In brief
The ten virgins are the characters of a parable of Jesus told in Matthew 25:1-13. They are teaching figures, not historical persons. Ten young women go out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom: five wise ones took oil with them, five foolish ones took none. When the bridegroom comes at midnight, only those who are ready go in to the wedding feast. Jesus concludes: watch, for you don't know the day nor the hour.
What does the name The Ten Virgins mean?
The word virgin here means unmarried young women, who go out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1). They have no names: Jesus distinguishes them only as five wise and five foolish (Matthew 25:2). In the parable, wisdom consists in having prepared oil for a longer wait than expected.
The story of The Ten Virgins
The context: watching
Matthew 24:42-44Just before the parable, Jesus speaks of his return. He calls his disciples to watch, since they do not know on what day their Lord comes, and to be ready, for the Son of Man will come in an hour they do not expect. The parable of the ten virgins illustrates this exhortation.
Five wise and five foolish
Matthew 25:1-4The Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five were foolish and five were wise. The foolish took their lamps but no oil with them, while the wise took oil in their vessels. At the start, nothing distinguishes them outwardly.
The bridegroom delays
Matthew 25:5-7While the bridegroom delays, they all slumber and sleep, the wise as well as the foolish. At midnight a cry rings out: “Behold! The bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!” All of them arise and trim their lamps. Only at that moment does the difference appear.
Oil cannot be borrowed
Matthew 25:8-9The foolish ask the wise to give them some of their oil, for their lamps are going out. The wise refuse, since there might not be enough for everyone, and send them to those who sell to buy for themselves. What should have been prepared in advance cannot be supplied by others at the last minute.
The shut door
Matthew 25:10-12While the foolish go away to buy oil, the bridegroom comes. Those who are ready go in with him to the wedding feast, and the door is shut. Afterward the others come and call: “Lord, Lord, open to us.” But he answers: “Most certainly I tell you, I don’t know you.”
Watch therefore
Matthew 25:13Jesus draws the lesson of the parable: “Watch therefore, for you don’t know the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.” The call is not first about sleep, since all of them fell asleep, but about preparation. To be ready is to live today in serious expectation of the Lord's return.
Test your knowledge
What The Ten Virgins teaches us
- The return of the Lord is certain, but its hour is unknown: we must be ready now.
- An appearance of faith is not enough: what counts is being truly ready to meet the Lord.
- No one can be ready in someone else's place: the relationship with God is personal.
- The wait may be longer than expected, and perseverance is part of watchfulness.
- A moment will come when the door is shut: today is the time to prepare.
Key verses
The conclusion of the parable: watch, because no one knows the day nor the hour of the bridegroom's coming. This is the central lesson Jesus wants to leave with his disciples.
Just before the parable, Jesus calls us to be ready, for the Son of Man will come in an hour we don't expect. The wise virgins embody this preparation.
The decisive moment: those who were ready go in to the wedding feast, and the door is shut. The text stresses that there is a moment when it becomes too late.
Sermons about The Ten Virgins
- A Secret, A Promise: God Does What He SaidThe woman preacher connects Romans 13 with the wise virgins: they did not borrow oil at the last minute, they had prepared it in secret, through meditated Word, prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit.
- Be a Light Lit by the SpiritThe preacher recalls the parable to stress that beyond gift and calling, a lamp that has gone out no longer fulfills its function: it needs the oil, the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
- Matthew 3: Repentance, Conversion and New BirthThe message sees in the ten virgins a sorting: all wait for Christ, all have lamps, all fall asleep, and yet the difference lies in the essential, being recognized before God as a genuine child of God.
- After the Rapture: What Awaits You in HeavenThe preacher believes the virgins do not represent the bride, but the bridesmaids who accompany her to the wedding feast, while keeping the lesson of watchfulness.
Frequently asked questions
What does the oil represent in the parable of the ten virgins?
Jesus does not explain the symbol of the oil himself. The text mainly shows that it had to be provided in advance and could not be borrowed at the last minute. Many preachers see in it a real life of faith, nourished by the Holy Spirit, but the clear teaching of the parable remains the call to be ready (Matthew 25:13).
Did the ten virgins exist?
No, they are characters in a parable. Jesus introduces the story by saying that the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins (Matthew 25:1). They are teaching figures who illustrate how to wait for the Lord's return, not women whose lives the Bible would recount.
Where is the parable of the ten virgins found in the Bible?
It is found only in Matthew 25:1-13. It is part of the long teaching of Jesus about his return, which begins in chapter 24. It is followed by the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), then by the scene of the judgment of the nations (Matthew 25:31-46).