The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant Explained
Peter thinks he's being generous. Seven times is more than fair, more than the rabbis of his day would have asked. Jesus answers with a number that isn't really a number at all, and then tells a story about a servant, a king, and a debt so large it was never meant to be paid back. Read it slowly. It gets uncomfortable before it gets useful. Quick answer Peter asks Jesus how many times he must forgive someone, offering seven as a generous limit. Jesus answers seventy times seven, meaning forgiveness has no ceiling to reach. He tells a parable about a servant forgiven an impossible debt who then refuses to forgive a small one owed to him. The king's anger falls on him for it. Jesus is saying that we have each been forgiven a debt to God we could never have repaid. When we refuse to forgive the comparatively small debts others owe us, we show that we never truly understood the size of the mercy we ourselves received. Forgiveness isn't an optional kindness. It's the na...