[Jesus said,] "I tell you this: whatever you forbid on earth shall be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you allow on earth shall be allowed in heaven.

   "Again, I tell you this: if two of you agree on earth about any request you have to make, that request will be granted by My heavenly Father. For where two or three have met together in My name, I am there among them."

   Then Peter came up and asked Him, "Lord, how often am I to forgive my brother if he goes on wronging me? As many as seven times?" Jesus replied, "I do not say seven times; I say seventy times seven.

   "The kingdom of heaven, therefore, should be thought of in this way: There was once a king who decided to settle accounts with the men who served him. At the outset there appeared before him a man whose debt ran into millions. Since he had no means of paying, his master ordered him to be sold to meet the debt, with his wife, his children, and everything he had.

   "But the servant fell on his knees and begged, 'Be patient with me. I will pay you everything I owe.' The master felt sorry for his servant. So the master told the servant he did not have to pay. He let the servant go free.

   "Later, that same servant found another servant who owed him a few dollars. The servant grabbed the other servant around the neck and said, 'Pay me the money you owe me!'

   "The man fell at his fellow-servant's feet, and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you;' but he refused, and had him jailed until he should pay the debt. The other servants were deeply distressed when they saw what had happened, and they went to their master and told him the whole story.

   "He accordingly sent for the man. 'You scoundrel!' he said to him; 'I remitted the whole of your debt when you appealed to me; were you not bound to show your fellow-servant the same pity as I showed to you?' And so angry was the master that he condemned the man to torture until he should pay the debt in full. And that is how My heavenly Father will deal with you, unless you each forgive your brother from your hearts."

Taken from Mt. 18, The New English Bible and The Everyday Bible.
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