*Verse by Verse Commentary from Adam Clark, Matthew Henry, Charles Spurgeon and John Gill.
*Luke 12:16–21
L 12:16 And He spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
Then He told them a parable, saying, There was a rich man whose land was very fertile and productive.The ground of a certain rich man, etc. - He had generally what is called good luck in his farm, and this was a remarkably plentiful year.
And he began thinking to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place [large enough in which] to store my crops?
And, he thought within himself, - And foolish thoughts they were;
he did not think of God,
or that there was one,
and much less that He was the author,
of all his outward prosperity and plenty;
and was still further off of thinking of returning thanks to God for it: or of asking counsel of Him, what he should do with it; but he consults himself only, and thought only within, and for himself; and not at all of his poor neighbors, or for the good of others; nor did he think even of his own soul, but altogether about his worldly substance.
L 12:18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my storehouses and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there.
I will pull down, etc. - The rich are full of designs concerning this life, but in general take no thought about eternity till the time that their goods and their lives are both taken away.Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my storehouses and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there.
‘And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have many good things stored up, [enough] for many years; rest and relax, eat, drink and be merry (celebrate continually).
Soul, thou hast much goods - Great possessions are generally accompanied with pride, idleness, and luxury; and these are the greatest enemies to salvation.
But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own all the things you have prepared?’
“Thou fool.” That is God’s opinion of the man who means to build bigger barns in order that he may himself enjoy what is about to be taken away from him.
He was a fool to be laying up in store for others to scatter.
This night - How awful was this saying! He had just made the necessary arrangements for the gratification of his sensual appetites; and, in the very night in which he had finally settled all his plans....
So is he that So it is for the one who continues to store up and hoard possessions for himself, and is not rich [in his relationship] toward God.
So is he that layeth up treasure for himself - This is the accommodation of the parable. "By the parable of the foolish rich man, Christ showed the folly of those who make the world their all.
This man had received everything from God.
The sun had been permitted
to shine upon his land;
for its rays fall on the
just and on the unjust.
The showers of heaven descend on the evil and on the good.
The Lord had caused vegetation to flourish, and the fields to bring forth abundantly.
--The rich man was in perplexity as to what he should do with his produce. His barns were full to overflowing, and he had no place to put the surplus of his harvest.
--He did not think of God, from whom all his mercies had come.
--He did not realize that God had made him a steward of His goods that he might help the needy.
He had a blessed opportunity of being God's almoner,
but he thought only of ministering to his own comfort.
This man's aims were no higher than those of the beasts that perish. He lived as if there were no God."
Christ Object Lessons (White)
This man's aims were no higher than those of the beasts that perish. He lived as if there were no God."
Christ Object Lessons (White)
