5 thoughts on “The Parable of the Ten Virgins – Revisited”

  1. The parable of the ten virgins
    In the parable of the 10 virgins we have another clue about the time frame of the rapture. All of Jesus parables about the Kingdom of Heaven, except three, start with ”The kingdom of heaven is likened” one begins with ”The kingdom of God has become likened” (Matt.13: 24) another ”the kingdom of God is compared to” and this, about the 10 virgins, begins with “Then the kingdom of Heaven shall be likened” appointing to a future condition. This is the parable of 10 virgins in Matthew 25. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, a Messianic Jew, opened my eyes of understanding for this parable. The parables have the characteristic of focusing on a central message. In this parable the focus of the message is: ”Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man comes.” (Matt.25:13) However, in the case that Jesus Christ formulated the parable, it is full of more truth in its details. Contrary to what many think, the 10 virgins are not the bride. It is not with them that Jesus will to be married. Jesus is not polygamous. So the ten virgins do not represent the church, the believers in Christ. The Jewish ritual of marriage was, or still is, according to Fruchtenbaum, a scene of revelation of the end times for the people of Israel. The marriage celebration was performed in the house of the parents of the bridegroom. It is there that the guests would gather and celebrate, starting during the day, initially without the bride, but, night arriving, and at any time, the groom would withdraw from the party to go to the house of the parents of the bride to ”snap” his bride. The bride was already all adorned and waiting for the groom. After the ”abduction” he directed himself, in company of his bride, to the wedding party in the house of his parents. The groom would have a lamp to illuminate the path. When the guests saw the groom coming they announced: ”Behold, the bridegroom is coming!” So, in this case, ten virgins with their lamps, waited for the reception of the couple. The bride, even though not mentioned, is implicit in the parable. This parable, among others, suggests the following details: – The house of the groom’s parents is the nation of Israel. – The bride is the church – the abduction of the bride is the rapture of the church on the groom’s path of return to Israel here on Earth. – The wedding of the Lamb is here on Earth. – The guests are the Israelites that survived the great tribulation.
    More in: http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/mark-of-the-beast-trumpets-and-armageddon/6489049

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    • Hmm, I think you missed the point of the article in that you have allegorized it like all the rest, albeit using Jewish traditions (instead of Scripture or wild Christian imagination) as your secret-decoder ring. I also don’t see how both the “implicit” bride and the ten virgins can both represent the same thing coherently as you interpret them…

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  2. i understand your hate of polygamy being of european descent.
    but ancient jews were not europeans and did practice polygamy
    polygamy is taboo only to europeans.the ten virgins are the
    bride.i am african so i am not shoked by it.in 2cor 11:2 paul
    said i married you to one husband and will present you as a virgin to christ.the 10 virgins were his wives to be but he did marry only five.yes the God of abraham,isaac and jacob is a God of polygamists.End of story.

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  3. According to Jewish traditions the marriage was consummated that night when the groom got his bride.This cannot happen with five brides.
    The bride is the church which is one the five virgins keep the church company. These are believers that will complete the wedding banquet. The believers who will be victors after the great tribulations

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    • Rachel, this wedding parable is not about Jesus marrying the church. It takes a common wedding scene and uses it to teach about who will be accepted and who rejected when Jesus returns. Those who “fall asleep at the wheel” (to use a different figure) and fall back into forgetting God’s things will miss out. Those who stay faithful in their life despite the cares and distractions of this world will be rewarded (literally included in the marriage supper of the lamb in heaven)

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