The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

Matthew 18 begins with Jesus’ answer to a question His disciples asked Him: “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (v. 1) Jesus then taught about life in the Father’s Kingdom, which includes the value of humility (vv. 3-4), the heinousness of being a stumbling block to other believers (vv. 5-9), the value of one lost sheet (vv. 10-14), and church discipline (vv. 15-20).

Just before the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant, Matthew recorded Jesus’ teaching about confronting a brother’s sin (vv. 15-20). Jesus’ counsel was to confront the brother with the hope that he might repent. Those who do not repent were to be treated as if they were not brothers in the faith. At this point, Peter asked how often he should forgive a sinning brother.

This account shows believers the importance of forgiveness. It gives both positive (v. 22) and negative (vv. 23-35) examples. This is not just a story about an evil slave who got what he deserved. It is a personal opportunity to judge one’s willingness to forgive.

This passage of Scripture explains the great importance that God places on relationships among His children. As such, this passage teaches the Essential Truth that People are God's Treasure. God has given abundant grace to us––more than we can possibly comprehend. In response, we must show the same grace to each other. If students do not understand the magnitude of God’s forgiveness, they will have difficulty showing forgiveness to each other. This passage also touches on other key truths: Jesus is God and Savior and Salvation is by Faith Alone.

Matthew 18:21-22 Matthew’s account begins with Peter’s question about forgiveness. Jewish custom required someone to forgive a repeated sin three times. The fourth time that the sin occurred, forgiveness would no longer be granted. Peter, believing that he had learned from Jesus’ earlier teachings, considered himself a forgiving person. He was willing to forgive his brother seven times. This was more than twice what Jewish custom required. But Jesus told Peter that he must forgive “seventy-seven times.” Jesus’ point was that forgiveness couldn’t be limited.

Matthew 18:23-27 After His positive example of providing limitless forgiveness, Jesus provided a negative illustration in the form of a parable. The parable illustrated the premise that, after receiving the immeasurable gift of God’s forgiveness, how could His followers withhold forgiveness from each other. sin between humans is trivial in comparison to the sin between God and man. If God can forgive man, believers surely can and must forgive others.

Jesus’ parable involved three main characters––a king and two servants––and was divided into three scenes. In the first scene, the king desired to settle his financial accounts with his servants. Wishing to collect his debts, the king began calling those who owed him money to come before him.

The first servant was unable to pay the enormous debt that he owed the king. The amount was “ten thousand talents” (v. 24). Some have estimated the debt to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars or even more than a billion dollars in today’s currency. Jesus used this hyperbole to show the vastness of the debt. The debt was beyond anyone’s ability to repay. Because the servant could not repay it, the king commanded that the servant, his family, and all that they owned, be sold. Although selling a small number of slaves would not begin to recover the king’s large financial loss––the most that could be recovered from the sale of a slave was one talent––this would allow him to regain part of it. The servant begged for more time to repay his debt, an act that would have been impossible to accomplish. In a shocking twist, however, the king canceled the servant’s debt and sent him home instead of selling him off.

Matthew 18:28-31 Although the second scene mirrors the first part of the story, the response to a request for mercy was different. The forgiven servant left the king’s presence and encountered a fellow servant who owed him “a hundred denarii” (v. 28). A hundred denarii represented three months of wages for the common worker. The disparity between the size of debts and the two men––10,000 talents compared to 100 denarii––was tremendous.

The forgiven servant demanded that he be paid back. His debtor begged for more time (v. 29), which mirrored the forgiven servant’s plea to the king (v. 26). The forgiven servant, however, showed no mercy and had him thrown in debtor’s prison. Interestingly, even a slave worth very little could have been sold for 500 denarii. Yet Jewish law forbade selling a servant to repay a debt for any amount greater than the debt itself. The forgiven servant, therefore, demonstrated a level of vengeance in his actions.

His hypocritical action was appalling in light of the forgiveness just shown to him. Fellow servants were disturbed by the double standard and told the king all that they had seen. In Greek, “reported” carries the idea of explaining in detail or giving a report. These servants wanted to make sure that the king knew every detail of the first servant’s actions.

Matthew 18:32-35 The forgiven servant’s unforgiving actions led to the final scene of the story. The king rebuked the first servant and called him wicked for being unwilling to show the same forgiveness that he had been shown. In disgust, the king commanded that the first servant be tortured until he repaid his entire debt. Unfortunately for the servant, he could never repay his debt to the king.

Jesus then related the story to God’s Kingdom. In the parable, the servant, who had received forgiveness beyond understanding, did not show forgiveness to others and thus suffered the consequences of his actions. In God’s Kingdom, there is a great danger in an unforgiving spirit. Because of Christ’s sacrifice, we have a relationship with the Father through which we receive immeasurable forgiveness. We are then called to show the same forgiveness to fellow servants of the Father.

Recall Peter’s initial question: “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” (v. 21) Jesus’ parable emphasized the magnitude of the Father’s forgiveness. As His children, we are to forgive one another as God has forgiven us.

Your students have all faced times when they have been injured, slighted, betrayed, or cheated by others. These instances may be petty or shockingly severe. But just as Jesus forgave from the cross those who crucified Him, believers are to forgive those who hurt them. Jesus’ parable involving the forgiven debtor who would not forgive is a reminder that the consequences are severe when we fail to forgive as we have been forgiven. Because People are God's Treasure, God expects us to extend infinite forgiveness to others, even as we have been forgiven by His grace. People who understand this truth reflect Christ-like attitudes by forgiving others and forgetting their offenses. Students need to be reminded that there is nothing to be gained––and much to be lost––through holding grudges, seeking revenge, or allowing bitterness to take root in their hearts.

Students may have yet to learn that an attitude of forgiveness releases the Christian from anger, bitterness, and the wish for vengeance. Forgiving others is an action of the heart that does not depend upon the confession, repentance, or apology of the ones who have offended them. Encourage students to choose to express a Christ-like attitude by extending forgiveness toward others as they have themselves been forgiven. Those who do so will experience the blessing of release from the tension of sitting in judgment of others and the frustration from when others fail to apologize.