Mattithyahu (Matthew) 18
18
1At that time the taught ones came to יהושע, saying, “Who, then, is greatest in the reign of the heavens?”
2And יהושע called a little child to Him, set him in their midst,
3and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become as little children, you shall by no means enter into the reign of the heavens.
4“Whoever then humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the reign of the heavens.
5“And whoever receives one little child like this in My Name receives Me.
6“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it is better for him that a millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depth of the sea.
7“Woe to the world because of stumbling-blocks! For it is necessary that stumbling-blocks come, but woe to that man by whom the stumbling-block comes!
8“And if your hand or foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or crippled, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be thrown into the everlasting fire.
9“And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be thrown into the fire of GĕHinnom.
10“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in the heavens their messengers always see the face of My Father who is in the heavens.
11“For the Son of Aḏam has come to save what was lost.
12“What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, would he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains, going to seek the one that is straying?
13“And if he should find it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.
14“Thus it is not the desire of your Father who is in the heavens that one of these little ones should be lost.
15“And if your brother sins against you, go and convict him, between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.
16But if he does not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word might be established.’#Deu. 19:15#John 8:17; 2Cor. 13:1; 1Tim. 5:19; Heb. 10:28
17“And if he refuses to hear them, say it to the assembly. And if he refuses even to hear the assembly, let him be to you like the nations and a tax collector.
18“Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be having been bound in heaven, and whatever you loosen on earth shall be having been loosened in heaven.#See footnote at Mat. 16:19
19“Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning any matter that they ask, it shall be done for them by My Father in the heavens.
20“For where two or three are gathered together in My Name, there I am in their midst.”
21Then Kĕpha came to Him and said, “Master, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”
22יהושע said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.
23“Because of this the reign of the heavens is like a certain man, a sovereign who wished to settle accounts with his servants.
24And when he had begun to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents,
25but as he was unable to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26“Then the servant fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I shall pay you all.’
27And the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
28And that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii.#A Roman monetary unit. And he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’
29“Then his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I shall pay you all.’
30But he would not, and went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.
31“And when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were deeply grieved, and came and reported to their master all that had taken place.
32Then his master called him and said to him, ‘Wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt seeing you begged me.
33Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, as I also had compassion on you?’
34“And his master was wroth, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.
35So also My heavenly Father shall do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”
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Mattithyahu (Matthew) 18: TS2009
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Copyright© 1993 – 2015 by the Institute for Scripture Research (ISR). All rights reserved.
Matthew 18
18
Whoever Becomes Simple Again
1At about the same time, the disciples came to Jesus asking, “Who gets the highest rank in God’s kingdom?”
2-5For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, “I’m telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you’re not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God’s kingdom. What’s more, when you receive the childlike on my account, it’s the same as receiving me.
6-7“But if you give them a hard time, bullying or taking advantage of their simple trust, you’ll soon wish you hadn’t. You’d be better off dropped in the middle of the lake with a millstone around your neck. Doom to the world for giving these God-believing children a hard time! Hard times are inevitable, but you don’t have to make it worse—and it’s doomsday to you if you do.
8-9“If your hand or your foot gets in the way of God, chop it off and throw it away. You’re better off maimed or lame and alive than the proud owners of two hands and two feet, godless in a furnace of eternal fire. And if your eye distracts you from God, pull it out and throw it away. You’re better off one-eyed and alive than exercising your twenty-twenty vision from inside the fire of hell.
10“Watch that you don’t treat a single one of these childlike believers arrogantly. You realize, don’t you, that their personal angels are constantly in touch with my Father in heaven?
Work It Out Between You
12-14“Look at it this way. If someone has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders off, doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine and go after the one? And if he finds it, doesn’t he make far more over it than over the ninety-nine who stay put? Your Father in heaven feels the same way. He doesn’t want to lose even one of these simple believers.
15-17“If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him—work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you’ve made a friend. If he won’t listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again. If he still won’t listen, tell the church. If he won’t listen to the church, you’ll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God’s forgiving love.
18-20“Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this. When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action. And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.”
A Story About Forgiveness
21At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”
22Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.
23-25“The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.
26-27“The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.
28“The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’
29-31“The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.
32-35“The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.