In a leading religious paper which is read by many on this and the other side of the Atlantic, after a comment on the parable of the king and his servants in Matt. 18, the following words are found:"Reversed forgiveness! How unspeakably awful! When a sense of God's pardon does not lead to entire yielding up of ourselves to be transformed into the same image as our Lord; if we do not let Him make us new creatures, so that old things are passed away and all things become new, His forgiveness may be recalled."

It is very evident the writer of this did not see the difference between temporal and eternal forgiveness ; that is, between the government of God among His professed people on earth, and the grace of God whose gifts are eternal.

My present purpose is to make this clear from the Scriptures, for in them is the very root of Christian liberty, worship, growth, and fruitfulness.

From the teaching mentioned above, the final result must of necessity be eternal damnation. Is this the teaching of Matt. 18:21-35? How then would it agree with Heb. 10:17, "And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more ? " Certainly when our theories make the Scriptures clash, they must be wrong. Now, in the passage just quoted God declares that the believer's sins, once forgiven, are forgiven forever, and that He never will make him responsible for his sins and iniquities any more. And why can He say so ? The 14th verse gives us the answer:" For by one offering He has perfected forever them that are sanctified." One perfect sacrifice has been offered, whereby the will of God is accomplished and atonement for sin is made. In faith the believing sinner lays his hands, so to speak, upon the head of that sacrifice, the two become identified, his sins are transferred to the sacrifice (from the first to the last, for our first had no more been committed than the last when Christ died), they are borne, atoned for, forgiven and gone. And, further, sins are not imputed to the believer any more (Rom. 4:8). He is thus sanctified, set apart for God, made fit for God's presence, and in this sense is "perfected forever." It is this word "forever" in Heb. 10:14 to which the apostle is referring in ver. 17, confirming it by the quotation from Jeremiah, "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more." Any doubt cast upon this is a reflection on the perfection of the sacrifice of Christ.

Besides, is this the way eternal forgiveness of all our sins is to be obtained; that is, by coming to the Lord and saying, " Have patience with me and I will pay thee all ? " Oh no! Let no one who is yet without it deceive himself by thinking that this is the way. The only attitude in which we can rightly come, the only right state of soul, is that seen in the " prodigal son ":"I have sinned against heaven and in Thy sight." We must abandon all self-reliance, leave out all thought of paying off our debts, relying only on God's grace and the work accomplished for sinners on Calvary's cross.

But what is the teaching of Matt. 18:21-35 ? ^ is a parable of the kingdom of heaven-heaven's reign upon earth-where God's governmental dealings with His people are going on. It is not therefore a question of eternal forgiveness and eternal damnation, but of temporal forgiveness and temporal punishment. Now temporal forgiveness may be only temporary because it is simply the remission of well-deserved chastisement for one who is in the place of a servant, and it secures the prolongation of temporal blessings and privileges. Hence it implies the expectation that this act of mercy is duly appreciated, and that a better use is made of the granted gifts and privileges; if not, they will be taken away. This forgiveness is therefore conditional; and in case the conditions are not fulfilled, the judgment previously announced is executed.

Now let us see how our parable illustrates this. The king, of course, is God (" My heavenly Father," ver. 35). The leading application as to the first servant is to Israel. Israel had indeed accumulated an enormous debt ever since God had made them His people, whereof the record of their past history gave abundant evidence. The time of reckoning was come when God sent His messenger John the Baptist to them with the announcement, "The axe is laid unto the root of the trees;" and the end of Israel's career as a servant was indicated by the Lord when He said, " The kingdom of God shall be taken away from you." The selling of wife, children, and all that the servant had, answers to that which afterward really took place, the breaking up of homes, the taking away of land and city, the dispersion among the Gentiles, and the keeping them in the prison-house of Gentile supremacy and oppression.

But something intervened, and the sentence was not carried out. The servant begged for mercy; that is, a godly remnant did it in behalf of the nation, and the Lord forgave. This is what the Lord taught the godly remnant to do in the fifth petition of the Lord's prayer:"Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors;" and afterward He Himself made intercession for the nation when He said, " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." The disciples' prayer has not so much in view the need of the individual as the great and broad interests of the kingdom of God, the glory of God's name, and the accomplishment of His will here upon the earth; consequently the importance of Israel's place in the carrying out of God's plans and purposes. Hence the petition, " Forgive us our debts," is for governmental forgiveness. Eternal forgiveness the praying disciples had received long before. Their petition was granted in unison with the Lord's own. "The lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him and forgave him the debt." However, the nation itself went on as before. So, then, the disciples' prayer, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors," shows that governmental forgiveness is conditional, and depends on our attitude toward our debtors. Compassion and forbearance with others were expected of the servant the very moment he was forgiven. As a matter of fact, his Lord forgave him, and he was not removed from his place as a servant. Israel as a nation was not then visited with the well-deserved judgment from the Lord. On the contrary, new and high privileges were given them at Pentecost and after; new opportunities for service and testimony, and a new chance to be God's representative here upon earth.

But now comes the other servant in view-the Gentile. The Gentile was indeed Israel's debtor. Philistines, Syrians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Romans, and all the rest, had wrought much havoc in Israel. The 79th psalm expresses forcibly how Israel felt toward the Gentile. However, the amount the latter owed Israel was insignificant compared with the immense debt Israel had contracted through the many years of disobedience, stubbornness, and rebellion against God. The sense of his terrible guilt, the mercy received, and also the consideration of the poor Gentiles' need, should have softened his heart (speaking of Israel as the servant), and gladly should he have seized the opportunity to manifest his appreciation of God's merciful dealings with him, and show mercy to his fellow-servant.

But this was not so. The book of Acts exemplifies Israel's attitude toward the Gentile, and bears testimony against the former (see, especially, Acts 14:2, 19; 17:5-8; 18:12, 13; 19:9; 22:21, 22); and in 1 Thess. 2:14-16 the apostle completes this testimony when he says:"For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus:for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews; who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins always:for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost."

This passage helps us considerably to interpret the parable in Matt. 18. In it the apostle describes in strong language Israel's guilt, as also their attitude toward the Gentiles. His words imply also the fellow-servants' sorrow and denunciation, and finally give the announcement of the coming judgment. The judgment came. Jerusalem was destroyed, many killed, the rest driven from the land and scattered all over the world, and Israel was delivered to the tormentors, who have done their work but too well ever since. How long shall this last ? Till the whole debt is paid. Is this hopeless? Oh no; for it is not eternal judgment, but temporal, that is spoken of here. It is the necessary correction for an unfaithful servant who nevertheless shall by grace be restored at the end. So shall Israel one day be restored to his place as a servant, and the whole earth be filled with the knowledge of the Lord through their instrumentality. This, of course, we learn from other parts of Scripture. Here, however, it is indicated by the words, "Till he should pay all that was due to him." Are words like these ever used in Scripture in connection with eternal suffering ? Or are they to be understood as meaning never? By no means! A certain term served in prison has always been regarded equivalent to paying off a debt; and in proportion to the amount of it, the imprisonment was lengthened or shortened.

But the worst for Israel is yet to come. "Jacob's trouble " is yet in the future, and they have to pass through a tribulation " such as was not since the beginning of the world, nor ever shall be." When this is over they shall hear the blessed words, "Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned; for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins" (Isa. 40:i, 2).

" Reversed forgiveness! " Sad enough indeed, as we have seen, for those that are concerned; but not with the result which the teaching in question would bring us to. It would plunge a true child of God who does not come up to God's perfect standard of holiness into hopeless despair. Now we know that Christ in all His perfections is that standard; and toward it every child of God tends; but where is he who is bold enough to say he has reached it ? But while the primary application of the parable is to Israel, has it no application to us as Christians as a whole, or to the individual in particular ? Surely it has. Peter's question in Matt. 18:21, "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me and I shall forgive him?" with the Lord's closing remark, "So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses," shows the individual application to each and all of us, with the same governmental result upon us; for governmental principles hold good throughout all dispensations.

Christian privileges are given to make good use of them, else they are taken away. Truth is communicated to be followed, and to be proclaimed worldwide; and blessings are not received for self-enjoyment merely. Forgiveness of past failure is granted freely if sought for in humiliation and confession; and the time of service will be prolonged. But there is a lesson in it all which, if learned well, would manifest itself in a mild treatment of the erring ones, and in a readiness to forgive personal insults and offences. Moreover, offences which, for the glory of the Lord and the welfare of the brother (or brethren) concerned, cannot be passed over in silence, would be dealt with in the spirit of meekness and love, in a way prescribed in the chapter under consideration (vers. 15-17).

But forgiveness must be from the heart; and this is especially individual. Corporate forgiveness could not be spoken of in that way, real as it may be. Each one must see to this for himself. A lively sense of our own shortcomings, the remembrance and appreciation of the mercies received, whether in regard to time or eternity, and love toward our brother, would cause to forgive readily, and that from the heart.

But there is also a sure compensation awaiting us in this. Blessings (not necessarily earthly prosperity) will follow the servant who imitates his Master, and an adequate punishment is reserved for him who does not. The latter may consist in barrenness of soul, fruitlessness, the taking away of the privileges of a servant (Rev. 2:4, 5), and the like; yea, even past sins and trespasses which were remitted with a view of encouragement to do better, may be brought into remembrance again. This is forgiveness reversed, or recalled.

If then the sense of God's goodness is not strong enough in us to bring about the desired result, may fear do its work. And this is evidently the lesson the Lord intended to teach us in giving us this parable. J. Kofal