Matthew 18:26 (WEB)

Passage

The servant therefore fell down and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all!’

Nearby Context

Matthew 18:24 When he had begun to reconcile, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.

Matthew 18:25 But because he couldn’t pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife, his children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

Matthew 18:26 The servant therefore fell down and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all!’

Matthew 18:27 The lord of that servant, being moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.

Matthew 18:28 “But that servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, who owed him one hundred denarii, and he grabbed him, and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "servant", "therefore", "fell", "down", "knelt", "before", "saying", and "lord". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "servant" and "therefore", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "But because he couldn t pay his..." into verse 27's "The lord of that servant being moved...", so "servant" and "therefore" 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 "servant" and "therefore" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.