Matthew 18:16 | 1735
17:27 y Jn 6:61
18:3 z Mt 19:14; 1Pe 2:2 a Mt 3:2
18:4 b Mk 9:35 18:5 c Mt 10:40
18:6 d Mk 9:42; Lk 17:2
18:7 e Lk 17:1
18:8 f Mt 5:29; Mk 9:43, 45
18:9 g Mt 5:29 h Mt 5:22
18:10 i Ge 48:16; Ps 34:7; Ac 12:11, 15;
Heb 1:14
18:15 j Lev 19:17; Lk 17:3; Gal 6:1;
Jas 5:19, 20 offense, y go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”
The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven
18:1-5pp— Mk 9:33-37; Lk 9:46-48
18
At that time the dis ci ples came to Jesus and asked,“ Who, then, is the great est in the kingdom of heaven?”
2 He called a lit tle child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said:“ Truly I tell you, un less you change and be come like lit tle chil dren, z you will never en ter the kingdom of heaven. a 4 There fore, who ever takes the lowly po si tion of this child is the great est in the king dom of heaven. b 5 And who ever wel comes one such child in my name wel comes me. c
Causing to Stumble
6“ If any one causes one of these lit tle ones— those who be lieve in me— to stum ble, it would be bet ter for them to have a large mill stone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. d 7 Woe to the world be cause of the things that cause peo ple to stum ble! Such things must come, but woe to the per son through whom they come! e 8 If your hand or your foot causes you to stum ble, f cut it off and throw it away. It is bet ter for you to en ter life maimed or crip pled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to stum ble, g gouge it out and throw it away. It is bet ter for you to en ter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. h
without financially inconveniencing the Twelve. fish. Greek ichthys. This particular fish found in the Sea of Galilee frequently scoops up objects fallen on the lake bed. People have caught fish with coins in their mouths in this lake even in modern times. four-drachma coin. See note on v. 24. It could pay the tax for both Jesus and Peter.
The Parable of the Wandering Sheep
18:12-14pp— Lk 15:4-7
10“ See that you do not de spise one of these lit tle ones. For I tell you that their an gels i in heaven al ways see the face of my Fa ther in heaven. [ 11 ] a
12“ What do you think? If a man owns a hun dred sheep, and one of them wan ders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wan dered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is hap pier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wan der off. 14 In the same way your Fa ther in heaven is not will ing that any of these lit tle ones should per ish.
Dealing With Sin in the Church
15“ If your brother or sis ter b sins, c go and point out their fault, j just be tween the two of you. If they lis ten to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not lis ten, take one
a 11 Some manuscripts include here the words of Luke 19:10. b 15 The Greek word for brother or sister( adelphos) refers here to a fellow disciple, whether man or woman; also in verses 21 and 35. c 15 Some manuscripts sins against you
18:1 – 35 Sermon on Humility and Forgiveness. The fourth major block of Jesus’ teaching( after chs. 5 – 7; 10:5 – 42; 13:1 – 52). Verses 1 – 14 show the lengths to which God humbles himself to save the lost, while vv. 15 – 35 define the extent to which we should humble ourselves to forgive others. 18:1 – 14 Those who would“ enter the kingdom”( v. 3) must exercise childlike humility( vv. 1 – 5) and avoid causing other little ones to stumble( vv. 6 – 9). After all, God himself is a good shepherd who will seek out even one lost sheep( vv. 10 – 14). 18:1 – 5 Positively, to be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, the disciples must mirror the humble position of children. 18:1 Kingdoms typically have hierarchies, so the disciples wonder who will be closest to the top. Cf. note on 20:20 – 28. 18:3 – 4 Jesus’ reign, however, is an upsidedown kingdom. Even to enter, people must“ become like little children”( v. 3). This does not imply being childish, but being childlike in recognizing one’ s vulnerability and dependence— in this case on God. 18:4 takes the lowly position of. Equivalent to“ humbles himself as.” 18:5 See 10:42. 18:6 – 9 Negatively, disciples must refrain from causing those who believe in Jesus to stumble, i. e., they must not spiritually harm other fledgling followers of Jesus. 18:6 stumble. Here in the sense of committing the worst sin of all: complete apostasy. a large millstone. A heavy wheel-shaped stone tied to a pole that was turned by a donkey as it walked around a bird-bath shaped structure into which grain was poured, causing the stone to crush the grain. sea. To be thrown into the open sea with a large millstone around one’ s neck would certainly cause drowning. 18:8 – 9 See note on 5:29 – 30. 18:10 – 14 The Parable of the Lost Sheep. Jesus tells a parable similar to the parable of the lost sheep in Luke 15:3 – 7. In this context, however, the sheep“ wanders away”( v. 12), perhaps representing the wayward disciple. In both accounts, God is eager to restore those not in right relationship with him.
18:10 their angels in heaven. Could suggest the concept of guardian angels, but nothing requires that there be a one-to-one correlation between angels and humans. 18:12 Shepherds tended to band together, so other shepherds would watch the 99 left behind. 18:13 Restoration is always a cause for celebration 18:14 is not willing that any of these little ones should perish. Cf. 2 Pet 3:9. But it is also true that God does not override human freedom, so unfortunately many are lost( 7:13). Theologians often distinguish between God’ s sovereign( decretive, secret / hidden) will, i. e., what he decrees, and his moral( preceptive, revealed) will, i. e., what he commands. The Bible preserves a running tension between God’ s sweeping sovereignty and his personal yearning that his image-bearers repent, believe, and be saved. God is never less than unrelentingly sovereign and unrelentingly personal in his dealings with people. The latter is highlighted here. 18:15 – 35 Interpersonal sin should be followed by forgiveness and recon cil ia tion whenever possible. Verses 15 – 20 outline the process and also what to do if someone refuses to repent. Verses 23 – 35 depict God’ s