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17 Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Some bad things in this world will make other people do wrong things. You can be sure about that. But God will punish anyone who makes these bad things happen. These other people may not seem to be important.[a] But you must not make them do wrong things. Do not do that! It would be better if someone tied a big stone round your neck, and then he threw you into the sea.[b]

Be careful how you live. If your Christian brother does something wrong, speak to him. Tell him that he has done a bad thing. He may say, “I am sorry for what I did. I will not do it again.” If he says that, you must forgive him.

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Footnotes

  1. 17:2 The unimportant people here may be children. They may be people that do not believe strongly in Jesus. They may be new disciples of Jesus.
  2. 17:2 Jesus is not telling a person to kill another person. But he is telling his disciples to think very seriously: God will judge someone who causes trouble like this.

Sin, Faith, Duty

17 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble(A) are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come.(B) It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones(C) to stumble.(D) So watch yourselves.

“If your brother or sister[a] sins against you, rebuke them;(E) and if they repent, forgive them.(F)

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 17:3 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a fellow disciple, whether man or woman.