Scripture:
Matthew 18:21-35 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)
The Parable of the Unforgiving Slave
21 Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" (A)
22 "I tell you, not as many as seven," Jesus said to him, "but 70 times seven. [a] 23 For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he began to settle accounts, one who owed 10,000 talents [b] was brought before him. 25 Since he had no way to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. (B)
26 "At this, the slave fell facedown before him and said, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything!' 27 Then the master of that slave had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan.
28 "But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him 100 denarii. (C) [c] He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, 'Pay what you owe!'
29 "At this, his fellow slave fell down [d] and began begging him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' 30 But he wasn't willing. On the contrary, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. 31 When the other slaves saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened.
32 "Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, 'You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you? (D) ' 34 And his master got angry and handed him over to the jailers [e] until he could pay everything that was owed. 35 So My heavenly Father will also do to you if each of you does not forgive his brother [f] from his [g] heart." (E)
Footnotes:
Matthew 18:22 Or but 77 times
Matthew 18:24 A huge sum of money that could never be repaid by a slave; a talent = 6,000 denarii
Matthew 18:28 A small sum compared to 10,000 talents
Matthew 18:29 Other mss add at his feet
Matthew 18:34 Or torturers
Matthew 18:35 Other mss add his trespasses
Matthew 18:35 Lit your
Cross references:
Matthew 18:21 : Lk 17:3-4; Col 3:13;
Matthew 18:25 : Ex 21:2; Lv 25:39; 2Kg 4:1; Neh 5:5;, 8; Lk 7:42;
Matthew 18:28 : Mt 20:2; 22:19; Mk 6:37; 14:5; Lk 7:41; 10:35; Jn 6:7;
Matthew 18:33 : Mt 6:12; Eph 4:32; Col 3:13; 1Jn 4:11;
Matthew 18:35 : Pr 21:13; Mt 6:14; Jms 2:13;
Reflection:
How does mercy and justice go together? The prophet Amos speaks of God forgiving transgression three times, but warns that God may not revoke punishment for the fourth (see Amos 1:3-13; 2:1-6). When Peter posed the question of forgiveness, he characteristically offered an answer he thought Jesus would be pleased with. Why not forgive seven times! How unthinkable for Jesus to counter with the proposition that one must forgive seventy times that. Jesus made it clear that there is no reckonable limit to forgiveness. And he drove the lesson home with a parable about two very different kinds of debts. The first man owed an enormous sum of money -- millions in our currency. In Jesus' time this amount was greater than the total revenue of a province -- more than it would cost to ransom a king! The man who was forgiven such an incredible debt could not, however bring himself to forgive his neighbor a very small debt which was about one-hundred-thousandth of his own debt. The contrast could not have been greater! No offence our neighbor can do to us can compare with our debt to God! Let's read that again....No offence our neighbor can do to us can compare with our debt to God! We have been forgiven a debt which is beyond all paying; to ransom our debt of sin God gave up his only begotten Son. If God has forgiven each of us our debt, which was very great, we, too must forgive others the debt they owe us. Jesus teaches that one must forgive in order to be forgiven. If we do not forgive our fellow man we cannot expect God to forgive us. James says that judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy (James 2:13). Mercy is truly a gift and it is offered in such a way that justice is not negated. Mercy "seasons" justice as "salt" seasons meat and gives it flavor. Mercy follows justice and perfects it. To pardon the unrepentant is not mercy but license. C.S. Lewis wrote: "Mercy will flower only when it grows in the crannies of the rock of Justice: transplanted to the marshlands of mere Humanitarianism, it becomes a man-eating weed, all the more dangerous because it is still called by the same name as the mountain variety." If we want mercy shown to us we must be ready to forgive others as God has forgiven us. Do you hold any grudge or resentment towards anyone?
Prayer For The Day:
Lord, you have been kind and forgiving towards me. May I be merciful as you are merciful. Free me from all bitterness and resentment that I may truly forgive from the heart those who have caused me injury or grief.
No comments:
Post a Comment