That is what St Peter had failed to grasp when he asked Our Lord how many times he ought to forgive his brother. He took it for granted that he himself had a natural right to be forgiven by God times without number; but when it came to his own duty to forgive others, he wanted to limit that and suggested that seven times ought to meet the case.

We also often look at things the same way as St Peter did. We like to think that we can always have an effective claim on God’s immediate forgiveness for our many and deliberate acts of rebellion and omissions of duty; and yet, at the same time, do we not find ourselves slow and reluctant to forgive others for even one little word that displeases us? Peter wanted to limit his duty to seven times. Do we set our limit even lower?