Oil and Virgins

Well my apologies to the author. However, with that being said now he is contradicting himself, because he stated that the context is not eternal salvation, but then makes that distinction.

So now this guy falls into the same camp that you and SFIC fall into, or maybe you have fallen into his camp. Either this is a context of eternal salvation or it is a context as this guy stated for God's people to be ready. It's not both. It doesn't start out as how God's people can be ready and then oh let's slip in an eternal salvation issue and then we'll get back to God's people being ready.

Since only God's people are in view then we know all 10 are saved.

Again you all have to do some much reading into the text to hold on to your tradition it's not even funny.

 

I do not think it represents anything. Lamps needed oil. Five of the virgins were not prepared with enough oil and could not meet the bridegroom nor join in the festivities. I do not think the disciples hearing this would have tried to figure out what the oil symbolized.

To try to make everything in a parable represent something is to read into the text unless the text supports it. That's what I mean by spiritualizing the text. We can get the message without having everything be a symbol of something.

I think the best way to read this is to read all the passages before and after this one. This parable is part of a long passage that starts with Matt. 24.3 where Jesus is asked by the disciples about the destruction of the Temple, what the signs would be of Jesus' coming, and of the "end of the age." The parable has to be read into this context of his answer to them.

Matt 24 ends with the master cutting an evil servant who is not ready into two pieces and who will endure "weeping and gnashing of teeth." The virgins without the lit lamps are rejected by the bridegroom who tells them he does not know them. The servant in the next parable is cast into outer darkness, and then Jesus gives the account of the Son of Man judging sheep from goats, with the goats being sent into everlasting punishment.

Starting with the evil servant being rejected, we have virgins rejected and not known by the bridegroom (Jesus), the servant cast into outer darkness, and the goats sent into everlasting punishment. So it seems to me that Matt. 25 is about judgment at the end times.

IMO, Jesus is telling the disciples that the only way to be ready for the coming of the Son of Man is to a "faithful and wise servant" prepared for the Master. This to me is talking about salvation, but in terms the disciples could grasp. Jesus had not yet been crucified and resurrected, and this is something they did not even understand until after the fact. So I think we have to take that into account.

 

The five foolish virgins were not prepared. There is no such thing as not prepared enough when it comes to the kingdom. The five foolish virgins took no oil (v.3). They were not prepared.