“Two men were debtors to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
Parallel translations
- WEB “A certain lender had two debtors. The one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
- KJV There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
- NKJV “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
- NASB “A moneylender had two debtors: the one owed five hundred denarii, and the other, fifty.
- NLT Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus tells of a lender with two debtors, one owing five hundred denarii and the other fifty. The parable sets up a lesson about forgiveness and gratitude.
Overview
The two debtors, differing greatly in the size of their debts, represent the woman and Simon, both debtors to God. The large and small sums picture differing senses of one's own sinfulness. This simple story prepares to teach that the measure of forgiveness perceived shapes the measure of love returned.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Luke 7:47Therefore I tell you, because her many sins have been forgiven, she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
- Rom 5:20The law came in so that the trespass would increase; but where sin increased, grace increased all the more,
- Matt 18:28But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’
- Matt 6:12And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
- Luke 11:4And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”
- Rom 3:23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
- 1 Jn 1:8–10If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- John 15:22–24If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin.
- 1 Tim 1:15–16This is a trustworthy saying, worthy of full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst.
- Jer 3:11And the LORD said to me, “Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than unfaithful Judah.
- Isa 50:1This is what the LORD says: “Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce with which I sent her away? Or to which of My creditors did I sell you? Look, you were sold for your iniquities, and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.
- Luke 12:48But the one who unknowingly does things worthy of punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from him who has been entrusted with much, even more will be demanded.
- Luke 13:4Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam collapsed on them: Do you think that they were more sinful than all the others living in Jerusalem?
- Num 27:3“Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the followers of Korah who gathered together against the LORD. Instead, he died because of his own sin, and he had no sons.
- Matt 18:23–25Because of this, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 7:41 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.