Luke 16 · Verse 13

Luke 16:13

No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Luke 16:13, King James Version

Luke 16:13 in other translations

BSBNo servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
WEBNo servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other. You aren’t able to serve God and Mammon.”
ASVNo servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
YLT‘No domestic is able to serve two lords, for either the one he will hate, and the other he will love; or one he will hold to, and of the other he will be heedless; ye are not able to serve God and mammon.'
DARBYNo servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and will love the other, or he will cleave to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
BBENo man may be a servant to two masters: for he will have hate for the one and love for the other; or he will keep to the one and have no respect for the other. You may not be servants of God and of wealth.
WebsterNo servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

What does Luke 16:13 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
13. can serve--be entirely at the command of; and this is true even where the services are not opposed. hate ... love--showing that the two here intended are in uncompromising hostility to each other: an awfully searching principle!

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 13. Mt 6:24.

(e) "No servant" Josh 24:15, Mt 6:24

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 13 No servant can serve two masters - The heart will be either wholly taken up with God, or wholly engrossed with the world. See on Mat 6:24 (note).

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Luke 16:13-18
To this parable our Lord added a solemn warning. Ye cannot serve God and the world, so divided are the two interests. When our Lord spoke thus, the covetous Pharisees treated his instructions with contempt. But he warned them, that what they contended for as the law, was a wresting of its meaning: this our Lord showed in a case respecting divorce. There are many covetous sticklers for the forms of godliness, who are the bitterest enemies to its power, and try to set others against the truth.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Luke 16:13 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ΟὐδεὶςOudeisNoG3762
οἰκέτηςoiketēsservantG3610
δύναταιdunataiis able toG1410
δυσὶνdusintwoG1417
κυρίοιςkurioismastersG2962
δουλεύειν·douleueinto serve;G1398
ἢēeitherG2228
γὰρgarforG1063
τὸνtontheG3588
ἕναhenaoneG1520
μισήσειmisēseihe will hateG3404
καὶkaiandG2532
τὸνtontheG3588
ἕτερονheteronotherG2087
ἀγαπήσει,agapēseihe will love,G25
ἢēorG2228
ἑνὸςhenosto oneG1520
ἀνθέξεταιanthexetaihe will be devotedG472
καὶkaiandG2532
τοῦtoutheG3588
ἑτέρουheterouotherG2087
καταφρονήσει.kataphronēseihe will despise.G2706
οὐouNotG3756
δύνασθεdunastheyou are ableG1410
θεῷtheōGodG2316
δουλεύεινdouleueinto serveG1398
καὶkaiandG2532
μαμωνᾷ.¶mamōnamoney.G3126

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Luke 16:13

  • 1 John 2:15-16

    Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

  • Matthew 6:24

    No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

  • James 4:4

    Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

  • Romans 8:5-8

    For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

  • Luke 14:26

    If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

  • Joshua 24:15

    And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

  • Luke 11:23

    He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.

  • Matthew 4:10

    Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

  • Luke 16:9

    And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

  • Romans 6:16-22

    Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
servant.
9:50; 11:23; Jos 24:15; Mt 4:10; 6:24; Ro 6:16-22; 8:5-8; Jas 4:4
1Jo 2:15,16
hate.
14:26

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Luke 16:12

    And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?

  • Luke 16:13

    No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

  • Luke 16:14

    And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.

Read all of Luke 16

Luke 16:13 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Ningún siervo puede servir á dos señores; porque ó aborrecerá al uno y amará al otro, ó se allegará al uno y menospreciará al otro. No podéis servir á Dios y á las riquezas.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Nul serviteur ne peut servir deux maîtres; car ou il haïra l’un et aimera l’autre, ou il s’attachera à l’un et méprisera l’autre: vous ne pouvez servir Dieu et les richesses.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Kein Hausknecht kann zwei Herren dienen; denn entweder wird er den einen hassen und den anderen lieben, oder er wird dem einen anhangen und den anderen verachten. Ihr könnt nicht Gott dienen und dem Mammon.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Nemo servus potest duobus dominis servire: aut enim unum odiet, et alterum diliget: aut uni adhærebit, et alterum contemnet. Non potestis Deo servire et mammonæ.