Bible glossary

What Does ‘Forgiveness’ Mean in the Bible?

Forgiveness is the release of a debt: God pardoning our sin and wiping the record clean, and our releasing others as He has released us.

To forgive is to let go of a wrong, to cancel a debt rather than demand payment. When God forgives, He does not merely overlook sin; He deals with it and then removes it, putting our transgressions as far away as the east is from the west and remembering them no more.

Because we have been forgiven so freely, the Bible calls us to forgive others. This does not mean pretending harm was harmless; it means releasing the grip of bitterness and handing the debt to God, even when it takes many attempts.

Key verses

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9

“As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”
Psalm 103:12

“Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.”
Colossians 3:13