Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 16:8
Jesus commended the agent’s shrewdness or prudence (Gr. phronimos, i.e., practical wisdom) in spending his (the steward’s) wealth (his commission) to secure his future (cf. Luke 12:42). He commended him for his wise use of opportunity. He did not, of course, approve of his squandering his master’s money earlier through incompetence or dishonesty (Luke 16:1), whichever option may have characterized him. That simply marked him as an unrighteous man. The fact that he had not been shrewd at first... read more
Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 16:5-7
The agent’s plan involved discounting the debts of the people who owed his master money, probably by canceling the interest they owed. The fact that he dealt in commodities rather than cash is inconsequential since many traders dealt on these terms in Jesus’ day, as they do in ours. The amounts these debtors owed were quite large. Therefore the discount each one received represented a significant amount of money and drew the goodwill of the debtors to the manager. The debtors were probably... read more