And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
16. And he spoke a parable to them This parable presents to us, as in a mirror, a lively portrait of this sentiment, that men do not live by their abundance. Since the life even of the richest men is taken away in a moment, what avails it that they have accumulated great wealth?
This man appeals to Christ as though his brother's refusal to divide the inheritance were a matter worthy of divine judgment, when his real disease is covetousness, a sinful desire for more than God in His providence has allotted him. He wants Christ to overturn the law itself, not to right a wrong.
AI summary
Commenting on Luke 12:13-21
And he spake a parable unto them, saying,.... He supposed the following case, and made use of it by way of illustration of what he had said: the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully; who notwithstanding his riches, was but a fool, as the sequel shows; rich men are not always wise in things natural and civil; and very few of them...