The forgiveness of sins is a central theme in the Bible. Forgiveness is an important topic in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Bible writers use different images to express this. An important image is that of Jesus who was slain as the Lamb for sin. In the New Testament and especially in the Gospels, it is Jesus himself who, as the Son of God, has been given the power to forgive sin. The Bible also calls on us to forgive each other.
Forgiveness in the Old Testament
Forgiveness is already discussed in the first book of the Bible, Genesis. Abraham pleads for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah when he hears that God wants to destroy the cities because of their great guilt. Abraham says, ‘Perhaps there are fifty innocents in that city. Would you also snatch that life away and not forgive the entire city for the sake of those fifty innocent inhabitants?’ (Genesis 18:24).
The golden calf
After the people of Israel have received the law and Moses is on Mount Sinai, the people make an idol, a golden bull calf. When Moses returns from the mountain he is furious. Yet Moses pleads with God for the people. Moses does not want the people to be destroyed. Like Abraham, he seeks forgiveness for other people.
The next morning Moses said to the people, “You have sinned grievously. Yet I will go up into the mountain; perhaps I can persuade the LORD not to hold your sins against you.” So he returned to the LORD. “O LORD,” he said, “this people has sinned grievously; they have made a god of gold. Grant them forgiveness for that sin. (Exodus 32:30-32)
Rite of Atonement
In the Bible book of Leviticus, forgiveness of sin is ritually shaped by sacrifice. An animal, a sheep, cattle or doves, was sacrificed to the God of Israel. Through the ritual of sacrifice one could be forgiven. For example, Leviticus 4 verse 20 states: ‘He must offer the bull in the same way as the bull of his own cleansing offering. In this way the priest performs the rite of atonement for the people and they receive forgiveness.
Forgiveness in the Psalms
The Psalms testify that God wants to forgive sin. “You, O Lord, are good and willing to forgive; your faithfulness is great to all who call on you” (Psalm 86:5). ‘But with you there is forgiveness, therefore you are revered’ (Psalm 130:4). The prayer for forgiveness in Psalm 51 expresses the desire for mercy. It is a psalm of David, when the prophet Nathan visited him, after David had slept with Bathsheba, the wife of his neighbor Uriah. David prays: ‘Be merciful to me, O God, in your faithfulness; you are full of compassion; blot out my deeds, wash me from all guilt, cleanse me from my sins’ (Psalm 51: 1-4).
The Prophets on forgiveness
The prophet Joel writes, “Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and loving, patient and faithful, and willing to forgive” (Joel 2:13). The prophet Jonah hoped that God would destroy the city of Nineveh because of the evil deeds that its inhabitants did. The people of Nineveh repented. The city was not destroyed and Jonah was quite disappointed about that: O LORD, did I not say it while I was still at home? […] I knew that you are a God who is gracious and loving, patient and faithful, and willing to forgive” (Jonah 4:2).
Forgiveness of Sin in the New Testament
Forgiveness appears in several ways in the New Testament. John the Baptist calls on people to be baptized in order to obtain forgiveness. Jesus himself, as the Son of God, has the power to forgive sin. In the letters the apostle Paul writes about forgiveness of sins and in the last Bible book of Revelation the theme emerges in the image of Jesus as the Lamb who was slain for sin.
The baptism of forgiveness in John the Baptist
There is John the Baptist, who as a penitent preacher called people to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sin. In the Gospel of Luke it says: ‘John went around the Jordan proclaiming that people should be baptized and repent in order to obtain forgiveness of sins.’ John the Baptist also points to Jesus as the Lamb of God who will take away the sin of the world: ‘The next day John stood again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “There is the Lamb of God.” (John 1:35-36).
Jesus forgives sins
Jesus also proclaims the forgiveness that God grants to those who repent. As God’s son, Jesus himself has the power to forgive sins. The evangelist Mark tells the story of the lame man who is brought through the roof to Jesus by his friends. Jesus forgives this lame man his sin. The bystanders didn’t like that, but Jesus shows that he has the power to forgive sin.
Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, ,Friend, your sins are forgiven., There were also some scribes sitting among the people, and they thought to themselves, How dare he say that? He uses blasphemous language: after all, only God can forgive sins! Jesus immediately knew what they were thinking, so he said, “Why do you think such a thing? What is easier, saying to a paralyzed person, “Your sins are forgiven” or, “Get up, take your bed and walk”? I will show you that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth.” Then he said to the paralyzed man, ,I tell you, get up, take your bed and go home., Immediately he got up, took his bed, and went away; all who saw this were astonished and praised God. (Mark 5:5-12)
Forgiveness in the Epistles of the Apostles
In the letters of the New Testament, forgiveness through the blood of Christ is discussed several times. In Ephesians 1:7 the apostle writes: ‘In him we have been redeemed through his blood and our sins have been forgiven through rich grace’. The apostle considers people happy who live out of forgiveness. “Blessed is the man whose iniquities are forgiven, whose sins are covered; Blessed is the man whose sins the Lord does not count (Romans 4:7-8). The apostle John writes in his first letter that forgiveness of sin is assured if one confesses his sins.
But if we walk our way in the light, as he himself is in the light, then we are connected to each other and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we do not know sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:7-9)
Forgiveness in Revelation of John
Forgiveness of sin is not explicitly discussed in John’s book of Revelation. It only emerges implicitly. This mainly concerns Jesus who is described as a Lamb. It is about the Lamb and the blood of the Lamb. With these images, John describes how Jesus gave forgiveness of sins to his followers by dying. About them it says in Revelation 7:14: ‘They washed their clothes white in the blood of the lamb’. Thus they will be cleansed from sin and guilt.
Forgiving each other as a Biblical command
In the Bible, receiving forgiveness of sin is not separate from forgiving each other. People can do all kinds of things to each other and the Bible calls on us to seek forgiveness wherever possible. Central to this is the well-known prayer that Jesus taught his disciples to pray, the Our Father. It prays: ‘And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.’
Seventy times seven times forgiven
The Gospel of Matthew contains a remarkable statement about the forgiveness of sin. This story is only found in Matthew. It is about a question from Peter to Jesus. “Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if my brother or sister sins against me, how often shall I forgive him?” Up to seven times? Jesus answered, “Not seven times, I tell you, but seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:21-22). The meaning of these numbers shows that Christian forgiveness should know no bounds. The Biblical purpose is to seek forgiveness and reconciliation.