And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you for your offenses.
Parallel translations
- WEB Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father, who is in heaven, may also forgive you your transgressions.
- KJV And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
- BSB And when you stand to pray, if you hold anything against another, forgive it, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your trespasses as well.”
- NKJV “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
- NLT But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus links effective prayer with forgiving others, so that the Father may forgive us.
Overview
Prayer cannot be divorced from a heart that forgives, since unforgiveness hinders fellowship with God. Jesus ties our experience of the Father's forgiveness to our willingness to forgive others, echoing the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:14-15). The grace we have received in Christ should overflow in grace toward others.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Matt 6:14–15“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
- Col 3:13bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, if any man has a complaint against any; even as Christ forgave you, so you also do.
- Eph 4:32And be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving each other, just as God also in Christ forgave you.
- Luke 6:37Don’t judge, and you won’t be judged. Don’t condemn, and you won’t be condemned. Set free, and you will be set free.
- Matt 6:12Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
- Jas 2:13For judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
- Matt 5:23“If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you,
- Matt 18:23–35Therefore the Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who wanted to reconcile accounts with his servants.
- Matt 6:5“When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward.
- Luke 18:11The Pharisee stood and prayed to himself like this: ‘God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
- Zech 3:1He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before Yahweh’s angel, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary.
- Rev 11:4These are the two olive trees and the two lamp stands, standing before the Lord of the earth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 11:25 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.