chapter 64
THE NEED TO FORGIVE
FORGIVE SEVEN TIMES?
ILLUSTRATION OF THE UNMERCIFUL SLAVE
Peter has heard Jesus’advice on how to handle a difficulty between
brothers by trying to settle it one – on – one. Yet, Peter seems to want
to quantify the number of times one should make sich an effort.
Peter asks: Lord, how many times is my brother to sin against me ans
am I to forgive him? up to seven times? Some religious leaders teach
that one should grant forgiveness up to three times. So peter may feel
that he would be very generous if he forgave a brother up to seven
times.
However, the idea of keeping such a record of wrongs is not in the
spirit of Jesus’ teaching. So he corrects Peter: I say to you, not up to
seven times, but up to 77 times. That, in other words, means
indenfinitely. There should be no limit to the number of times Peter
forgives his brother.
Jesus then tells Peter and the others an illustartion to impress on
them their obligation to be forgiving. It is about a slave who fails to
imitate his merciful master. The king wants to settle accounts with his
slaves. One slave who owes the enormous debt of 10.000 talents
(60.000.000 denari) is brought to him. There is no possible way he can
pay that debt. So the king orders that the slave, his wife, and his
children be sold and payment be made. At that, the slave falls down
at his master’s feet and begs: Be patient with me, and I will pay back
everything to you.
The king is moved with pity and mercifully cancles the slave’s huge
debt. Once the king has done so, this slave goes and finds a fellow
slave who owes him 100 denarii. He graps the other slave and begins
choking him, saying: Pay back whatever you owe. But that fellow slave
falls at thr feet of the slave to whom he is ni debt, begging: Be patient
woth me, and I will pay you back. However, the slave whose debt the
king forgave does not imitate his master. He has his fellow slave, who
owes much less, thrown into prison until he can pay what he owes.
Jesus then relates that other slaves who see this unmerciful treatment
go and tell the master, who angrily summons the slave and says:
Wicked slave, I canceled all that debt for you when you pleaded with
me. Should you not also have shown mercy to your fellow slave as I
showed mercy to you? The angry king delivers the unmerciful slave
over to the jailers until he repays all that he owes. Jesus concludes: My
heavenly Father will also deal with you in the same way of each of you
does not forgive your brother from your heart.
What a lesson that should teach us about forgiveness. God has
forgive us a large debt of sin. Whatever transgression a christian
brother commits againts us is small in comparison. And Jehovah
forgives is not once bet thousands of times. Can we not forgive our
brother a number of times, even if we have a cause for complaint? As
Jesus taught in the sermon of the mount, God will forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
QUESTIONS
1. What prompts Peter to ask about forgiving his brother, anmd
why may he consider it generous to forgive someone seven times?
2. How does the king‘s response to his slave’s plea for mercy
differ fron the way that slave deals with his feloow slave?
3. What lesson should we learn form Jesus’ illustration?
CHAPTER 64
THE NEED TO FORGIVE
forgive seven times?
illustration of the unmerciful slave
Peter has heard Jesus’ advice on how to handle a dificulty between brothers by
trying to settle it one on one. Yet, Peter seems to want to quantify the number of
times one should make such an effort.
Peter asks: Lord how many times is my brother to sin against me and am I to
forgive him? up to seven times? some religious leaders teach that one should
grant forgiveness up to three times. So Peter may feel tha he would be very
generous if he forgave a brother up to seven times.
However, the idea of keeping such a record of wrongs is not in the spirit of Jesus’
teaching. So he corrects Peter: I say to you, not up to seven times, but up to 77
times. that in other words means indefinitely. There should be not limit to the
number of times Peter forgives his brother.
Jesus then tells Peter and the others an illustartion to impress on them their
obligation to be forgiving. It is about a slave who fails to imitate his merciful
master. The king wants to settle accounts with his slaves, One slave who owes
the enornous debt of 10.000 talents ( 60. 000.000 denaries) is brought to him.
There is no possible way he can pay that debt, so the king orders that the slave,
his wife and his children be sold and payment be made. At that, the slave falls
down at his master’s feet and begs: Be patient with me and I will pay back
everything to you.
The king is moved with pity and mercifully cancels the slave’s huge debt.once the
king has done so, this slave goes and finds a fellow slave who owes him 100
denari. He garps the other slave and begins choking him, saying: pay back
whatever you owe. but that fellow slave falls at the feet of the slave to whom he
is in debt, begging: be patient with me and I will pay you back. However the slave
whose the debt the king forgave does not imitate his master, he has his fellow
slave who owes much less thrown into prison until he can pay what he owes.
Jesus then relates that others slaves who see this unmercuful treatment, go and
tell the master who angrily summons the slave and says: wicked slave I
canceled all that debt for you when you pleaded with me. should you not also
have shown mercy for your fellow slave as I showed mercy to you? The angry
king delivers the unmerciful slave over to the jailers until he repays all that he
owes. Jesus concludes: my heavenly father will also deal with you in the same
way if each of you does not forgive your brother from your heart.
What a lesson that should teach us about forgiveness.God has forgiven us a
large debt of sin. whatever transgression a christian brother commits against us
is small in comparison. And Jehovah forgives us not one but thousands of times.
can we not forgive a brother a number of times even if we have a cause for
complaint? as Jesus taugh in the sermon on the mount, God will forgive our
debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.
QUESTIONS
1.What prompts Peter to ask abour forgiving his brother and why he may
consider generous to forgive someone seven times?
2.How does the king’s response to his slaveֹ’ ´plea for mercy differ for the
way that slave deals with his fellow slave?
3.what lesson should we learn from Jesus’ illustration?
