Matthew 18
18
Childlike Humility
1At that hour the disciples came to Yeshua, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
2And He called a child to Himself, set him in the midst of them,
3and said, “Amen, I tell you, unless you turn and become like children, you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven.
4Whoever then shall humble himself like this child, this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5And whoever welcomes one such child in My name, welcomes Me.
6“But whoever causes one of these little ones who trust in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck and to be sunk in the depth of the sea!
7Woe to the world because of snares! For snares must come, but woe to that man through whom the snare comes!
8“And if your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away from you. It’s better for you to enter into life crippled or lame than, having two hands or two feet, to be thrown into fiery Gehenna.
9If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. It’s better for you to enter into life with one eye than, having two eyes, to be thrown into fiery Gehenna.
Parable of the Lost Sheep
10“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father in heaven.
11[footnote: Some manuscripts add verse 11: For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost;]
12“What do you think? If a certain man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, won’t he leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go looking for the one that is straying?
13And if he finds it, amen I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t stray.
14Even so, it’s not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.”
Restoring a Lost Brother
15“Now if your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault while you’re with him alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother.
16But if he does not listen, take with you one or two more, so that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may stand.’
17But if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to Messiah’s community. And if he refuses to listen even to Messiah’s community, let him be to you as a pagan and a tax collector.
18“Amen, I tell you, whatever you forbid on earth will have been forbidden in heaven and what you permit on earth will have been permitted in heaven.
19Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father in heaven.
20For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst.”
Lessons about Forgiveness
21Then Peter came to Him and said, “Master, how often shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22Yeshua said to him, “No, not up to seven times, I tell you, but seventy times seven!
23Therefore, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves.
24When he had begun to settle up, a man was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25But since he didn’t have the money to repay, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26Then the slave fell on his knees and begged him, saying, ‘Be patient with me, and I’ll repay you everything.’
27And the master of that slave, filled with compassion, released him and forgave him the debt.
28“Now that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii. And he grabbed him and started choking him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’
29“So his fellow slave fell down and kept begging him, saying, ‘Be patient with me, and I’ll pay you back.’
30Yet he was unwilling. Instead, he went off and threw the man into prison until he paid back all he owed.
31“So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply distressed. They went to their master and reported in detail all that had happened.
32Then summoning the first slave, his master said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave all that debt because you pleaded with me.
33Wasn’t it necessary for you also to show mercy to your fellow slave, just as I showed mercy to you?’
34Enraged, the master handed him over to the torturers until he paid back all he owed.
35“So also My heavenly Father will do to you, unless each of you, from your hearts, forgives his brother.”
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Matthew 18: TLV
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
Matthew 18
18
Who is the Greatest?
(Mk 9.33–37; Lk 9.46–48)
1 #
Lk 22.24
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, asking, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
2So Jesus called a child, made him stand in front of them, 3#Mk 10.15; Lk 18.17and said, “I assure you that unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven. 4The greatest in the Kingdom of heaven is the one who humbles himself and becomes like this child. 5And whoever welcomes in my name one such child as this, welcomes me.
Temptations to Sin
(Mk 9.42–48; Lk 17.1–2)
6 “If anyone should cause one of these little ones to lose his faith in me, it would be better for that person to have a large millstone tied round his neck and be drowned in the deep sea. 7How terrible for the world that there are things that make people lose their faith! Such things will always happen — but how terrible for the one who causes them!
8 #
Mt 5.30
“If your hand or your foot makes you lose your faith, cut it off and throw it away! It is better for you to enter life without a hand or a foot than to keep both hands and both feet and be thrown into the eternal fire. 9#Mt 5.29And if your eye makes you lose your faith, take it out and throw it away! It is better for you to enter life with only one eye than to keep both eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
(Lk 15.3–7)
10 “See that you don't despise any of these little ones. Their angels in heaven, I tell you, are always in the presence of my Father in heaven. # 18.10 Some manuscripts add verse 11: For the Son of Man came to save the lost (see Lk 19.10).
12 “What do you think a man does who has 100 sheep and one of them gets lost? He will leave the other 99 grazing on the hillside and go and look for the lost sheep. 13When he finds it, I tell you, he feels far happier over this one sheep than over the 99 that did not get lost. 14In just the same way your#18.14 your; some manuscripts have my. Father in heaven does not want any of these little ones to be lost.
A Brother or Sister who Sins
15 #
Lk 17.3
“If your brother sins against you, # 18.15 Some manuscripts do not have against you . go to him and show him his fault. But do it privately, just between yourselves. If he listens to you, you have won your brother back. 16#Deut 19.15But if he will not listen to you, take one or two other persons with you, so that ‘every accusation may be upheld by the testimony of two or more witnesses,’ as the scripture says. 17And if he will not listen to them, then tell the whole thing to the church. Finally, if he will not listen to the church, treat him as though he were a pagan or a tax collector.
Prohibiting and Permitting
18 #
Mt 16.19; Jn 20.23 “And so I tell all of you: what you prohibit on earth will be prohibited in heaven, and what you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.
19 “And I tell you more: whenever two of you on earth agree about anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three come together in my name, I am there with them.”
The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
21 #
Lk 17.3–4
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?”
22 #
Gen 4.24
“No, not seven times,” answered Jesus, “but seventy times seven,#18.22 seventy times seven; or 77 times. 23because the Kingdom of heaven is like this. Once there was a king who decided to check on his servants' accounts. 24He had just begun to do so when one of them was brought in who owed him millions of pounds. 25The servant did not have enough to pay his debt, so the king ordered him to be sold as a slave, with his wife and his children and all that he had, in order to pay the debt. 26The servant fell on his knees before the king. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay you everything!’ 27The king felt sorry for him, so he forgave him the debt and let him go.
28 “Then the man went out and met one of his fellow-servants who owed him a few pounds. He grabbed him and started choking him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he said. 29His fellow-servant fell down and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back!’ 30But he refused; instead, he had him thrown into jail until he should pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very upset and went to the king and told him everything. 32So he called the servant in. ‘You worthless slave!’ he said. ‘I forgave you the whole amount you owed me, just because you asked me to. 33You should have had mercy on your fellow-servant, just as I had mercy on you.’ 34The king was very angry, and he sent the servant to jail to be punished until he should pay back the whole amount.”
35And Jesus concluded, “That is how my Father in heaven will treat every one of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.