22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. (Matthew 18:22 ESV)
22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:22 NKJV)
This verse and the ones around it speak to how much we should forgive others. It is speaking to Jesus’ desire for us to go on forgiving others as He does us. Thus, the message is one of forgiveness. However, this morning as I read it I got hung up on the translation. Some time back I switched to English Standard Version and the numbers changed from “seventy times seven”, to “Seventy-seven times”.
The issue here is not the translation, it’s my human condition.
The variance is the difference between the Hebrew and Greek translations. However, the importance is that the numbers are less relevant than the message. Jesus is telling us to go on forgiving even when we feel like we have reached our limit.
Considering how often Jesus has forgiven me I am glad that the message is more important than the numbers. I am sure I have surpassed either.
We get hung up, at times, on the simplest concept that may have little to do with the more important message being conveyed. People can get also hung up pointing to the variance in translations and questioning the inerrancy of the Bible without fully understanding the reason and totally missing the message.
As we read scripture we need to look to the bigger picture, not getting lost in the forest for the trees. Yes, do research and understand the reason. But do not miss the importance of what is being conveyed because you get hung up on how it is written.
