Then Peter came up and said to Him, “Lord, how many times shall my brother sin against me and I still forgive him? Up to seven times?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?”
- KJV Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
- BSB Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
- NKJV Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”
- NLT Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
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
Peter asks how often he must forgive a sinning brother, suggesting seven times. He thinks he is being generous, but Jesus will stretch the answer far wider.
Overview
Rabbinic teaching sometimes set a limit of three times; Peter doubles it and more, proposing seven. His question still treats forgiveness as something to be counted and capped. Jesus' reply will explode such bookkeeping, calling for limitless forgiveness rooted in the mercy we ourselves have received.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Luke 17:3–4Be careful. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him.
- Matt 18:15“If your brother sins against you, go, show him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained back your brother.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 18:21 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.