SEV Biblia, Chapter 18:22
Jesús le dice: No te digo hasta siete, mas aun hasta setenta veces siete.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Matthew 18:22
Verse 22. Seventy times seven.] There is something very remarkable in these words, especially if collated with Genesis iv. 24, where the very same words are used-"If any man kill LAMECH, he shall be avenged seventy times seven." The just God punishes sin in an exemplary manner. Sinful man, who is exposed to the stroke of Divine justice, should be abundant in forgiveness, especially as the merciful only shall find mercy. See the note on chap. v. 7, and on chap. vi. 14, 15. The sum seventy times seven makes four hundred and ninety. Now an offense, properly such, is that which is given wantonly, maliciously, and without ANY PROVOCATION. It is my opinion, that, let a man search ever so accurately, he will not find that he has received, during the whole course of his life, four hundred and ninety such offenses. If the man who receives the offense has given any cause for it, in that case, the half of the offense, at least, towards his brother, ceases.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 22. Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee , etc.] Which is as if he had said, observe what I am about to say, I do not agree to what thou sayest to fix the number, “until seven times only”, but until seventy times seven ; a certain number for an uncertain, (see Genesis 4:24). Christ’s meaning is, that a man should be all the days, and every day of his life, forgiving those that sin against him, as often as they repent and acknowledge their fault; and that no time is to be set for the exercise of the grace of forgiveness; but as often as there are objects and occasions, though ever so many and frequent, it should be used; and which he illustrates by the following parable.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 21-35 - Though we live wholly on mercy and forgiveness, we are backward to forgive the offences of our brethren. This parable shows how muc provocation God has from his family on earth, and how untoward his servants are. There are three things in the parable: 1. The master' wonderful clemency. The debt of sin is so great, that we are not able to pay it. See here what every sin deserves; this is the wages of sin to be sold as a slave. It is the folly of many who are under stron convictions of their sins, to fancy they can make God satisfaction for the wrong they have done him. 2. The servant's unreasonable severit toward his fellow-servant, notwithstanding his lord's clemency towar him. Not that we may make light of wronging our neighbour, for that is also a sin against God; but we should not aggravate our neighbour' wronging us, nor study revenge. Let our complaints, both of the wickedness of the wicked, and of the afflictions of the afflicted, be brought to God, and left with him. 3. The master reproved his servant' cruelty. The greatness of sin magnifies the riches of pardoning mercy and the comfortable sense of pardoning mercy, does much to dispose ou hearts to forgive our brethren. We are not to suppose that God actuall forgives men, and afterwards reckons their guilt to them to condem them; but this latter part of the parable shows the false conclusion many draw as to their sins being pardoned, though their after-conduc shows that they never entered into the spirit, or experienced the sanctifying grace of the gospel. We do not forgive our offendin brother aright, if we do not forgive from the heart. Yet this is no enough; we must seek the welfare even of those who offend us. Ho justly will those be condemned, who, though they bear the Christia name, persist in unmerciful treatment of their brethren! The humble sinner relies only on free, abounding mercy, through the ransom of the death of Christ. Let us seek more and more for the renewing grace of God, to teach us to forgive others as we hope for forgiveness from him __________________________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
λεγει 3004 5719 V-PAI-3S αυτω 846 P-DSM ο 3588 T-NSM ιησους 2424 N-NSM ου 3756 PRT-N λεγω 3004 5719 V-PAI-1S σοι 4671 P-2DS εως 2193 CONJ επτακις 2034 ADV αλλ 235 CONJ εως 2193 CONJ εβδομηκοντακις 1441 ADV επτα 2033 A-NUI
Vincent's NT Word Studies
22. Seventy times seven (ebdomhkontakiv epta). 5 It was a settled rule of Rabbinism that forgiveness should not be extended more than three times. Even so, the practice was terribly different. The Talmud relates, without blame, the conduct of a rabbi who would not forgive a very small slight of his dignity, though asked by the offender for thirteen successive years, and that on the day of atonement; the reason being that the offended rabbi had learned by a dream that his offending brother would attain the highest dignity; whereupon he feigned himself irreconcilable, to force the other to migrate from Palestine to Babylon, where, unenvied by him, he might occupy the chief place (Edersheim). It must, therefore, have seemed to Peter a stretch of charity to extend forgiveness from three to seven times. Christ is not specifying a number of times greater than the limit of seven. He means that there is to be no limit. "Forgiveness is qualitative, not quantitative."
Robertson's NT Word Studies
18:22 {Until seventy times seven} (hews hebdomekontakis hepta). It is not clear whether this idiom means seventy-seven or as the Revised Version has it (490 times). If heptakis were written it would clearly be 490 times. The same ambiguity is seen in #Ge 4:24, the LXX text by omitting kai. In the _Test. of the Twelve Patriarchs, Benj._ vii. 4, it is used in the sense of seventy times seven. But it really makes little difference because Jesus clearly means unlimited forgiveness in either case. "The unlimited revenge of primitive man has given place to the unlimited forgiveness of Christians" (McNeile).
