1 Then He
said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no
offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It
would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were
thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. 3 Take
heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he
repents, forgive him. 4 And
if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns
to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
5 And the
apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 So the
Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you
can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the
sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 And
which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when
he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But
will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird
yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat
and drink’? 9 Does
he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I
think not. 10 So
likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say,
‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”
Commentary
Vs. 1-4 1 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. 3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
Having rebuked the rich mans greed and self-indulgence, the Lord Jesus Christ now turns His attention to addressing offenses; that is all those things that either lead someone into sin, or are themselves sin, saying: “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.” To offend one of these little ones than is more than just an exhortation against “offending” children, it is about sinning against the Lord Jesus Christ by sinning against any of His people, or leading them into sin, or causing them to lose their faith in Him. Thus, those who come into Christian fellowship and exploit, use, abuse, or mislead any of God’s children away from Him are only storing up for themselves the most severest of God’s judgments. And so, with that warning given, the Lord Jesus Christ immediately turns His attention to offenses committed by brethren against each other, saying, “Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Vs. 3-4
Here then the offenses are not calculated acts, they are sins and offenses that the offender has committed, but is unaware of the harm or injury they have caused. And so, when such things occur. it is incumbent upon the offended to rebuke the offender, for how else will they know that they have done wrong? And so, the Lord Jesus Christ says, “If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.” Thus, if the rebuke is followed by repentance (that is the offender acknowledges and owns the wrong) the Lord Jesus says forgive him, basically receive and restore and treat them as a beloved brother. Now Jesus doesn’t stop there but also says, “And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Vs. 4 And so here in this part it is the offender now knows that they have done wrong and so knowing as much, they return and say “I repent” when they realize that they have sinned again, and so Jesus says when they do so we are to forgive them. For by doing so we are not only practicing the same grace that we ourselves also daily need before God, but we are committing all justice and judgment to God who knows the inner workings of the heart and will render to each one according to their deeds. Thus we should never be afraid to forgive, to give mercy as we would have mercy shown us, when we too also stumble and repent.
Vs. 5-6 5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
The disciples then having heard and understood now ask the Lord Jesus to increase their faith (vs. 5). However, what the disciples needed was not “more” faith; as if that would help them accomplish great things for the Lord; they simply needed to take the faith they already possessed and put it into practice. Therefore, Jesus responds to them by saying, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” Vs. 6
Vs. 7-10 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”
The Lord Jesus having instructed the disciples to exercise their faith in Him now gives them an example of a servant who willingly serves his master, who does not expect, or receive, special praise or accolades for doing so, but only after his service is complete, then he himself also sits down and eats (vs. 7-9). And so just as that servant had done all that his master had commanded him to do, (not thinking anything great of himself for doing so), So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ” vs. 10 Thus though the humble servants of the Lord will not see themselves as doing or accomplishing anything great, seeing themselves only as “unprofitable servants.” yet they will accomplish and do what the Lord Jesus Christ commanded and sent them to do.
Commentary
Vs. 1-4 1 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. 3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
Having rebuked the rich mans greed and self-indulgence, the Lord Jesus Christ now turns His attention to addressing offenses; that is all those things that either lead someone into sin, or are themselves sin, saying: “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.” To offend one of these little ones than is more than just an exhortation against “offending” children, it is about sinning against the Lord Jesus Christ by sinning against any of His people, or leading them into sin, or causing them to lose their faith in Him. Thus, those who come into Christian fellowship and exploit, use, abuse, or mislead any of God’s children away from Him are only storing up for themselves the most severest of God’s judgments. And so, with that warning given, the Lord Jesus Christ immediately turns His attention to offenses committed by brethren against each other, saying, “Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Vs. 3-4
Here then the offenses are not calculated acts, they are sins and offenses that the offender has committed, but is unaware of the harm or injury they have caused. And so, when such things occur. it is incumbent upon the offended to rebuke the offender, for how else will they know that they have done wrong? And so, the Lord Jesus Christ says, “If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.” Thus, if the rebuke is followed by repentance (that is the offender acknowledges and owns the wrong) the Lord Jesus says forgive him, basically receive and restore and treat them as a beloved brother. Now Jesus doesn’t stop there but also says, “And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Vs. 4 And so here in this part it is the offender now knows that they have done wrong and so knowing as much, they return and say “I repent” when they realize that they have sinned again, and so Jesus says when they do so we are to forgive them. For by doing so we are not only practicing the same grace that we ourselves also daily need before God, but we are committing all justice and judgment to God who knows the inner workings of the heart and will render to each one according to their deeds. Thus we should never be afraid to forgive, to give mercy as we would have mercy shown us, when we too also stumble and repent.
Vs. 5-6 5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
The disciples then having heard and understood now ask the Lord Jesus to increase their faith (vs. 5). However, what the disciples needed was not “more” faith; as if that would help them accomplish great things for the Lord; they simply needed to take the faith they already possessed and put it into practice. Therefore, Jesus responds to them by saying, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” Vs. 6
Vs. 7-10 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”
The Lord Jesus having instructed the disciples to exercise their faith in Him now gives them an example of a servant who willingly serves his master, who does not expect, or receive, special praise or accolades for doing so, but only after his service is complete, then he himself also sits down and eats (vs. 7-9). And so just as that servant had done all that his master had commanded him to do, (not thinking anything great of himself for doing so), So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ” vs. 10 Thus though the humble servants of the Lord will not see themselves as doing or accomplishing anything great, seeing themselves only as “unprofitable servants.” yet they will accomplish and do what the Lord Jesus Christ commanded and sent them to do.
Scripture Quotations
New King James Version (1982): Thomas Nelson
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