Matthew 18:15-18·~1 min

A Brother Who Sins

If a brother sins, Jesus says to confront him privately and seek to win him back. If he will not listen, bring one or two others, then tell it to the church; if he still refuses, treat him as an outsider. Jesus then says what the disciples bind or loose on earth will stand in heaven.

I¹⁵f your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. ¹⁶But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ ¹⁷If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. ¹⁸Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

Section summaryJesus gives a plain order for dealing with a brother’s sin. Begin privately, then widen the circle if he refuses to listen, and finally tell it to the church. The chapter closes this movement by linking earthly binding and loosing to heaven’s verdict.

Role in the chapterThis section orders correction through private confrontation, witnesses, and church witness, then places the outcome under heaven’s authority.