Bible Dictionary
AUSTERE
Austere means harsh, severe, or rough. In Jesus’ parable of the pounds, the term describes the false and fearful view of the master held by the unfaithful servant.
Definition
Austere means harsh, rough, or severe. It can describe the appearance of a person or the character attributed to someone regarded as strict and unyielding.
Biblical Usage
In the parable of the pounds, the unfaithful servant calls his master austere. The word reveals the false conception of God formed by a guilty and disobedient heart.
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>os-ter' austeros, "harsh," ("rough"): Twice used by Christ in the parable of the Pounds (Lu 19:21,22), and of special significance as illustrating the false conception of God cherished by the sinful and disobedient. The fear resident in a guilty conscience sees only sternness and severity in God's perfect righteousness. The word may be made an eminent study in the psychology of an evil heart. Wrongdoing eclipses the soul's vision of God's love and pictures His righteousness as harsh, unfeeling, partial, unjust, forbidding. The awfulness of sin may thus be seen in its power so to pervert the soul as to make goodness seem evil, justice unjust, and even love unlovely. Compare "hard" skleros, "dried up," "harsh" in the parable of the Talents (Mt 25:24).</p><p>Dwight M. Pratt</p>