[[Matt-18]] Prev: [[Prophecies in Matt-17]] | Next: [[Prophecies in Matt-19]] --- ### For the Son of Man came to save that which was lost. ... If a man has one hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, doesn't he leave the ninety-nine, go to the mountains, and seek that which has gone astray? *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: Jesus identifies his mission as the personal search and rescue of lost humanity, using the metaphor of a shepherd seeking a stray sheep. *Historical context*: Theologians identify this as the fulfillment of [[Ezek-34#v11|Ezekiel 34:11]]-16, where God promised that He would personally 'search for my sheep and seek them out.' Jesus' arrival and ministry to social outcasts are seen as the literal realization of this divine commitment. *Related to*: [[Ezek-34#v11|Ezekiel 34:11]]-16 ### Woe to the world because of occasions of stumbling! For it must be that the occasions come, but woe to that person through whom the occasion comes! *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: Jesus predicts that scandals, temptations, and obstacles to faith are an inevitable part of the world's future until the final judgment. *Historical context*: This prophecy is historically observed in the persistent presence of heresy, internal church conflicts, and external persecutions throughout the centuries, as documented in church histories like those of Eusebius. *Related to*: ### Most certainly I tell you, whatever things you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever things you release on earth will have been released in heaven. *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: Jesus grants his disciples divine authority to make binding administrative and disciplinary decisions for the future community of believers. *Historical context*: Historians and theologians point to the Council of Jerusalem in [[Acts|Acts 15]] as the first major fulfillment of this authority, where the apostles issued a decree regarding Gentile converts that was acknowledged as being guided by the Holy Spirit. *Related to*: ### Again, assuredly I tell you, that if two of you will agree on earth concerning anything that they will ask, it will be done for them by my Father who is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the middle of them. *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: Jesus promises his continued divine presence and the efficacy of communal prayer after his physical departure. *Historical context*: The fulfillment is noted in the Book of Acts, such as in [[Acts-04#v31|Acts 4:31]] and [[Acts-12#v5|Acts 12:5]]-12, where the early church's corporate prayer resulted in supernatural events and the physical presence/influence of Christ through the Holy Spirit. *Related to*: ### So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you don't each forgive your brother from your hearts for his misdeeds. *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: Jesus issues a conditional prophecy concerning the final judgment, stating that those who have been forgiven by God but refuse to forgive others will face divine punishment. *Historical context*: This is categorized as an eschatological prophecy related to the Great White Throne judgment or the final accounting of souls, forming a central tenet of Christian theology regarding the necessity of grace-based ethics. *Related to*: --- #ai_prophecy