15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. |
16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. |
17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. |
18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. |
19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. |
20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. |
21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? |
22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. |
23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. |
24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. |
25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. |
26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. |
27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. |
28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. |
29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. |
30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. |
31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. |
32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: |
33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? |
34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. |
35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. |
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18:15 But how can we avoid giving offence to some? or being offended at others! Especially suppose they are quite in the wrong? Suppose they commit a known sin? Our Lord here teaches us how: he lays down a sure method of avoiding all offences.Whosoever closely observes this threefold rule, will seldom offend others, and never be offended himself. If any do any thing amiss, of which thou art an eye or ear witness, thus saith the Lord, If thy brother - Any who is a member of the same religious community: Sin against thee,
- Go and reprove him alone - If it may be in person; if that cannot so well be done, by thy messenger; or in writing. Observe, our Lord gives no liberty to omit this; or to exchange it for either of the following steps. If this do not succeed,
- Take with thee one or two more - Men whom he esteems or loves, who may then confirm and enforce what thou sayest; and afterward, if need require, bear witness of what was spoken. If even this does not succeed, then, and not before,
- Tell it to the elders of the Church - Lay the whole matter open before those who watch over yours and his soul. If all this avail not, have no farther intercourse with him, only such as thou hast with heathens.
Can any thing be plainer? Christ does here as expressly commandall Christians who see a brother do evil, to take this way, not another, and to take these steps, in this order, as he does to honour their father and mother. But if so, in what land do the Christians live? If we proceed from the private carriage of man to man, toproceedings of a more public nature, in what Christian nation are Church censures conformed to this rule? Is this the form in which ecclesiastical judgments appear, in the popish, or even the Protestant world? Are these the methods used even by those who boast the most loudly of the authority of Christ to confirm their sentences? Let us earnestly pray, that this dishonour to the Christian name may be wiped away, and that common humanity may not, with such solemn mockery, be destroyed in the name of the Lord! Let him be to thee as the heathen - To whom thou still owestearnest good will, and all the offices of humanity. Luk 17:3.18:18 Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth - By excommunication, pronounced in the spirit and power of Christ. Whatsoever ye shall loose - By absolution from that sentence. In the primitive Church, absolution meant no more than a discharge from Church censure. Again I say - And not only your intercession for the penitent, but all your united prayers, shall be heard. How great then is the power of joint prayer! If two of you - Suppose a man and his wife. Mat 16:19.
18:20 Where two or three are gathered together in my name - That is, to worship me. I am in the midst of them - By my Spirit, to quicken their prayers, guide their counsels, and answer their petitions.
18:22 Till seventy times seven - That is, as often as there is occasion. A certain number is put for an uncertain.
18:23 Therefore - In this respect.
18:24 One was brought who owed him ten thousand talents - According to the usual computation, if these were talents of gold, this would amount to seventy - two millions sterling. If they were talents of silver, it must have been four millions, four hundred thousand pounds. Hereby our Lord intimates the vast number and weight of our offences against God, and our utter incapacity of making him any satisfaction.
18:25 As he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold - Such was the power which creditors anciently had over their insolvent debtors in several countries.
18:30 Went with him before a magistrate, and cast him into prison, protesting he should lie there, till he should pay the whole debt.
18:34 His lord delivered him to the tormentors - Imprisonment is a much severer punishment in the eastern countries than in ours.State criminals, especially when condemned to it, are not only confined to a very mean and scanty allowance, but are frequently loaded with clogs or heavy yokes, so that they can neither lie nor sit at ease: and by frequent scourgings and sometimes rackings are brought to an untimely end. Till he should pay all that was due to him - That is, without all hope of release, for this he could never do. How observable is this whole account; as well as the greatinference our Lord draws from it:
- The debtor was freely and fully forgiven;
- He wilfully and grievously offended;
- His pardon was retracted, the whole debt required, and the offender delivered to the tormentors for ever.
And shall we still say, but when we are once freely and fullyforgiven, our pardon can never be retracted? Verily, verily, I say unto you, So likewise will my heavenlyFather do to you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.