Parable of the 10 Virgins: Wise & Unwise

[Tres Wright]

Here's an article on RR (not saying this is the only interpretation, but for what it's worth):

http://www.raptureready.com/resource/steward/2.htm

Here are a couple of excerpts:


"And five of them were wise, and five were foolish" (Matthew 25:2). One cannot be wise without the salvation offered only through Jesus Christ. The Wise Virgins are the Church, who walk according to the Word. "And that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2Timothy 3:15). Foolishness is always the denial of God. "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God" (Psalm 14:1). The lost and the backslidden deny God by word or action. The Foolish Virgins are the Backslidden Church. They walk as if there was no God who watched or cared.

"They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no Oil with them" (Matthew 25:3). Of what use is a lamp without fuel? "Then Samuel took the horn of Oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward" (1Samuel 16:13). Oil represents the Holy Spirit. "And we are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, Whom God hath given to them that obey Him" (Acts 5:32). God's grace, not our obedience, merits the Holy Spirit; but our obedience is necessary for the abiding of the Holy Spirit. "Quench not [literally, extinguish not] the Spirit" (1Thessalonians 5:19). Make no mistake, foolishness-- as used in this context-- is not accidental, but purposely unconcerned about obedience. Foolishness, so represented, is sin. "The thought of foolishness is sin" (Proverbs 24:9).

"But the wise took Oil in their vessels with their lamps" (Matthew 25:4). The truly wise cannot be impressed by the multiplication of words, thoughts, or actions devoid of the Word of God. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction" (Proverbs 1:7). The Word of Truth is the lamp of the Wise Virgins. "Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path" (Psalm 119:105). The Godly understand the treasure that the Word of God is-- complete with Its Indwelling Author and Illuminator. "When He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13).


"And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your Oil; for our lamps are gone out" (Matthew 25:8). If the Foolish Virgins knew about the Pre-Tribulational Rapture, why did they not have the required Oil for their lamps? "Wherefore the LORD said, Forasmuch as this people draw near Me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour Me, but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the precept of men" (Isaiah 29:13). The Foolish Virgins did not possess the Oil for their lamps because they were not, at heart, willing to prepare for it. "And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as My people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness" (Ezekiel 33:31).

[acceptedintheBeloved]

Also, in Alva J. McClain's book, The Greatness of the Kingdom, he explains this a little bit... beginning on page 355, the section titled The New Series of Kingdom Parables (not sure if it is online, or not. :hehee )

[steph1962]

Here's a link to a blurb by Jack Kelley. He made an interesting point somewhere else - that the Church is always referred to as "the Bride" and never a "bridesmaid."




http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/the-parable-of-the-10-virgins/

The Parable Of The 10 Virgins

Re: your article “The Parable of the Ten Virgins.” If oil represents the Holy Spirit then how did the foolish virgins have it in the beginning and run out. How is it possible to run out of the Holy Spirit, and then go get more. Did they run out of the Holy Spirit and lose their salvation?


Q. Re: your article “The Parable of the Ten Virgins.” If oil represents the Holy Spirit then how did the foolish virgins have it in the beginning and run out. How is it possible to run out of the Holy Spirit, and then go get more. Did they run out of the Holy Spirit and lose their salvation?

A. As you know, I believe that the parable of the 10 virgins speaks about a time on Earth just after the 2nd Coming, and that these 10 represent Tribulation survivors.

During the Church Age the Holy Spirit is sealed within believers as a guarantee of our inheritance (Ephes. 1:13-14). But only the church is promised this and the Church will be long gone by this time. No such guarantee is mentioned for Tribulation believers. In fact Rev. 16:15 specifically warns them to stay awake and maintain their righteousness, symbolized by keeping their clothes with them. (Clothing is often used to represent righteousness, as in Isaiah 61:10). Rev. 16:15 implies that Tribulation believers are responsible for remaining steadfast in their faith to avoid losing their salvation. Matt. 25:8 agrees, telling us that all 10 virgins had oil in their lamps at the beginning, but the five foolish ones didn’t have enough to carry them through. All 10 fell asleep and their lamps were in danger of going out. Only 5 had the ability to replenish their lamps with oil they had brought, and refused to lend any to the others. (You can’t “lend” the Holy Spirit to someone.)

So yes, the parable would seem to indicate that Tribulation believers are not promised eternal security and the five who fell asleep spiritually did not have time to restore their salvation when they finally woke up and found that the Lord had returned. It was too late.

[Biblenuggetlady]

Agree with others, these are bridesmaids, not "The Bride", they are not the church. These are tribulation saints.

As for "partial rapture theory" this is a false teaching. The rapture is a promise, not a reward. There is no "refining" of the Church that has to take place to "earn the rapture" or "salvation". There are a few pastors out there teaching this and it is completely against scripture and one reason why we don't allow their sites to be linked here any longer. :tsk It is more "works". We are saved and sealed with the Holy Spirit at the time of our salvation and all believers go in the rapture. We earn rewards that are given out at the Bema seat, but the Rapture is not a reward. :candle

Do you have Footsteps of the Messiah? He has a whole section that covers the parables? If not, I'll read through it and type up some comments to post here in the thread on this. :thumb

[Castle]

Agree with others, these are bridesmaids, not "The Bride", they are not the church. These are tribulation saints.

As for "partial rapture theory" this is a false teaching. The rapture is a promise, not a reward. There is no "refining" of the Church that has to take place to "earn the rapture" or "salvation". There are a few pastors out there teaching this and it is completely against scripture and one reason why we don't allow their sites to be linked here any longer. :tsk It is more "works". We are saved and sealed with the Holy Spirit at the time of our salvation and all believers go in the rapture. We earn rewards that are given out at the Bema seat, but the Rapture is not a reward. :candle

Do you have Footsteps of the Messiah? He has a whole section that covers the parables? If not, I'll read through it and type up some comments to post here in the thread on this. :thumb

Plus, one point Hal Lindsey always brings up (re: Partial Rapture) - is that when Paul was writing to the church at Corinth - who were notably "Carnal" Christians, he said in 15:51 "We will ALL be changed"....

Thats pretty compelling IMO. That would have been the time to distinguish who would and would not be raptured, if a partial rapture was in view. But by saying "all", he seems to indicate the entire church.

[MillennialSaint]

My thoughts: Even in the earliest days of the church there were pretenders... we know that from the story of the married couple who sold some land, kept most of the money to themselves, and made a monetary gift to the church, claiming it as the full amount of money earned from the sell. The Spirit of God was not in those two, and they quickly perished for their pretending.

I think the 5 wise virgins represent the true believers in the invisible church, while the 5 unwise virgins represent the pretenders within the visible church who have never known Christ nor surrendered their lives to Him. They were thus not ready when the bridegroom came for His bride, and thus were neither invited nor welcome at the festivities.

Oil is generally representative of the Holy Spirit. I believe that all true believers will be raptured, but that there is a larger number of pretenders, many of whom even fool themselves, who will be left behind.

I agree with your interpretation. The doctrine of "imminency" tells us that the parable involves the rapture. Once the 70th week begins and Antichrist signs the covenant with Israel, the parable will lose most of its significance. From that point on, the second coming will be a "scheduled" event (7 years later) and not a "surprise."

[Sassy Granny]

sassy...Im reading your blog and really enjoying it! .I think you are a wonderful, NEAT person and the kind of sassy chick I asire to be like....Look forward to reading more!!!! I always love your posts here!!!

I'm blessed and honored! To God be the glory, and to you - my friend - heartfelt thanks! :hug


Agree with others, these are bridesmaids, not "The Bride", they are not the church. These are tribulation saints.

As for "partial rapture theory" this is a false teaching. The rapture is a promise, not a reward. There is no "refining" of the Church that has to take place to "earn the rapture" or "salvation". There are a few pastors out there teaching this and it is completely against scripture and one reason why we don't allow their sites to be linked here any longer. :tsk It is more "works". We are saved and sealed with the Holy Spirit at the time of our salvation and all believers go in the rapture. We earn rewards that are given out at the Bema seat, but the Rapture is not a reward. :candle

Do you have Footsteps of the Messiah? He has a whole section that covers the parables? If not, I'll read through it and type up some comments to post here in the thread on this. :thumb

All of the above posts have been very helpful & thought-provoking. I like your emphasis BNL. And I do have the referenced book by Arnold Fruchtenbaum, though I'm only a short way into it. I'll definitely dig into his teaching on the subject.

Thank you,
Ktahleen

[Biblenuggetlady]

I agree with your interpretation. The doctrine of "imminency" tells us that the parable involves the rapture. Once the 70th week begins and Antichrist signs the covenant with Israel, the parable will lose most of its significance. From that point on, the second coming will be a "scheduled" event (7 years later) and not a "surprise."

When a person is saved, they receive the seal of the Holy Spirit until the redemption. You don't "lose" the Holy Spirit, during the Church age, a person has the Holy Spirit, or doesn't. During the tribulation, the Holy Spirit will work as He did in the OT, He will not indwell believers, so they can "lose their salvation" during that time. The parable does not lose any of it's significance once the 70th week begins, it only strenghtens it's message for that time.

From Footsteps of the Messiah, page 372:



The contrast here is not between two types of believers, but believers and unbelievers. The believers (wise virgins) have oil, a symbol of the Holy Spirit, while unbelievers (foolish virgins) take no oil with them. Thus the foolish ones were excluded from the marriage fest (the Messianic Kingdom), for them the Lord knew not, while the wise virgins went in with him in the marriage feast. Based upon the application of the parable given in Mt 25:31-46, these two sets of virgins represent believing and unbelieving Gentiles in the Tribulaiton. The first parable deals with Jews who will or will not enter the Kingdom, while this one deals with Gentiles who will or will not enter the Kingdom. (Note: The first parable is the Faithful and Unfaithful Servants.)

This all is understood when you understand the Marriage Rituals of the Jews. The Marriage Ceremony is after the Judgment Seat for the Church only, that pictures the ritual cleansing ceremony. The marriage ceremony is for the "few", the marriage feast follows which is after the Tribulation, remember John the Baptist-he said he was a friend of the bridegroom, an OT saint, not a member of the Church or the Bride. Those 'bidden' to the marriage feast are OT saints and Tribulation saints.

[Sassy Granny]

From Footsteps of the Messiah, page 372:

This all is understood when you understand the Marriage Rituals of the Jews. The Marriage Ceremony is after the Judgment Seat for the Church only, that pictures the ritual cleansing ceremony. The marriage ceremony is for the "few", the marriage feast follows which is after the Tribulation, remember John the Baptist-he said he was a friend of the bridegroom, an OT saint, not a member of the Church or the Bride. Those 'bidden' to the marriage feast are OT saints and Tribulation saints.

This is so-o-o-o helpful! THANK YOU

[Anddra]

oil= Holy spirit "saved"

no oil, no Holy Spirit "not saved"

unprepared= unsaved


these maids are guests, not the bride

i think they are symbolic of trib saints, but not of the church- she is the bride and has already begun the festivities.



sorry i'm not more articulate.

I thought you put it quite well, icebear. We don't need to use big words. :)