Jesus Tells the Parable of the Rich Fool
Luke 12:16-21
Let me interpret the story of the Parable of the Rich Fool since this is one of the hardest parables to interpret. Our Lord Christ Jesus begins by telling the story of the Parable of the Rich Fool.
Then he told them a story: "A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, 'What should I do? I don't have room for all my crops.' Then he said, 'I know! I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I'll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I'll sit back and say to myself, "My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!"'
"But God said to him, 'You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?'
"Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God."
Well, would you not like to be like this rich fool? After all, he must have worked hard to harvest so many crops that he did not have enough room to store them all. And, would you not like to take advantage of the new leisure time you have and enjoy your wealth by taking some time to sit back and, eat, drink, and be merry? I certainly would. So, what did this man do wrong by being so successful that he had to tear down his existing barns and build new ones to store all the grain he produced? Do not farmers build new barns when their old barns get too old and small to hold all the new tools and plows, he now owns that he did not own in the beginning? And, do not ranchers build new barns when they do not have enough room for all the horses needed for the ranch hands and others to make more room and store more hay? Sure, they do. So, what exactly did this very productive farmer do that was so wrong?
Could it be that the productive farmer did not acknowledge that his productive farm was partly due to our Lord God's help? Did the farmer not tithe enough or not at all? Did the farmer share his good fortune with others or did he horde it all to himself? Perhaps that is what this Parable of the Rich Fool is really about. However, would our Lord God come to this farmer on the day he is about to die to call him a fool for not having the foresight to make sure he left his farm to one of his family? That is what it says near the end of this parable. Let me quote that verse for you again.
"But God said to him, 'You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?'" (NLT).
Would our Lord God really call someone a fool just before they are to die? It seems rather harsh of our Lord God and I do not believe our Lord God would call this man a fool, let alone speak to him. Still, it is written in the Parable of the Rich Fool.
Here is the same verse in the New International Version.
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’" (NIV).
Here is the same verse in the New International Readers Version.
“But God said to him, ‘You foolish man! Tonight I will take your life away from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’" (NIRV).
Does this not sound a bit strange that our Lord God would call him a fool and tell him he will die this very night and ask, who will get everything he worked for? However, the very last sentence tells us what this may be about, although it is not explained in the Holy Scripture itself. Here is what the last sentence reads:
“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”
So, apparently, the productive farmer is guilty of not having a rich relationship with our Lord God. Still, it is not obvious as to why this very productive farmer is singled out for such an unfortunate fate. Anyway, this is why I wanted to interpret this Parable of the Rich Fool.
Typed by Wayne Hill.
Dictated by The Holy Spirit.