Matthew 18:25-27

18:25 Because ¹  he was not able to repay it, ²  the lord ordered him to be sold, along with ³  his wife, children, and whatever he possessed, and repayment to be made. 18:26 Then the slave threw himself to the ground ⁴  before him, saying, ⁵  ‘Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything.’ 18:27 The lord had compassion on that slave and released him, and forgave him the debt.

¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

² tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

³ tn Grk “and his wife.”

⁴ tn Grk “falling therefore the slave bowed down to the ground.” The redundancy of this expression signals the desperation of the slave in begging for mercy.

⁵ tc The majority of mss (א L W 058 0281 Ë^1,13 33 Ï it sy^p,h co) begin the slave’s plea with “Lord” (κύριε, kurie), though a few important witnesses lack this vocative (B D Θ 700 pc lat sy^s,c Or Chr). Understanding the parable to refer to the Lord, scribes would be naturally prone to add the vocative here, especially as the slave’s plea is a plea for mercy. Thus, the shorter reading is more likely to be authentic.