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NASB | Matthew 25:40 "The King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.' |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 25:40 "The King will answer and say to them, 'I assure you and most solemnly say to you, to the extent that you did it for one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it for Me.' [Prov 19:17] |
Bible Question (short): Who are "the least of these?" |
Question (full): I believe this verse may be mistranslated and the passage Matt 25:31-46 is misinterpeted in many different ways by many conventional interpretations. I believe the passage is not about charity at all nor is it about how the sheep vs the goats treated believers. I believe this passage is about how we present ourselves to God. When the goats say: 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?' They are not saying, "Lord, We didn't recognize you. Thats why we didn't take care of you." They are actually saying, "Lord, we did all of those things. Didn't you see us?" The goats are responding to Jesus with contempt, not curiosity, or amazement. Just like the Pharisee in Luke 18:12...'I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' Jesus told that story (the Pharisee and the tax collector) "To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else." vs. 9 I believe Matt 25: 31-46 also describes those confident of their own righteousness (the goats). Therefore I believe "the least of these" refers not to the poor or believers but to every person who will stand before God. And what divides the sheep from the goats is not how we responded to "the least of these" but whether we are willing to declare ourselves, individually, the "least of these." Thanks for making this discussion board available. |