The Word Among Us

November 2022 Issue

Keep the Flame Alive

The Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids

Keep the Flame Alive: The Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids

It’s a familiar enough, and simple enough, parable. Ten bridesmaids are keeping watch for the bridegroom to come and begin the wedding celebration. Five—called “foolish”—run out of oil for their lamps, so they have to go into town to buy more. While they are away, the bridegroom arrives, and the “wise” bridesmaids are ushered into the celebration. When the foolish women return, the bridegroom denies them entry. “I do not know you,” he tells them (Matthew 25:12).

What enabled the wise bridesmaids to join the celebration? They had all the oil they needed in their lamps to keep their flames burning...

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