I believe that the Ten Virgins represent the people of the Church of Jesus Christ and not the rank and file of the world. All of the virgins, wise and foolish, had accepted the invitation to the wedding supper; they had knowledge of the program and had been warned of the important day to come. They were not the gentiles or the heathen or the pagans, nor were they necessarily corrupt and reprobate, but they were knowing people who were foolishly unprepared for the vital happenings that were to affect their eternal lives.
Rushing for their lamps to light their way through the blackness, half of them found them empty. They had cheated themselves. They were fools, these five unprepared virgins. Apparently, the bridegroom had tarried for reasons sufficient and good. Time had passed, and He had not come. They had heard of His coming for so long, so many times, that the statement seemingly became meaningless to them. Would He ever come? So long had it been since they began expecting Him that they were rationalizing that He would never appear. Perhaps it was a myth.
Hundreds of thousands of us today are in this position. Confidence has been dulled and patience worn thin. It is so hard to wait and be prepared always. But we cannot allow ourselves to slumber. The Lord has given us this parable as a special warning.
In the daytime, wise and unwise seemed alike; midnight is the time of test and judgment.
Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle, p. 253, 254 as found in Prophetic Statements on Food Storage for Latter-day Saints by Neil H. Leash. Cedar Fort. 1999. p.177, 178
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