What the Bible says about Forgive Seventy Times Seven
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Matthew 18:21-35 Peter asks in verse 21, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” He probably thought seven times was extremely magnanimous and merciful, as his figure was well beyond the three times rabbis taught was sufficient. Yet, Jesus demolishes His disciple's reasoning, answering, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.” Effectively, He teaches there is no limit to how often we should forgive a brother for trespasses against us. The parable supplies the reason for Christ's insistence in His Model Prayer that we always forgive: The Father, seen in the character of the king who remits the ten-thousand-talent debt, has shown us boundless compassion by forgiving us of our many egregious sins against Him. He asks the unforgiving servant, who would not pardon a coworker's pittance of a debt, “Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?” (verse 33). In the next verse, Jesus says the one who would not forgive was “delivered . . . to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him”—the entire ten thousand talents! Jesus grimly summarizes His point in verse 35: “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” God is serious about His people forgiving one another. It is a necessary first step to restoring harmonious relationships and living in peace. It is an act of love toward our neighbor that reflects the outgoing concern of God Himself toward us, a necessary component of the godly character He is creating in us. Richard T. Ritenbaugh The Model Prayer (Part Seven): Forgive Us Our Debts Related Topics: Forgive Seventy Times Seven | Forgiveness | Model Prayer | Parable of the Unforgiving Servant | Seventy Times Seven

Luke 7:39 Notice the scornful comment of the self-righteous Pharisee in Luke 7:39: "Now when the Pharisee who had invited [Jesus] saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, 'This man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.'" Yet, notice that Jesus does not forgive the disdainful Pharisee but the woman: "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little" (verse 47). The Pharisee loved neither God nor the woman. If he had loved God, he would have served Jesus and been more sympathetic and tolerant toward the woman. This leads us to understand that beginning to love God triggers the seeking of His forgiveness. From that relationship flows the merciful attitude and the ability to forgive as one is forgiven by God because it induces consideration of one's own failings. Self-exalting, self-righteous people have such a high opinion of themselves that they are essentially ignorant of the need to grant forgiveness, especially to those they judge as beneath them. We are often guilty of setting limits on our granting of forgiveness because we believe that it merely opens the door to further abuse by the offender. Jesus addresses this in Matthew 18:21-22 and Luke 17:3-5. His instruction helps us to understand God's expectations of us as His children. His standard for us is exceedingly high. When Peter asks how often he should forgive his brother, it appears he understood his estimation to be quite high. He asks, "Up to seven times?" (Luke 17:4 adds "in a day"). No, Jesus replies, "but up to seventy times seven"! Jesus' figure of speech implies "without limits" or "without number." This so shocks the disciples that they reply, "Lord, increase our faith" (Luke 17:5)! Offenses against one another within the church are inevitable. To God, pardoning these offenses is so important to the creation of Christ's image in us and to the peace and spiritual well-being of the church that it must be done regardless of what we fear the outcome will be. Our trust in God that He is overseeing the well-being of all concerned must be strong enough to place the outcome in His hands. God is well aware of all the facets of the offense and all the hurts inflicted. Do we believe that He knows who did what and why, as well as the correct balance of innocence and cause in every case? John W. Ritenbaugh Forgiveness and Reconciliation Related Topics: Acts of Forgiveness | Attitude of Forgiveness | Dealing with Offenses | Forgive Seventy Times Seven | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | Merciful Attitude | Offenses, Dealing with | Self Righteous Attitude

 

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