Lent Parable: The Unforgiving Servant
Jesus’ Parable of The Unforgiving Servant, The Cost of Grace
Read Scripture: Matthew 18:21-35
As Holy Week approaches, we reflect on forgiveness—both the grace given to us and the grace we extend to others. When Peter asked about forgiving seven times, he likely thought he was being generous, as Jewish teachers typically recommended forgiving three times. Jesus’s response of seventy-seven times would have been shocking—it demolished the very idea of keeping count.
The parable Jesus tells uses financial debt to illustrate spiritual forgiveness, and the numbers would have made His listeners gasp. The first servant’s debt of ten thousand talents was astronomical—equivalent to about 200,000 years of a laborer’s wages. In modern terms, this would be like owing billions of dollars. It was more than the annual tax revenue of several ancient provinces combined. Jesus deliberately chose an impossible sum to help his audience grasp the magnitude of God’s forgiveness.
Against this enormous debt, the second servant’s hundred denarii seems almost trivial—about three months’ wages, perhaps like owing someone a few thousand dollars today. The contrast is deliberate and stark. The first servant’s actions would have seemed especially heinous to Jesus’s audience because he violated the cultural principle of reciprocal mercy. In their society, receiving mercy created a strong moral obligation to show mercy to others. His failure to do so was not just unethical but went against fundamental social values.
The physical action of the first servant—grabbing and choking his fellow servant—would have resonated with Jesus’s audience. Debt collection in the ancient world could be brutally physical, and imprisonment for debt was common. Today, while we may not physically assault debtors, we might recognize similar harshness in the way people pursue revenge, hold grudges, or refuse to forgive perceived slights, even after experiencing forgiveness themselves.
The consequences for the unforgiving servant are severe—handed over to the “torturers” until he should pay all. In the ancient world, torture was sometimes used to reveal whether a debtor had hidden assets or to compel relatives to pay the debt. Jesus uses this grim reality to illustrate a spiritual truth: holding onto unforgiveness tortures us more than those we refuse to forgive. Modern psychology confirms this ancient wisdom, showing how harboring resentment can harm our mental, emotional, and even physical health.
During Lent, we’re invited to consider both sides of forgiveness. Like the first servant, we’ve been forgiven an impossible debt through Christ’s sacrifice. The cross represents God’s willingness to bear the cost of forgiveness Himself. Yet how often do we, who have been shown such enormous mercy, struggle to extend forgiveness to others for relatively minor offenses? Sometimes we’re like someone who’s been forgiven a massive credit card debt but refuses to forgive a friend’s small IOU.
The king’s question becomes personal: “Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?” This challenges us to examine our hearts. Have we truly grasped the magnitude of God’s forgiveness in our own lives? Are we allowing that experience to transform how we treat others who have wronged us?
Reflection Questions:
- How does understanding the size of the debts in the parable affect your view of forgiveness?
- Where in your life are you struggling to extend the forgiveness you’ve received?
- What “impossible debts” has God forgiven in your life?
- How might refusing to forgive others affect your own spiritual well-being?
Practical Tip:
Make a list of people you need to forgive and pray for them daily during Lent. If possible, take a step toward reconciliation by reaching out or offering a kind gesture.
Explore More:
- Colossians 3:13 – Forgive as the Lord forgave you
- Matthew 6:14-15 – The connection between receiving and giving forgiveness
- Psalm 103:12 – The extent of God’s forgiveness
- Ephesians 4:32 – Be kind and compassionate, forgiving each other
Amy Luinstra
Deacon
