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Selected Verse: Matthew 6:12 - Strong Concordance
Verse |
Translation |
Text |
Mt 6:12 |
Strong Concordance |
And [2532] forgive [863] us [2254] our [2257] debts [3783], as [2532] [5613] we [2249] forgive [863] our [2257] debtors [3781]. |
|
King James |
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
And forgive us our debts--A vitally important view of sin, this--as an offense against God demanding reparation to His dishonored claims upon our absolute subjection. As the debtor in the creditor's hand, so is the sinner in the hands of God. This idea of sin had indeed come up before in this discourse--in the warning to agree with our adversary quickly, in case of sentence being passed upon us, adjudging us to payment of the last farthing, and to imprisonment till then (Mat 5:25-26). And it comes up once and again in our Lord's subsequent teaching--as in the parable of the creditor and his two debtors (Luk 7:41, &c.), and in the parable of the unmerciful debtor (Mat 18:23, &c.). But by embodying it in this brief model of acceptable prayer, and as the first of three petitions more or less bearing upon sin, our Lord teaches us, in the most emphatic manner conceivable, to regard this view of sin as the primary and fundamental one. Answering to this is the "forgiveness" which it directs us to seek--not the removal from our own hearts of the stain of sin, nor yet the removal of our just dread of God's anger, or of unworthy suspicions of His love, which is all that some tell us we have to care about--but the removal from God's own mind of His displeasure against us on account of sin, or, to retain the figure, the wiping or crossing out from His "book of remembrance" of all entries against us on this account.
as we forgive our debtors--the same view of sin as before; only now transferred to the region of offenses given and received between man and man. After what has been said on Mat 5:7, it will not be thought that our Lord here teaches that our exercise of forgiveness towards our offending fellow men absolutely precedes and is the proper ground of God's forgiveness of us. His whole teaching, indeed--as of all Scripture--is the reverse of this. But as no one can reasonably imagine himself to be the object of divine forgiveness who is deliberately and habitually unforgiving towards his fellow men, so it is a beautiful provision to make our right to ask and expect daily forgiveness of our daily shortcomings and our final absolution and acquittal at the great day of admission into the kingdom, dependent upon our consciousness of a forgiving disposition towards our fellows, and our preparedness to protest before the Searcher of hearts that we do actually forgive them. (See Mar 11:25-26). God sees His own image reflected in His forgiving children; but to ask God for what we ourselves refuse to men, is to insult Him. So much stress does our Lord put upon this, that immediately after the close of this prayer, it is the one point in it which He comes back upon (Mat 6:14-15), for the purpose of solemnly assuring us that the divine procedure in this matter of forgiveness will be exactly what our own is.
Sixth Petition: |
The Scofield Bible Commentary, by Cyrus Ingerson Scofield, [1917] |
we forgive our debtors
This is legal ground, (compare (Eph 4:32), which is grace. Under law forgiveness is conditioned upon a like spirit in us; under grace we are forgiven for Christ's sake, and exhorted to forgive because we have been forgiven. (Mat 18:32); (Mat 26:28).
(See Scofield) - (Mat 26:28).
debts
sin
(See Scofield) - (Rom 3:23). |
Vincent's Word Studies, by Marvin R. Vincent [1886] |
Debts (ὀφειλήματα)
So, rightly, A. V., and Rev. (compare Luk 11:4). Sin is pictured as a debt, and the sinner as a debtor (compare Mat 18:28, Mat 18:30). Accordingly the word represents sin both as a wrong and as requiring satisfaction. In contrast with the prayer, "Forgive us our debts," Tholuck ("Sermon on the Mount") quotes the prayer of Apollonius of Tyana, "O ye gods, give me the things which are owing to me."
Forgive (ἀφήκαμεν)
Lit., to send away, or dismiss. The Rev. rightly gives the force of the past tense, we have forgiven; since Christ assumes that he who prays for the remission of his own debts has already forgiven those indebted to him. |
Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65] |
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors - Give us, O Lord, redemption in thy blood, even the forgiveness of sins: as thou enablest us freely and fully to forgive every man, so do thou forgive all our trespasses. |
Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
And forgive us our debts - Sin is represented here under the notion of a debt, and as our sins are many, they are called here debts. God made man that he might live to his glory, and gave him a law to walk by; and if, when he does any thing that tends not to glorify God, he contracts a debt with Divine Justice, how much more is he debtor when he breaks the law by actual transgression! It has been justly observed, "All the attributes of God are reasons of obedience to man; those attributes are infinite; every sin is an act of ingratitude or rebellion against all these attributes; therefore sin is infinitely sinful."
Forgive us - Man has nothing to pay: if his debts are not forgiven, they must stand charged against him for ever, as he is absolutely insolvent. Forgiveness, therefore, must come from the free mercy of God in Christ: and how strange is it we cannot have the old debt canceled, without (by that very means) contracting a new one, as great as the old! but the credit is transferred from Justice to Mercy. While sinners we are in debt to infinite Justice; when pardoned, in debt to endless Mercy: and as a continuance in a state of grace necessarily implies a continual communication of mercy, so the debt goes on increasing ad infinitum. Strange economy in the Divine procedure, which by rendering a man an infinite debtor, keeps him eternally dependent on his Creator! How good is God! And what does this state of dependence imply? A union with, and participation of, the fountain of eternal goodness and felicity!
As we forgive our debtors - It was a maxim among the ancient Jews, that no man should lie down in his bed, without forgiving those who had offended him. That man condemns himself to suffer eternal punishment, who makes use of this prayer with revenge and hatred in his heart. He who will not attend to a condition so advantageous to himself (remitting a hundred pence to his debtor, that his own creditor may remit him 10,000 talents) is a madman, who, to oblige his neighbor to suffer an hour, is himself determined to suffer everlastingly! This condition of forgiving our neighbor, though it cannot possibly merit any thing, yet it is that condition without which God will pardon no man. See Mat 6:14, Mat 6:15. |
14 For [1063] if [1437] ye forgive [863] men [444] their [846] trespasses [3900], your [5216] heavenly [3770] Father [3962] will also [2532] forgive [863] you [5213]:
15 But [1161] if [3362] ye forgive [863] not [3362] men [444] their [846] trespasses [3900], neither [3761] will your [5216] Father [3962] forgive [863] your [5216] trespasses [3900].
25 And [2532] when [3752] ye stand [4739] praying [4336], forgive [863], if [1536] ye have [2192] ought [1536] against [2596] any [5100]: that [2443] your [5216] Father [3962] also [2532] which [3588] is in [1722] heaven [3772] may forgive [863] you [5213] your [5216] trespasses [3900].
26 But [1161] if [1487] ye [5210] do [863] not [3756] forgive [863], neither [3761] will [863] your [5216] Father [3962] which [3588] is in [1722] heaven [3772] forgive [863] your [5216] trespasses [3900].
7 Blessed [3107] are the merciful [1655]: for [3754] they [846] shall obtain mercy [1653].
23 Therefore [1223] [5124] is the kingdom [932] of heaven [3772] likened [3666] unto a certain [444] king [935], which [3739] would [2309] take [4868] account [3056] of [3326] his [846] servants [1401].
41 There was [2258] a certain [5100] creditor [1157] which had two [1417] debtors [5533]: the one [1520] owed [3784] five hundred [4001] pence [1220], and [1161] the other [2087] fifty [4004].
25 Agree [2468] [2132] with thine [4675] adversary [476] quickly [5035], whiles [2193] [3755] thou art [1488] in [1722] the way [3598] with [3326] him [846]; lest at any time [3379] the adversary [476] deliver [3860] thee [4571] to the judge [2923], and [2532] the judge [2923] deliver [3860] thee [4571] to the officer [5257], and [2532] thou be cast [906] into [1519] prison [5438].
26 Verily [281] I say [3004] unto thee [4671], Thou shalt [1831] by no means [3364] come [1831] out thence [1564], till [2193] [302] thou hast paid [591] the uttermost [2078] farthing [2835].
23 For [1063] all [3956] have sinned [264], and [2532] come short [5302] of the glory [1391] of God [2316];
28 For [1063] this [5124] is [2076] my [3450] blood [129] of the new [2537] testament [1242], which [3588] is shed [1632] for [4012] many [4183] for [1519] the remission [859] of sins [266].
28 For [1063] this [5124] is [2076] my [3450] blood [129] of the new [2537] testament [1242], which [3588] is shed [1632] for [4012] many [4183] for [1519] the remission [859] of sins [266].
32 Then [5119] his [846] lord [2962], after that he had called [4341] him [846], said [3004] unto him [846], O thou wicked [4190] servant [1401], I forgave [863] thee [4671] all [3956] that [1565] debt [3782], because [1893] thou desiredst [3870] me [3165]:
32 And [1161] be [1096] ye kind [5543] one to another [1519] [240], tenderhearted [2155], forgiving [5483] one another [1438], even as [2531] [2532] God [2316] for [1722] Christ's [5547] sake [1722] hath forgiven [5483] you [5213].
30 And [1161] he would [2309] not [3756]: but [235] went [565] and cast [906] him [846] into [1519] prison [5438], till [2193] [3739] he should pay [591] the debt [3784].
28 But [1161] the same [1565] servant [1401] went out [1831], and found [2147] one [1520] of his [846] fellowservants [4889], which [3739] owed [3784] him [846] an hundred [1540] pence [1220]: and [2532] he laid hands [2902] on him [846], and took him by the throat [4155], saying [3004], Pay [591] me [3427] that [3748] thou owest [3784].
4 And [2532] forgive [863] us [2254] our [2257] sins [266]; for [1063] we [846] also [2532] forgive [863] every one [3956] that is indebted [3784] to us [2254]. And [2532] lead [1533] us [2248] not [3361] into [1519] temptation [3986]; but [235] deliver [4506] us [2248] from [575] evil [4190].
15 But [1161] if [3362] ye forgive [863] not [3362] men [444] their [846] trespasses [3900], neither [3761] will your [5216] Father [3962] forgive [863] your [5216] trespasses [3900].
14 For [1063] if [1437] ye forgive [863] men [444] their [846] trespasses [3900], your [5216] heavenly [3770] Father [3962] will also [2532] forgive [863] you [5213]: