligently went about what they refused to do at the right time (Deuteronomy 1:41-45). I will cover this in a later post as we explore the interpretation of this parable, but right now we’re just understanding the parable!

“But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not” Matthew 25:12.

There is not a single sentence in the world more tragic than this one from this person. Remember these are not strange girls who didn’t care anyway, these are those virgins committed to this relationship and went waiting on the bridegroom but came up short. They went away to buy more oil and are now returned, but the door is shut and the words come through “I know you not”.

What is to become of them now? It seems there is not a person on the planet in worse condition than they at this moment. This is not a matter of a one-time slip and the hammer comes down, it has nothing to do with that (I John 2:1-2). This is a matter of the depth of your faith for endurance. Is it real, or just a religion you practice? If it’s real, you don’t run out of oil (Exodus 16:18). If it isn’t real, it doesn’t matter how much oil you have it won’t be enough (Exodus 16:27).

Jesus wraps up the representing parable with the reason he presented it:

“Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh" Matthew 25:13.

The entire concept of this parable is about the waiting. This is the primary reason that we are directed to abstain from forbidden pre-marital activates while the hormones rage. The physical endurance of self-control directly strengthens our spiritual wait. Patient endurance is extremely important to understand, but in today’s age of open and permitted fornication we have utterly lost this important comprehension and guarantee this generation of Christians will not have the waiting oil needed to enter the kingdom of heaven because of frustration and impatience.

But though the parable ends here, it does not indicate what becomes of the foolish five virgins. They are indeed included in the “like unto the kingdom of heaven” so what becomes of them? Have you ever thought of how they went away in the dark since their lamps went out? Where did they buy their oil to make the return? How is it possible to have oil of faith and a flame of Holy Spirit but not be let in as now “unknown”? Why does the parable not tell us what became of them?

I have asked alot of questions in this post and the parable does not seem to provide the answer. This is because the first word is "Then".

What IS the kingdom of heaven that it can be explained by such a parable? We will explore that in the next post; “Pre Ten Virgins”, but because of my new circumstances I expect to be “off air” for a while. Drat those troublesome responsibilities that get in the way.

* * * * * * *

*1 This parable is not advocating ten wives for one man as the mind of lustful man might think, the scriptures are clear that God designed one man and one woman as the intent (Genesis 1:26-17, I Timothy 3:2, Titus 1:6, etc.) This is a parable of the kingdom of heaven and so we understand the groom represents Christ and the virgins as his believers in waiting.

Does polygamy represent this relationship? Yes it does. Is polygamy what God wanted for man? No. Polygamy, like socialism, is a perversion of scripture even if it works.

* -b

[November 19, 2013: For my reply to the first comment below, please see Post 306 "Two Replies" (http://when-did-reason-die.blogspot.com/2013/11/two-replies.html).]