John 20:23 - Printer Friendly

ESV: If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

NIV: If you forgive anyone's sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.'

NASB: If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.'

CSB: If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

NLT: If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.'

KJV: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

NKJV: If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

After being crucified and buried (John 19:30, 41–42), Jesus has appeared alive to His disciples (John 19:19–22). In this appearance, He has made multiple references to peace and breathed into them (Genesis 2:7) a partial indwelling of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus spoke to the disciples at the Last Supper, He closely connected the ideas of "peace" and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26–27), whose primary influence is convicting and reminding believers of truth (John 15:26; 16:13).

It is this context which frames Jesus' remark about forgiveness: this declaration comes because these men are being reminded and guided by the Spirit of God. In no sense, at all, does Christ mean that forgiveness of sin is being determined by the disciples, or that they are choosing whether to absolve others of sin. The original Greek language uses more easily defined tenses, so it comes across more clearly, emphasizing that such sins "have already been forgiven" or "have already been retained." Guided by the truth of the Holy Spirit and in keeping with His truth, these men will be able to accurately declare whether others are abiding by those truths.

This follows in the same style as Jesus' previous instructions (Matthew 16:19; 18:18). It also parallels the Old Testament symbolism of God telling a prophet they would "do" certain things, while at the same time making it clear that the prophet's role was only to announce such things as God was doing (Jeremiah 9:1–10).

John 20:19–23 is the first time Jesus appears to His disciples after being raised from death. They are hiding behind a locked door in fear when Jesus appears to speak with them. Jesus shows physical evidence of His crucifixion, then gives the men a partial measure of the Holy Spirit. This validates the earlier testimony of Mary Magdalene. Thomas is the only disciple not present, and the next passage shows his resistance to believe what has happened.

Peter and John get a report from Mary Magdalene that Jesus' body is gone. They arrive to find an open grave, and empty grave clothes, along with a folded face cloth. When the two men leave, Mary remains and suddenly encounters a resurrected Jesus. Though she tells the others, they resist believing until they see Jesus in person. Thomas is especially stubborn, and Jesus remarks on how blessed they are to have been given so much proof. John points out that his writing is meant to prove that Jesus is the Messiah, arranged to encourage those who read to come to faith.

Most of Jesus' disciples scattered and hid when He was arrested (Matthew 26:56). Only John and some women were present to see His death and burial (John 19:26–30, 41–42; Matthew 27:60–61). When Jesus' tomb is seen empty, there is further confusion. Jesus appears to His followers, proving that He is alive, and remarking that they are blessed to have so much proof. John will complete his account in the next chapter with another encounter and more reminders about the nature of his writing.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls “signs”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.