MatthewChapter 18

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Parallel texts1 parallels in this chapter

The Parable of the Lost SheepML

In Luke, this is part of the trilogy about what was lost (sheep, coin, son).

Matthew(du leser)

10See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.

11For the Son of Man came to save what was lost.

12What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders off, won't he leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go looking for the one that strayed?

13And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never strayed.

14In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.

LukeLuke 15:1-7

1Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him.

2And the Pharisees and the scribes kept grumbling, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

3So he told them this parable:

4"Which one of you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost one until he finds it?

5And when he finds it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing,

6and when he comes home he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my lost sheep.'

7I tell you, in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance.

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who, then, is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"

So he called a child over and had him stand among them,

and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble would be better off having a great millstone hung around his neck and being drowned in the depths of the sea.

Woe to the world because of the things that make people stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the one through whom they come.

If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire.

And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.

For the Son of Man came to save what was lost.

What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders off, won't he leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go looking for the one that strayed?

And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never strayed.

In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.

If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately, just the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother back.

But if he will not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

Again, truly I tell you, if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.

For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them."

Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother when he sins against me? As many as seven times?"

Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

That is why the kingdom of heaven is like a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants.

As he began the reckoning, a man was brought to him who owed ten thousand talents.

Since he could not pay, the master ordered that he be sold, along with his wife and children and everything he had, to settle the debt.

So the servant fell to his knees before him and pleaded, "Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything."

His master was moved with compassion, released him, and canceled the debt.

But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him, saying, "Pay me what you owe!"

His fellow servant fell down and begged him, "Be patient with me, and I will pay you."

But he refused. Instead, he went off and had him thrown into prison until he should pay back what he owed.

When the other servants saw what had happened, they were deeply distressed, and they went and reported to their master everything that had taken place.

Then the master summoned him and said, "You wicked servant! I canceled that whole debt of yours because you begged me.

Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?"

And in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back all he owed.

This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."

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Summary2

Chapter 18

Main Theme: Jesus teaches about humility, care for the little ones, conflict resolution in the church, and limitless forgiveness.

Content: The chapter opens with Jesus placing a child in their midst and teaching that whoever humbles themselves like this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. He strongly warns against causing any of "these little ones" to stumble. Jesus gives guidelines for resolving conflicts: first a private conversation between two people, then involving witnesses, and finally bringing it before the church. The chapter concludes with the parable of the unforgiving servant who had an enormous debt forgiven but refused to forgive his fellow servant—and thus lost his own forgiveness.

Key Words/Images:

The Child: A symbol of humility and trust; the attitude required to enter God's kingdom.
The Lost Sheep: Illustrates God's desire to seek out the one who has wandered away; none of these little ones should be lost.
Binding and Loosing: The church's authority to act on God's behalf in matters concerning forgiveness and discipline.
Seventy Times Seven: An expression of limitless forgiveness, not a specific number, but an attitude of boundless grace.
The Unforgiving Servant: Shows that those who have received God's forgiveness must forgive their neighbor from the heart.

Historical context

Historical and Cultural Context for Matthew 18

Events and Customs

Children in the Ancient World

When Jesus uses a child (παιδίον, paidion) as an example in verses 1–5, he overturns contemporary social values. In Greco-Roman and Jewish culture, children had low social status and no rights until they reached adulthood. They were dependent, vulnerable, and without influence. Rabbinic tradition could use children as a picture of those who had not yet learned the Torah. Jesus’ point is not about the "innocence" of children (a modern romantic notion), but rather their dependence and lack of status—precisely the opposite of what the disciples were seeking.

Church Discipline

The procedure for conflict resolution in verses 15–17 reflects Jewish legal practice. The requirement of "two or three witnesses" (v. 16) quotes directly from Deuteronomy 19:15, which was foundational in Jewish legal thinking. The term "church" (ἐκκλησία, ekklēsia) is used here, and this is one of only two places in the Gospels where Jesus uses this word (cf. Matt 16:18). To treat someone as "a Gentile and a tax collector" (v. 17) meant regarding that person as outside the covenant community—not as an expression of contempt, but as an acknowledgment that the individual had placed themselves outside it.

Key Terms

Μύλος ὀνικός (Millstone)

The expression in verse 6 refers to a large millstone (μύλος ὀνικός, mylos onikos, "donkey millstone") so heavy that it had to be turned by a donkey, unlike hand mills. Such stones weighed several hundred kilograms. Drowning was not a Jewish method of execution but was known from Greek and Roman practice. The image underscores the seriousness of leading "little" believers astray—such a fate would be preferable to the judgment awaiting them.

Γέεννα (Gehenna)

"Hell fire" in verse 9 (γέενναν τοῦ πυρός, geennan tou pyros) comes from the Hebrew Ge-Hinnom (Valley of Hinnom), a valley south of Jerusalem. In the Old Testament, this place was associated with child sacrifice to Molech (2 Kings 23:10; Jer 7:31). In intertestamental times, "Gehenna" developed into the term for the final place of punishment for the wicked, distinct from Sheol/Hades, which was the general abode of the dead.

Binding and Loosing

The terminology of "binding" (δέω, deō) and "loosing" (λύω, lyō) in verse 18 were technical terms in rabbinic tradition. They primarily referred to the authority to interpret the Torah—to declare something forbidden (assur) or permitted (muttar). In the context of the church, this concerns the community’s authority to make decisions about what aligns with God’s will, including matters of membership and discipline.

Forgiveness: Seventy Times Seven

Peter’s suggestion to forgive "up to seven times" (v. 21) was generous by rabbinic standards; some traditions suggested three times as sufficient. Jesus’ answer "seventy-seven times" or "seventy times seven" (ἑβδομηκοντάκις ἑπτά, v. 22)—either 77 or 490—likely alludes to Genesis 4:24, where Lamek demands seventy-seven-fold vengeance. Jesus turns the logic of vengeance into limitless forgiveness.

Talents and Denarii

The parable of the unforgiving servant (vv. 23–35) uses concrete economic figures that would have been striking to the listeners. Ten thousand talents (μυρίων ταλάντων, v. 24) was an astronomical sum—equivalent to about 60 million daily wages, more than the annual tax revenue from entire provinces. The historian Josephus reports that all of Galilee and Perea together paid only 200 talents in annual taxes to the Romans. By comparison, one hundred denarii (v. 28) was roughly three to four months’ wages for a laborer. The contrast illustrates the grotesque nature of refusing forgiveness after having received incomparable mercy.

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