What did Jesus say about forgiveness?

Forgiveness was at the heart of much of what I taught, and the records show it from several angles. Forgiving one another When Peter asked how many times he must forgive a brother who wrongs him — suggesting seven times was generous enough — I answered him, as Matthew records, “I don't tell you until seven times, but, until seventy times seven” That number is not arithmetic; it means without keeping count at all. Luke's account sets a slightly different scene: “If he sins against you seven times in the day, and seven times returns, saying, 'I repent,' you shall forgive him” The disciples' response — "Increase our faith" — tells you how demanding they found it. Why forgiveness is not optional To explain the stakes, I told a parable. A king forgives a servant an almost incomprehensible debt — tens of thousands of talents. That same servant then refuses to forgive a fellow servant a trivial sum. The king's verdict, as Matthew records it, is the point: “Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you” The mercy you have received is the measure of the mercy you owe. The shape of reconciliation Forgiveness does not mean pretending wrongdoing did not happen. Matthew records a careful process: go privately first, then with witnesses, then before the community. The goal throughout is to have “gained back your brother”