But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. Matthew 18:25

“And he, having naught to pay, the lord, he commanded him sold, and his wife, and the children, and all, as much as he has - and repayment.” (CG)

In the previous verse, one of the king’s servants was found to have owed him myriads of talents. Because of this, it next says, “And he, having naught to pay, the lord, he commanded him sold.”

This would be understood from the Law of Moses, such as –

“And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave.” Leviticus 25:39

The provisions in Israel for bondservants such as this were carefully laid out in Leviticus 25:39-55. It is probable that other countries within the Roman Empire had their own such laws. Slavery was common throughout the Roman system as well. It was an accepted part of life. As for the man, not only was he to be sold, but it continues with, “and his wife, and the children.”

An example of this is found in 2 Kings 4 –

“A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, ‘Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.’” 2 Kings 4:1

Family members were not exempt from the financial failings of the head of the house. One such provision of note concerning how family was dealt with for slaves is found in Exodus 21 –

“Now these are the judgments which you shall set before them: 2 If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free and pay nothing. 3 If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4 If his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself.” Exodus 21:1-4

As for this individual referred to in the parable, not only is he sold along with his family, but more, “and all, as much as he has - and repayment.”

Due to the extreme amount of debt, everything he possessed was to be confiscated and sold off. In his impossible situation, he would be a man without anything except the hope of service to whoever became his master.

As noted above, if this hypothetical person being referred to was a Hebrew under the Law of Moses’ provisions, he would be released in the year of release, which occurred every seventh year. An example of the abuse of this practice is found in Jeremiah 34.

If this person were sold to be property of Gentiles, he would probably never be freed.

Life application: The Bible assumed the condition of slavery was an axiom of humanity. It treats the subject in a neutral manner and as something that was expected to happen. The various reasons for its coming about are detailed with the understanding that the practice was acceptable.

At the same time, provisions for the proper treatment of slaves were detailed. Today, most countries and cultures do not have slavery, but there are still expectations for people to pay their bills and work in order to tend to their needs and the needs of those dependent on them.

Not acting according to set guidelines for personal responsibility is to be considered inappropriate. For those who fail to tend to their needs, their own miseries are normally a self-inflicted wound. As Paul says, “For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10).

If you are a properly functioning human and you don’t want society to leave you in poverty, it is up to you to work, pay your bills, and deal honestly with others. In doing this, you will normally fare well.

Lord God Almighty, help us to be responsible people who will work hard and be effective in the things we do so that we will not be a burden on others. May our lives be directed to glorifying You in all ways. Amen.

Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. Matthew 18:23

“Through this, it was made to resemble the kingdom of the heavens – man, king, who he desired to balance a word with his servants.” (CG)

In the previous verse, Jesus’ response to Peter’s question about forgiveness was “Not, I say to you until sevenfold, but until seventy-fold, sevenfold!” Next, to explain the matter of forgiveness, Jesus begins with, “Through this, it was made to resemble the kingdom of the heavens.”

Jesus will give an analogy of what forgiveness in the kingdom of the heavens is like by using worldly situations and human conditions, emotions, and desires. Understanding this, He begins the example, saying, “man, king, who he desired to balance a word with his servants.”

A new word is seen, sunairó. It is derived from sun, together, and airó, to lift. In other words, there is to be a balancing of accounts. One may owe another, or the books may be lifted and shown to be equal. In order to determine the matter, the king will look over his books, and a settlement of the differences will be the determined outcome.

Being a king, he has the authority to make decisions that affect those under him. And more, he has the authority to enforce the things he has decided. In such matters, he would be the final authority over the process.

Life application: As can be seen from Jesus’ words, the way things are in the heavenly realm is the standard. Things that happen here will align with the standard, or they will not. This is what the word of God is intended to show us.

Our human cultures, governments, and decision-making processes are tainted with our fallen nature. Therefore, we cannot properly run things according to the way God expects unless we are informed of just what He expects.

And more, there are things that are set forth in the word, such as the Law of Moses, that are good and serve a good purpose, but because of our sinful natures, what is good actually becomes an overwhelming obstacle to our efforts to be pleasing to God. Paul explains this in Romans 7.

The very thing that we want to do is what we don’t do. We want to be pleasing to God, but we find that our nature will not allow us to properly do so. Law, intended for life, has actually brought about death.

This is what Jesus came to fix. By doing what other humans are incapable of doing, He fulfilled the strict demands of the law. In His fulfillment of them, He ended the law through His crucifixion. Now, for anyone who trusts Him, law is no longer the enemy to our relationship with God. We have fellowship with Him once again through Jesus’ death.

The heavenly standard of forgiveness is being explained by Jesus in a way we can understand. Like the lesson of the law, we need to consider what He says. But suppose we disagree with one evaluation or another. It has been established that we are not under law, but grace.

As this is so, even if we don’t meet the bar set forth by Jesus concerning forgiveness, there is no law to condemn those who are in Christ. Therefore, our failings will be judged in a different way and for a different purpose. This is detailed in Paul’s letters concerning the judgment seat of Christ.

Don’t fear if your ability to forgive is not perfect. Jesus is. Because you are in Him, you are already forgiven.

O God, thank You for the full cleansing and freedom from sin that Jesus provides. Being forgiven, may we faithfully do those things that You desire to the best of our ability at all times. Be glorified in how we conduct our lives. Amen.

And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. Matthew 18:24

“And he, having commenced to balance, he was presented, one, to him, an ower of myriads of talents.” (CG)

In the previous verse, Jesus began the parable of what is known as “the unforgiving servant.” A king determined to balance his account with his servants. Jesus continues, saying, “And he, having commenced to balance, he was presented, one, to him.”

It can already be seen that the focus of the parable will be on the relationship between the king and this particular person. Other side issues may be brought in, but the nature of the parable is to set the tone quickly and then develop the story around that initial person or situation. Understanding this, Jesus notes this person is “an ower of myriads of talents.”

Two new words are seen here. The first is murios, a myriad. Strong’s says of this word, “Plural of an apparently primary word (properly, meaning very many); ten thousand; by extension, innumerably many -- ten thousand.”

To say, “ten thousand” is simply a way of defining an otherwise indeterminate number, just as saying “one hundred” when someone else said “heaps.” The second new word is talanton. HELPS Word Studies says, “a silver talent, worth about 6,000 denarii (gold talents were worth about 30 times as much). A talent was not a coin but rather a weight (about 75 lbs, NIVSB) used as the basis of monetary exchange.”

The idea of a talent, then, is equivalent to a bar of silver or gold. Its value would change based on the prevailing currency rates or by some other set or changeable standard. It would be equivalent in thought to the Hebrew word kikkar, a word signifying “circular.” It may speak of a circular region, a loaf of bread, or a measure of silver or gold that is in a circular form rather than a bar.

The word is used this last way, for example, in Exodus 25:39, “It shall be made of a talent [kikkar] of pure gold, with all these utensils.” The intent of Jesus’ words is that this guy owes the king an insanely large amount of money.

Life application: One can already see the comparison taking shape from Jesus’ words. Man owes an infinite debt because of sin. The reason for this is that sin, even inherited sin, in relation to God, who is infinite, will infinitely separate us from Him. At no point will we ever be able to overcome the gap because of this.

There is literally nothing we can do to change our state. We are in time, heading forward. The sin cannot go back and be undone. Thus, our condemnation remains forever. But this is where Jesus stepped in and handled the problem.

Because His Father is God, He bears God’s infinite nature. And because His mother was human, He became a suitable sacrifice (as allowed under the Law of Moses, God’s standard) for substitution. In essence, our sin can transfer to Him while His innocence is transferred to us.

Because of this, and because He prevailed over death, Jesus can now mediate between the infinite and the finite. There is no other way to reconciliation with God because no other avenue can attain the infinite pardon that is demanded by God’s holiness.

In other words, it is Jesus or eternal separation from God. There is no other way –

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:18

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” John 14:6

Choose wisely. Choose Jesus.

O God, help us to clearly and precisely explain the importance of Jesus to others. Without Him, there is no hope. This life is absolutely pointless without Jesus. But You, O God, have made it worth all of the joy eternity can provide because You sent Jesus. Thank You, O God, for Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.