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NASB | John 20:23 "If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 20:23 "If you forgive the sins of anyone they are forgiven [because of their faith]; if you retain the sins of anyone, they are retained [and remain unforgiven because of their unbelief]." |
Bible Question: What did Jesus mean in this verse about sins being remitted or retained by the disciples? |
Bible Answer: Hi srpoet, Here's more that I hope will help.-John "20:23 ..This verse does not give authority to Christians to forgive sins. Jesus was saying that the believer can boldly declare the certainty of a sinner's forgiveness by the Father because of the work of His Son if that sinner has repented and believed the gospel. The believer with certainty can also tell those who do not respond to the message of God's forgiveness through faith in Christ that their sins, as a result, are not forgiven." -- pg. 1627, The MacArthur Study Bible, copyright 1997 Word Publishing "20:23 Lit. "Those whose sins you forgive have already been forgiven; those whose sins you do not forgive have not been forgiven." God does not forgive people's sins because we do so, nor does He withhold forgiveness because we do. Rather, those who proclaim the gospel are in effect forgiving or not forgiving sins, depending on whether the hearers accept or reject Jesus Christ." -- pg. 1558, The Zondervan NASB Study Bible, copyright 1999 by the Zondervan Corporation |