you will not get out
This phrase indicates a condition of confinement or imprisonment. The Greek word "ἐξέλθῃς" (exelthēs) suggests a release or departure from a place of restriction. In the cultural and historical context of the time, debtors' prisons were common, and individuals could be held until their debts were paid. Spiritually, this phrase can be seen as a metaphor for the consequences of sin and the need for reconciliation and repentance. It serves as a warning about the seriousness of unresolved conflicts and the importance of making amends.

until you have paid
The concept of payment here is tied to the idea of settling a debt or fulfilling an obligation. The Greek word "ἀποδῷς" (apodōs) implies a full repayment or restitution. In the broader scriptural context, this reflects the biblical principle of justice and accountability. It highlights the necessity of addressing wrongs and the moral responsibility to make things right. This phrase can inspire believers to consider the spiritual debts they owe to God and others, encouraging a life of integrity and reconciliation.

the last penny
The term "penny" is translated from the Greek word "κοδράντην" (kodrantēn), which refers to a small Roman coin, the quadrans, worth very little. This phrase emphasizes the completeness of the payment required, down to the smallest unit. In the historical context, it illustrates the thoroughness of justice and the expectation that every detail of a debt must be settled. Spiritually, it serves as a reminder of the comprehensive nature of God's justice and the thoroughness of His expectations for righteousness. It challenges believers to examine their lives for any unresolved issues, no matter how small, and to pursue holiness in every aspect.

Do the words point to a terminable or to an endless punishment? In the frame-work of the similitude such a sentence would not involve perpetual imprisonment, if only the condemned could get together the money wherewith to pay his debt or fine; and we might infer, as Romanist divines have inferred, that such a payment, to be followed by liberation, was possible in the divine judgment. But in practice, unless the man had friends or property, the sentence would, for the most part, involve a life-long punishment. And the question may well be asked, when we turn to the realities shadowed forth in the parable, Can a man pay the "uttermost farthing" in that unseen world? Does he pay by enduring for a given time a given measure of suffering, bodily or spiritual? Can he there find others to pay it for him? Do not the words "till thou hast paid" exclude the thought of their intervention as availing to stay the full action of the great law of retribution? These questions must, for the most part, be so answered as to diminish the force of the first hasty inference. If hope is not shut out altogether, it is because we cannot absolutely answer the first question in the negative. There may be a suffering that works repentance, and the repentance may lead to peace and pardon--there may be, but that is the very utmost that can be said. It is noticeable that the word "prison" is that used in 1Peter 3:19, where the "spirits in prison" are, almost beyond a doubt, represented as the objects of a dispensation that proclaimed even there the good news of salvation. But the whole tone of the passage is that of one who seeks to deepen the sense of danger, not to make light of it, to make men feel that they cannot pay their debt, though God may forgive it freely, accepting faith in Him in lieu of payment.

(1) that if payment can be made, release follows;

(2) and that payment can be made.

The first statement is probable; but as for the slightest hint of the second, it is wholly wanting. Christ affirms that non-reconciliation with a brother, if carried beyond that limit of time within which the quarrel can be made up, involves consequences in which the element of mercy will be entirely absent. The element of mercy can enter up to a certain point of time, but after that only justice. (On "pay," ἀποδῷς, see Matthew 6:4, note.) It will be observed that, in the above interpretation, ἀντίδικος has been consistently explained as a human adversary, for this seems to be the primary meaning here. But it should not be forgotten that, in the parallel passage in Luke, the reference is to God. Offences against man are there represented in their true character as offences against God, who is therefore depicted as the adversary in a lawsuit. That, from another point of view, be is also the Judge, matters not. Both conceptions of him are true, and can be kept quite distinct. It may be the case, indeed, that this reference of ἀντίδικος to God was present to St. Matthew's mind also when he recorded these words, and this would partly account for the terrible emphasis on ver. 26, the pendant to ver. 22. But even if the reference to God were present to St. Matthew's mind by way of application, it is not with him, as it is with St. Luke, the primary. signification of the word. Farthing. The quadrans, the smallest Roman coin.

Parallel Commentaries ...