Luke 12:15-21

The Parable of the Rich Fool

¹⁵ And he said to them, _v "Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." ¹⁶ And he told them a parable, saying, _w "The land of a rich man produced plentifully, ¹⁷ and he thought to himself, _x 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' ¹⁸ And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my _y barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up _z for many years; relax, _a eat, drink, be merry.' ²⁰ But God said to him, _b 'Fool! _z This night _c your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, _d whose will they be?' ²¹ So is the one _e who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."

1. Cross References
   1 Timothy 6:6 - 11
   Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment.
   Hebrews 13:5
   Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you.
   
2. Cross References
   Psalms 49:16 - 20
   Be not afraid when a man becomes rich, when the glory of his house increases.
   
3. Cross References
   Ecclesiastes 5:10
   He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.
   
4. Cross References
   Luke 12:24
   Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
   
5. Cross References
   Proverbs 27:1
   Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.
   James 4:13 - 15
   Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit" -
   
6. Cross References
   Ecclesiastes 2:24
   There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God.
   Ecclesiastes 11:9
   Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
   1 Corinthians 15:32
   What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.
   Luke 15:23
   And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate.
   
7. Cross References
   Jeremiah 17:11
   Like the partridge that gathers a brood that she did not hatch, so is he who gets riches but not by justice; in the midst of his days they will leave him, and at his end he will be a fool.
   Matthew 16:26
   For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?
   
8. Cross References
   Luke 12:19
   And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.
   
9. Cross References
   Job 27:8
   For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off, when God takes away his life?
   
10. Cross References
    Psalms 39:6
    Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
    Job 27:17 - 22
    He may pile it up, but the righteous will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver.
    Ecclesiastes 2:18
    I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me.
    Ecclesiastes 2:21
    Because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.
    
11. Cross References
    Matthew 6:19 - 20
    Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.