For if you will forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father will forgive you also your offences.

For if ye forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father also will forgive you yours,

For, if ye may forgive men their trespasses He also will forgive you, your Father who is in the heavens;

"For if you forgive others their offences, your Heavenly Father will forgive you also;

For if you let men have forgiveness for their sins, you will have forgiveness from your Father in heaven.

For if you will forgive men their sins, your heavenly Father also will forgive you your offenses.

For, if you forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also;

For if ye forgive men their trespasses - If ye forgive others when they offend or injure you.
Your heavenly Father will also forgive you - This is constantly required in the Bible. See the notes at Matthew 6:12. Our Saviour says we should forgive even if the offence be committed seventy times seven times, Matthew 18:22. By this is meant, that when a man asks forgiveness, we are cordially and forever to pardon the offence; we are to declare our willingness to forgive him. If he does not ask forgiveness, yet we are still to treat him kindly; not to harbor malice, not to speak ill of him, to be ready to do him good, and be always prepared to declare him forgiven when he asks it, and if we are not ready and willing to forgive him; we are assured that God will not forgive us.

If ye forgive men - He who shows mercy to men receives mercy from God. For a king to forgive his subjects a hundred millions of treasons against his person and authority, on this one condition, that they wilt henceforth live peaceably with him and with each other, is what we shall never see; and yet this is but the shadow of that which Christ promises on his Father's part to all true penitents. A man can have little regard for his salvation, who refuses to have it on such advantageous terms. See Quesnel.

(4) For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
(4) They that forgive wrongs, to them sins are forgiven, but revenge is prepared for them that take revenge.

For if ye forgive men their trespasses,.... Christ here refers to the petition in Matthew 6:12 which is enforced with this reason and argument, "as", or "for", so Luke 11:4 "we forgive our debtors"; which he repeats and explains: and the reason why he singles out this particularly is, because he knew the Jews were a people very subject to revenge; and were very hardly brought to forgive any injuries done them: wherefore Christ presses it upon them closely to "forgive men their trespasses"; all sorts of injuries done them, or offences given them, whether by word or deed; and that fully, freely, from the heart; forgetting, as well as forgiving; not upbraiding them with former offences; and even without asking pardon, and though there might be no appearance of repentance. Now to this he encourages by saying,
your heavenly Father will also forgive you; will hear your prayers, and manifest his forgiving love to you: not that the forgiveness of others is the procuring cause of forgiveness with God, which is the blood of Christ; or of the manifestation and application of it, that is, the advocacy of Christ; nor the moving cause of it, that is, the free grace of God: but this enters into the character, and is descriptive of the persons, to whom God is pleased to make a comfortable discovery, and give a delightful sense of his pardoning grace; such persons, so disposed and assisted by his grace, may expect it of him.

For if ye forgive men, &c.--See on Matthew 6:12.

For if ye forgive men . . . your heavenly Father will forgive you. Our Lord makes it a condition of our obtaining forgiveness, that we shall have a merciful, forgiving spirit.

Mark 11:25.