Luke 17:1-10

New Testament for Everyone

Forgiveness, faith and obedience

17 Jesus said to his disciples, “There are bound to be things that trip people up; but woe betide the person who brings them about! ² It would be better to have a millstone hung around your neck, and be thrown into the sea, than to trip up one of these little ones. ³ So watch out for yourselves.

“If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he apologizes, forgive him. ⁴ Even if he sins against you seven times, and turns round seven times and says ‘sorry’ to you, you must forgive him.”

⁵ The apostles said to the master, “Give us greater faith!”

⁶ “If you had faith,” replied the master, “as a grain of mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

⁷ “Supposing one of you has a slave ploughing or keeping sheep out in the field. When he comes in, what will you say? ‘Come here at once, and sit down for a meal?’ ⁸ No; you will be far more likely to say, ‘Get something ready for me to eat! Get properly dressed, and wait on me while I eat and drink! After that you can have something to eat and drink yourself.’ ⁹ Will you thank the slave because he did what you told him?

¹⁰ “That’s how it is with you. When you’ve done everything you’re told, say this: ‘We’re just ordinary slaves. All we’ve done is what we were supposed to do.’ ”