Matthew 18:21-35 ESV Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.So, the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’So, his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.So also, my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
This passage finishes up a section of Matthew emphasizing the important of unity and forgiveness in God’s kingdom. Peter asks a direct question about how many times he must forgive someone. Peter then offers what he probably considered a generous number. Jesus corrects Peter by giving a number that indicates eternity. In essence, Jesus tell Peter to just keep on forgiving, much the way God keeps on forgiving us. Then Jesus tells a parable to explain why forgiveness is so essential in a Christian’s life.
The parable has three characters; a king and two of the king’s servants. Since Jesus says that this parable is an example of what God’s kingdom is like, I believe we can assume the king represents God and the two servants represent Christians. The king calls one servant to pay off a debt of 10,000 talents. A talent was a measure of weight and 10,000 talents would be equal of 375 tons. Whether the debt was gold, silver, or some other precious commodity, 10,000 talents was an unpayable debt. Yet the king in his mercy, forgave the debt when the servant pleaded with him.
When I teach this passage in a bible study, I always ask the class, “What is the unpayable debt that God forgives His servants when they ask?” Please take a moment to answer that question for yourself before reading any further. (Pause) Almost 100% of the time, the answer is, sin. Since this parable is in answer to Peter’s question about forgiving sin, I believe that is the correct response.
The forgiven servant then meets a fellow servant that owed him 100 denarii. A denarius was a day’s wage for a common servant, so the 2nd servant owed the first about four months’ wages. It was a significant sum, but not unpayable. When people sin against us, it is significant. They have wronged us in some way. God does not minimalize the wrong done to us, but He does have a different perspective.
The first servant refused to forgive the second servant and had him thrown in prison. That makes the king angry. The king was angry because he had shown great mercy to the first servant, so he expected the servant to also show significant mercy to a fellow servant.
So, the king had the first servant thrown in prison until he could pay off his debt (verse 34). What debt was that? Due to the servant’s lack of forgiveness, the king reinstated the debt that had been forgiven. The unpayable debt, meaning the servant will be punished forever. Then Jesus makes a chilling statement, “So also, my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” (verse 35)
I realize that many readers will balk at this concept, but this is not the only place Jesus says something similar. When teaching His disciples to pray, He taught them to say, “… forgive us our debts, as also we have forgiven others” (Matthew 6:12, emphasis mine). Three verses later Jesus said, “ …if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:15).
Forgiving others is essential for the Christian, because Jesus directly said twice that God will forgive us based on how we forgive others. That is why the devil tries so hard to deceive us into holding onto our grievances.
Almighty Father, I thank You for Your forgiveness, because without it, I am lost. Grant me the strength to forgive others in light of all that You have forgiven me.