Oil in the lamp: the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25

The bridegroom was late. Ten young women had gone out with lamps to meet him and escort him to the wedding feast. As the night wore on, they all fell asleep. At midnight came the cry: “Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” Five had brought extra oil. Five had not.

A wedding custom

In first-century Jewish weddings, the bridegroom went to fetch his bride and bring her to his home, where the feast took place. Friends of the bride waited to join the procession, often at night, carrying lamps. A bridegroom’s arrival time could be uncertain. Jesus calls five of the women wise and five foolish. The difference was simple: the wise brought jars of oil with their lamps; the foolish brought only their lamps. All ten looked the same while they waited. Only the delay revealed the difference.

The closed door

When the foolish asked the wise to share their oil, the wise refused, saying there might not be enough for everyone. This can sound harsh, but the point is that readiness cannot be borrowed. Each person must be prepared for themselves.

While the foolish went to buy oil, the bridegroom arrived. Those who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. Later the others came and said, “Lord, Lord, open the door for us!” He replied, “Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.”

What the oil is

Jesus ends: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” The parable is part of his teaching in Matthew 24 and 25 about his return. It warns against assuming there will always be time to get ready later. Preachers have interpreted the oil in different ways: the Holy Spirit, genuine faith, good works or a living relationship with God. Whatever the exact symbol, it represents something that cannot be faked or borrowed at the last minute.

For today

Many people put off spiritual decisions, assuming they will deal with them later. The parable gently but firmly says that later may come sooner than expected. It also encourages believers who wait faithfully through long nights that the bridegroom will come. What would it mean for you to have “oil in your lamp” this week? Take a step that keeps your faith alive, not for appearance, but for the long wait.