Sheep vs. Goats
TRANSLATION
(31) “When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all his angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. (32) And all the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. (33) And he will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left.
(34) “Then the King will say to those on his right hand, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. (35) For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in, (36) naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to see me.’ (37) Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and fed you or thirsty and gave you something to drink? (38) And when did we see you a stranger and take you in or naked and clothed you? (39) And when did we see you sick or in prison and visited you?’ (40) And the King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did for me.’
(41) “Then he will also say to those at his left hand, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels! (42) For I was hungry, and you did not feed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. (43) I was a stranger, and you did not take me in, naked, and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.’ (44) Then they will also answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not help you?’ (45) Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’ (46) Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
OBSERVATIONS
In describing how the Son of Man will evaluate the nations when he “comes in his glory,” Jesus used an agricultural parable. This future scenario reminds us of what a shepherd does when he separates his flock into two groups, the sheep and the goats. The sheep represented the righteous destined for reward while the goats stood for the unrighteous destined for punishment. Repeated words included “separate(s)” (vs. 32), “sheep” and “goats” (both in vss. 32 & 33), “right” (vss. 33 & 34), and “left” (vss. 33 & 41). Many of the cadences that appeared in the “reward” segment were repeated in the “punishment” segment but stated in negative terms.
OUTLINE
I. When he returns to judge, the Son of Man will separate the nations into two groups, sheep and goats. (31-33)
II. He will reward the sheep, those who have ministered to his “brothers and sisters.” (34-40)
III. He will punish the goats, those who failed to minister to his “brothers and sisters.” (41-46)
IDEA STATEMENT
When the Son of Man returns to judge the nations, rewards and punishments will be based on how they have treated “the least of these brothers and sisters of mine.”
APPLICATION
Many have interpreted this parable to teach a salvation by good works, that is, the idea that God will judge everyone by assessing how much good vs. how much evil they have done to others. Those whose lives have been characterized by care and compassion will enter God’s kingdom. Those who have not lived this way will face eternal punishment. While this is a widely held view, it sadly misses the point of the parable.
Verse 31 established the timing of this judgment: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory…” Verses 40 & 45 established the basis of this judgment: “Whatever you did (did not do) for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did (did not do) for me.” In other words, Jesus will return with his bride (the church) at the end of the Great Tribulation to establish his Kingdom on the earth. Those who have managed to survive those seven years of turmoil, described in Revelation 6-19, will be judged worthy to enter “the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world” (vs. 34) based on how they treated those who by their testimony during the Tribulation proved themselves to be “brothers and sisters of mine.” If they showed mercy and kindness, they will be rewarded. If they did not, they will be punished. This is a far more limited application than is generally assigned to this parable.