I note from this question that 7x70 was incalculable to Jesus's followers. What the heck? By the time of Jesus, both the Greeaks and the Egyptians (and probably a few other cultures) had accurately estimated the size of the earth. But Jesus followers were stuck on 7x70?
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AthNnDSAzGO8ap6TxBq6Wgnsy6IX?qid=20070130213918AA63dA7&show=7#profile-info-AA11786965
Does this make sense to anyone?
2007-01-31 04:48:33 · 6 answers · asked by mullah robertson 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
not to me...
you are right, the greeks and egyptians had complex math formulas at that time. 7x70 was kid stuff.
2007-01-31 04:54:43 · answer #1 · answered by ÜFÖ 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No, when Peter tentatively asked Jesus how many times he should forgive, he said "7 times?", thinking he was being generous. Jesus replied, saying, "70 x 7", not meaning the literal number 490, but rather using a rhetorical device to indicate that Peter was way off, and that we Christians should forgive limitlessly, as God forgives us limitlessly. That doesn't mean we should tolerate or enables others to do sin, but we should forgive others for what offenses they have committed.
2007-01-31 12:59:26 · answer #2 · answered by Crono 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
...That's not the point.
Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive someone for the sins they commit against him.
He said, "Seven at most?", thinking Jesus would say, "oh yeah dude, you're really holy!"
No. Jesus said, Seven times seventy.
In other words, we should never stop forgiving people, because God forgives us unconditionally.
If Jesus said "Forgive him an infinite number of times", Peter would be like, "huh?"
Read the context.
The ancient Chinese cultures thought that 800 was an infinite number. ;)
2007-01-31 12:57:19 · answer #3 · answered by Doug 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The were a bunch of yokels. Think of the IDiots today who can't conceive of an Earth that is billions of years old. Their brains explode at anything over 6,000 years.
2007-01-31 12:55:57 · answer #4 · answered by Dave P 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Not everyone is good at math. Jesus' group was more artsy.
2007-01-31 12:57:21 · answer #5 · answered by Phoenix, Wise Guru 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
If you keep count, forgiveness will elude you.
2007-01-31 12:54:57 · answer #6 · answered by Jay Z 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋