Matthew 18:26-34

18:26 Then the slave threw himself to the ground 1  before him, saying, 2  ‘Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything.’ 18:27 The lord had compassion on that slave and released him, and forgave him the debt. 18:28 After 3  he went out, that same slave found one of his fellow slaves who owed him one hundred silver coins. 4  So 5  he grabbed him by the throat and started to choke him, 6  saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ 7  18:29 Then his fellow slave threw himself down and begged him, 8  ‘Be patient with me, and I will repay you.’ 18:30 But he refused. Instead, he went out and threw him in prison until he repaid the debt. 18:31 When 9  his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were very upset and went and told their lord everything that had taken place. 18:32 Then his lord called the first slave 10  and said to him, ‘Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me! 18:33 Should you not have shown mercy to your fellow slave, just as I showed it to you?’ 18:34 And in anger his lord turned him over to the prison guards to torture him 11  until he repaid all he owed.

1 tn Grk “falling therefore the slave bowed down to the ground.” The redundancy of this expression signals the desperation of the slave in begging for mercy.

2 tc The majority of mss (א L W 058 0281 Ë1,13 33 Ï it syp,h co) begin the slave’s plea with “Lord” (κύριε, kurie), though a few important witnesses lack this vocative (B D Θ 700 pc lat sys,c Or Chr). Understanding the parable to refer to the Lord, scribes would be naturally prone to add the vocative here, especially as the slave’s plea is a plea for mercy. Thus, the shorter reading is more likely to be authentic.

3 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

4 tn Grk “one hundred denarii.” The denarius was a silver coin worth about a day’s wage for a laborer; this would be about three month’s pay.

5 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so.” A new sentence was started at this point in the translation in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

6 tn Grk “and he grabbed him and started choking him.”

7 tn The word “me” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

8 tn Grk “begged him, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant here in contemporary English and has not been translated.

9 tn Grk “Therefore when.” Here οὖν (oun) has not been translated.

10 tn Grk “him”; the referent (the first slave mentioned in v. 24) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

11 tn Grk “handed him over to the torturers,” referring specifically to guards whose job was to torture prisoners who were being questioned. According to L&N 37.126, it is difficult to know for certain in this instance whether the term actually envisions torture as a part of the punishment or is simply a hyperbole. However, in light of the following verse and Jesus’ other warning statements in Matthew about “fiery hell,” “the outer darkness,” etc., it is best not to dismiss this as mere imagery.