Forgiven, but not Forgiving

The Parable of the Unforgiving Slave is nestled in among several other kingdom of God parables in Matthew’s gospel. For most of my life, I have viewed this parable as an illustration of human hypocrisy. Indeed, most of us are perfectly willing to accept that our own faults can be forgiven, but are less than willing to overlook and forgive the same shortcomings in others.

Since it is a parable about the kingdom of God, there’s probably more than a lesson about hypocrisy to be learned from reading it. There seems to be a hint of that meaning in the king’s choice of words. Whereas the king has been merciful to the slave, the slave, for his part, has not shown mercy to his fellow slave. The unforgiving slave has gone wrong because he viewed himself as superior to rather than equal with his fellow slave.

Kingdom of God parables are frequently about equality. In the kingdom of God, we are all loved, forgiven and shown mercy by God, and yes, we are to do likewise.

Lord, help us to remember that you came to turn our hierarchical world upside down. Amen and Hallelujah! — CKA