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Andκαὶifἐὰνseven timesἑπτάκιςa dayτῆς ἡμέραςhe sinsἁμαρτήσῃagainstεἰςyouσὲandκαὶseven timesἑπτάκιςturns backἐπιστρέψῃtoπρὸςyou,σὲsaying,λέγων‘I change my mind,’Μετανοῶyou will forgiveἀφήσειςhim.”αὐτῷ
Luke 17:4
Study it in the app“And if seven times a day he sins against you and seven times turns back to you, saying, ‘I change my mind,’ you will forgive him.””
If your brother changes his mind, forgive him, even seven times a dayForgivenessIf your brother sins, tell him; if he changes his mind, forgive himConflict and Reconciliation
With the Greek beneath
Luke 17:4, word by word
- seven timesἑπτάκιςheptakis
seven times
Seven times.
Where else “heptakis” appears- a dayἡμέραςhēmeras
day
A span counted on the calendar: “on the third day,” “forty days.”
Where else “hēmeras” appears- he sinsἁμαρτήσῃhamartēsēi
sin
Sin: fail God, do what he forbids.
Where else “hamartēsēi” appears- turns backἐπιστρέψῃepistrepsēi
turn to God
To come back to God, or bring others back to him.
Where else “epistrepsēi” appears- sayingλέγωνlegōn
say
To express something in words to others.
Where else “legōn” appears- ‘I change my mind,’ΜετανοῶMetanoō
change one's mind
Change one's mind: turn around one's way of thinking, and with it one's way of living, to return to God. It is usually translated "repent".
Where else “Metanoō” appears- you will forgiveἀφήσειςaphēseis
forgive
To wipe away sins or debts, not exact them.
Where else “aphēseis” appears
Parallel passages
Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.
Forgiving a brother
A similar saying; scholars discuss whether it is the same saying in another setting or a repeated one.
See them side by side
Luke 17:3-4
3Watch yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he changes his mind, forgive him. 4And if seven times a day he sins against you and seven times turns back to you, saying, ‘I change my mind,’ you will forgive him.”
15And if your brother sins against you, go, reprove him between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16But if he does not listen, take with you one or two more, so that by the mouth of two witnesses or three every word may be established. 17And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the assembly; and if he refuses to listen even to the assembly, let him be to you as the Gentile and the tax collector. 18Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven. 19Again, truly I tell you that if two of you agree on earth about any matter that they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father who is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them.” 21Then Peter came to him and said, “Lord, how many times will my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22Jesus says to him, “I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy-seven times.
The context
3Watch yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he changes his mind, forgive him.
4 · This verse (above)
5And the apostles said to the Lord, “Add faith to us!”
To study Luke 17 in a group
1. What it says
Of the ten lepers who are cleansed, how many come back to give thanks, and what does Jesus say to him? (vv. 12-19)
2. What it means
Jesus points out that the one who returned was a Samaritan, a foreigner (vv. 16-18). What does that say about who recognizes what God has done?
3. How I live it
Jesus says to forgive a brother who changes his mind, even seven times a day (vv. 3-4). Whom do you need to forgive this week?