Bible Strands
Luke 7:42
When they were unable to repay him, he forgave both of them. Which one, then, will love him more?”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jesus poses the question to Simon the Pharisee immediately after the narrator states that the moneylender cancelled both debts. The inquiry follows directly on the account of two borrowers who could not repay their obligations.
The words — The verb ἐχαρίσατο (echarisato) means "he forgave" or "he showed favor," denoting a unilateral cancellation. The interrogative τίς (tis) frames the comparative question regarding which debtor will respond with greater love.
The thread — The theme of unpayable debt met with divine forgiveness appears in Psalms 32:1 and Psalms 51:1, where forgiveness covers transgression. The impossibility of self-redemption is stated in Psalms 49:7, highlighting the necessity of external cancellation.
Why it lands — The text forces a logical link between the size of a forgiven debt and the intensity of the debtor's love. It requires the reader to assess whether their own devotion matches the scale of grace they have received.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
Cross-references
- Psalms 32:1 Of David. A Maskil. Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
- Psalms 49:7 No man can possibly redeem his brother or pay his ransom to God.
- Psalms 51:1 For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. When Nathan the prophet came to him after his adultery with Bathsheba. Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions.
- Psalms 103:3 He who forgives all your iniquities and heals all your diseases,
- Isaiah 43:25 I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more.
- Isaiah 44:22 I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud, and your sins like a mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.
- Jeremiah 31:33 “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
- Daniel 9:18 Incline Your ear, O my God, and hear; open Your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears Your name. For we are not presenting our petitions before You because of our righteous acts, but because of Your great compassion.
- Micah 7:18 Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance—who does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in loving devotion?
- Matthew 18:25 Since the man was unable to pay, the master ordered that he be sold to pay his debt, along with his wife and children and everything he owned.