Matthew 18:21 (DBY)

Passage

Then Peter came to him and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? until seven times?

Nearby Context

Matthew 18:19 Again I say to you, that if two of you shall agree on the earth concerning any matter, whatsoever it may be that they shall ask, it shall come to them from my Father who is in [the] heavens.

Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together unto my name, there am I in the midst of them.

Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came to him and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? until seven times?

Matthew 18:22 Jesus says to him, I say not to thee until seven times, but until seventy times seven.

Matthew 18:23 For this cause the kingdom of the heavens has become like a king who would reckon with his bondmen.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "peter", "came", "said", "lord", "often", "shall", "brother", and "against". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "peter" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "For where two or three are gathered..." into verse 22's "Jesus says to him I say not...", so "peter" and "came" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "peter" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.