Matthew 18:21–19:1
21 Then came Peter unto him and said: Lord, how often shall my brother offend against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22 Jesus saith to him: I say not to thee, till seven times; but till seventy times seven times. 23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened to a king, who would take an account of his servants. 24 And when he had begun to take the account, one was brought to him, that owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And as he had not wherewith to pay it, his lord commanded that he should be sold, and his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 But that servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 27 And the lord of that servant being moved with pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that servant was gone out, he found one of his fellow servants that owed him an hundred pence: and laying hold of him, throttled him, saying: Pay what thou owest. 29 And his fellow servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he paid the debt.
31 Now his fellow servants seeing what was done, were very much grieved, and they came and told their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord called him; and said to him: Thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all the debt, because thou besoughtest me: 33 Shouldst not thou then have had compassion also on thy fellow servant, even as I had compassion on thee? 34 And his lord being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. 35 So also shall my heavenly Father do to you, if you forgive not every one his brother from your hearts.
1 And it came to pass when Jesus had ended these words, he departed from Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judea, beyond Jordan
This is a difficult Gospel passage for several reasons. The first, is that it is very difficult for us to forgive others. We wish to be forgiven and ask God to do so. Perhaps we ask those we care about to forgive us when we are in the wrong. But, when someone hurts us or lies to us, how quick are we to forgive? Not only are we offended, but our human nature is adamant that we not trust the person ever again, so as not to be hurt again. God demands that we forgive as He forgives – completely and without holding any form of a grudge.
In the servant whose debt was forgiven, we see that very human nature. He has been forgiven a debt he cannot repay. But, instead of showing the same attitude toward another, he demands what is rightfully his. Nowhere does the scripture say that he was not validly owed the debt. He was fully justified in demanding it. But, God demands that we must show mercy just as He does.
Finally, consider the words, “And his lord being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. So also shall my heavenly Father do to you, if you forgive not every one his brother from your hearts.” Jesus was speaking to His disciples and Apostles. He was speaking to those who believed in Him and who had faith in Him. He did not say that their faith, alone, would be enough to save their souls. But, He also did not say that they would face eternal damnation if they failed to forgive as completely as does God. He says that they will be tortured until the debt is paid. They will have to suffer purgatory until they have done penance for their sins. There will be a reckoning of the account. The Catholic teaching on Purgatory is absolutely Biblical. The Protestant teaching on faith and grace is not.
Judson Carroll is the author of several books, including his newest, A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings July-December, 2025 It is Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F5BHFZ7X
and
Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith. It is also Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK
His podcast is The Uncensored Catholic https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-uncensored-catholic
Thank you for the link to Purgatory