A modern day parable about a wealthy merchant with four wives is going viral, and it’s resonating with people of faith all over the world.

There once was a rich merchant who had four wives, and he loved his fourth wive the most, treating her to extravagant presents whenever he could. He made sure that she never wanted for anything, and that she always had the absolute best.

The merchant also loved his third wife, who he loved to show off to his friends. However, the merchant lived in constant fear that his third wife would run away with another man.

The merchant also loved his second wife, who was a considerate and patient woman. His second wife was his confidante, and he knew he could always come to her to help him through the difficult times.

The merchant’s first wife was a loyal partner who had helped him maintain his wealth and business while also keeping his household. Though she loved him dearly, the merchant did not love his first wife and barely took notice of her.

As the man got older and realized he would soon die, he thought about his wealthy life and told himself, “Now I have four wives with me. But when I die, I’ll be alone. How lonely I’ll be.”

He then went to his fourth wife and said, “I loved you most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?”

“No way!” she said immediately before storming off, her words cutting into the merchant like a knife.

Devastated, he went to his third wife and said, “I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?”

“No!” the third wife responded.”Life is so good over here! I’m going to remarry when you die!”

The merchant’s heart sank when he heard this. He went to his second wife and said, “I always turned to you for help and you’ve always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t help you out this time!” the second wife replied. “At the very most, I can only send you to your grave.”

The merchant sank to a new low upon hearing this. Suddenly, the merchant heard a voice call out to him, “I’ll leave with you. I’ll follow you no matter where you go.”

When he turned, he saw his first wife coming towards him. She was so skinny that it appeared as if she suffered from malnutrition. The merchant was saddened when he looked at her, and he said, “I should have taken much better care of you while I could have!”

In the end, we all have four wives. The fourth wife represents our body, which we spend years tending to and adorning as best we can. No matter what we do, however, our body will eventually fail us, and we will leave it behind when we die.

The third wife represents our earthly possessions, which many people get so caught up in gathering throughout their lives that they lose touch with Christ. These possessions may make us happy when we are alive, but they will also be left behind when we die.

The second wife represents our relationships with spouses, family and friends. No matter how strong they are, we will leave these behind as well. It is only our relationship with God that we will take with us.

Finally, the first wife represents our soul, which is the one thing we take with us in death. To keep our soul healthy, it is important to always maintain our relationship with Christ, who will always love us no matter what!