Matthew 18:21–34
The Parable of the Servant Who Would Not Forgive
Jesus teaches about forgiveness
One day, Peter asked Jesus an important question. He wanted to know how many times he should forgive people when they sin. “Seven times?” Peter asked. Jesus answered Peter’s question by telling him a story or parable.
In the story, there was a king who had many servants. One of the servants owed the king ten thousand talents. That was a lot of money!
The servant could never pay back the king. The king said that he would sell the servant and his family to pay off the debt.
When the servant heard this, he fell to his knees. He begged the king to give him more time. “Have patience with me,” he said, “and I will pay thee all.”
The king had mercy for the servant. He decided to forgive him. The servant did not have to repay the money. He was free to go!
Then the servant went and found a man who owed him a small amount of money. He grabbed the man and said, “Pay me.”
The man fell to his knees. “Have patience with me,” he said, “and I will pay thee all.” But the servant did not forgive him. He sent him to prison.
When the king found out what had happened, he asked to see the servant. The king reminded his servant that he had been forgiven of a very large debt. He told his servant that he should have also forgiven the man who owed him money.
We all owe a debt we could never pay for ourselves. Jesus explained to Peter that God forgives us, so we should also forgive others. And we should not stop after seven times but should always be willing to forgive.
Matthew 18:22, 34–35; see also Matthew 6:14; Doctrine and Covenants 64:9–10