Limitless Word

Matthew 18

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📖 Matthew introduction

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1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” ✦ 2And He called a child to Himself and set him among them, ✦ 3and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you change and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. ✦ 4So whoever will humble himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ✦ 5And whoever receives one such child in My name, receives Me; ✦ 6but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it is better for him that a heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depths of the sea. ✦ 7“Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to the person through whom the stumbling block comes! ✦ 8“And if your hand or your foot is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; it is better for you to enter life maimed or without a foot, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire. ✦ 9And if your eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fiery hell. ✦ 10“See that you do not look down on one of these little ones; for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven. ✦ 12“What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains, and go and search for the one that is lost? ✦ 13And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that have not gone astray. ✦ 14So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven for one of these little ones to perish. ✦ 15“Now if your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ✦ 16But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that on the testimony of two or three witnesses every matter may be confirmed. ✦ 17And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, he is to be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. ✦ 18Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven. ✦ 19“Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. ✦ 20For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” ✦ 21Then 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?” ✦ 22Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy-seven times. ✦ 23“For this reason the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. ✦ 24And when he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. ✦ 25But since he did not have the means to repay, his master commanded that he be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment be made. ✦ 26So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ ✦ 27And the master of that slave felt compassion, and he released him and forgave him the debt. ✦ 28But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’ ✦ 29So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ ✦ 30But he was unwilling, and went and threw him in prison until he would pay back what was owed. ✦ 31So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their master all that had happened. ✦ 32Then summoning him, his master *said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ✦ 33Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ ✦ 34And his master, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he would repay all that was owed him. ✦ 35My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.” ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

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

Where this chapter connects

Matt 6 ·12Matt 18 ·11Matt 5 ·11Matt 13 ·8Matt 25 ·8Mark 9 ·7Rom 14 ·7Luke 16 ·6

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 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.

Resources, by level

Lay

  • ★ Start hereDocumentaryFollowing the MessiahAppian Media · Free · evangelical

    A free, beautifully shot 10-part series walking the lands of Jesus' life — Bethlehem, Galilee, Jerusalem, and more.

  • ★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)

  • ★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical

    A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.

  • DocumentaryHolyLandSiteHolyLandSite · Free · evangelical

    Free on-location videos tying biblical events to the actual sites in Israel — the Temple Mount, Galilee, Capernaum, and more.

  • ApologeticsCold-Case Christianity (J. Warner Wallace)J. Warner Wallace · Free · evangelical

    A cold-case homicide detective examines the Gospels' reliability — forensic faith for skeptics and seekers.

Pastoral

  • SermonGrace to You — John MacArthurJohn MacArthur · Free · reformed

    Decades of careful verse-by-verse expository sermons, especially through the New Testament. (MacArthur, d. 2025; archive remains free.)

  • DocumentaryThat the World May KnowRay Vander Laan · Paid · evangelical

    Ray Vander Laan's on-location series immersing you in the Bible's historical and cultural world. (Mostly paid via Focus on the Family; some free clips.)

  • SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical

    Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

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