27 Bible Verses about Unforgiveness

"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax-collector. The Pharisee stood and said this self-centered prayer, 'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of men, robbers, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. I fast two days in the week. I pay a tithe on everything I get.'read more.
But the tax-collector stood at a distance and would not even lift his eyes to heaven, but continued to beat his breast, and say, 'O God, have mercy on me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man, and not the other, went back home forgiven and accepted by God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."

Anyone who breaks the law of Moses pays the death penalty without any show of pity, on the evidence of two or three witnesses only. How much severer punishment do you suppose that one deserves who tramples the Son of God underfoot, and counts as a common thing the blood of the covenant by which he was consecrated, and has insulted the Spirit that grants God's unmerited favor? For we know who it was that said, "Vengeance belongs to me, I will pay back!" and again, "The Lord will be His people's judge."read more.
It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the ever living God!

This is why I am speaking to them in stories, because they look but do not see, they listen but do not really hear or understand. So in them the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: "'You will listen and listen and not understand, and you will look and look and never see at all, For this people's soul has grown dull, and with their ears they can scarcely hear, and they have shut tight their eyes, so that they will never see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn to me, so that I may cure them!'

Then He said to them, "To you the secret of the kingdom of God has been entrusted, but to those who are on the outside everything is presented in stories, so that 'They may look and look and yet not see, And listen and listen and yet not understand, Lest, perchance, they should turn and be forgiven.'"

His disciples were asking Him what this story meant. So He said, "You are granted the privilege of knowing the secrets of the kingdom of God, but to others they are told in stories, so that they may look and not see, may hear and not understand.

Then Jesus said, "I have come into this world to judge people, so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind." Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard this, and asked Him, "We are not blind, are we?" Jesus answered them, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty, but now you keep on claiming, 'We can see'; so your sin remains."

If you get forgiveness for people's sins, they are forgiven them; if you let people's sins fasten upon them, they will remain fastened upon them."

So I tell you, every sin and all abusive speech will be forgiven men, but abuse against the Spirit cannot be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven for it, but whoever speaks abusively against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven for it, either in this world or in the world to come.

I solemnly say to you, men will be forgiven for all their sins and all the abusive things they say. But whoever speaks abusively against the Holy Spirit can never get forgiveness, but is guilty of a sin that has no end."

And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but no one who speaks abusively about the Holy Spirit will be forgiven.

If anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not lead to death, he will ask and God will grant him life; yea, He will grant it to any who do not commit a sin that leads to death. There is a sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.

"For if you forgive others their shortcomings your heavenly Father will forgive you, too. But if you do not forgive others, your heavenly Father will not forgive your shortcomings either.

You must continue talking and acting like people who are to be judged by the law that treats them as free. For merciless judgment will be the portion of the merciless man; yet mercy will triumph over judgment.

So if, in the very act of presenting your gift at the altar, you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your grit right there at the altar, and first go and make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift.

"Stop criticizing others, so that you may not be criticized yourselves. For exactly as you criticize others, you will be criticized, and in accordance with the measure that you give to others, it will be measured back to you.

Then stop criticizing others, and you will never be criticized; stop condemning others, and you will never be condemned. Practice forgiving others, and you will be forgiven. Practice giving to others, and they will give to you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, people will pour into your lap. For the measure you use with others they in turn will use with you."

Then his master called to him, and said, 'I cancelled all that huge debt of yours, because you pleaded with me to do so. Ought you not to have shown mercy to your fellow-slave, as I too had done for you?' And the master was enraged and turned him over to the official torturers, until he should pay the whole debt.read more.
This is the way my heavenly Father too will deal with you, if you do not, each one, heartily forgive your brother."

"A curse on you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees! For you pay tithes on mint and dill and cummin, and yet leave out the more vital matters of the law, justice, love and fidelity. These latter especially you ought to have done, but ought not to have left out the former.

And whenever you stand and pray, if you have anything against anybody, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven too may forgive you your shortcomings." Omitted Text.

For Christ died and lived again for the very purpose of being Lord of both the dead and the living. Then why should you criticize your brother? Or, why should you look down on your brother? Surely, we shall all stand before God to be judged, for the Scripture says: "'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall make acknowledgment to God.'"read more.
So each of us must give an account of himself to God. Then let us stop criticizing one another; instead, do this, determine to stop putting stumbling blocks or hindrances in your brother's way.

But God proves His love for us by the fact that Christ died for us while we were still sinners.

Love is so patient and so kind; love never boils with jealousy; it never boasts, is never puffed with pride; It does not act with rudeness, or insist upon its rights; it never gets provoked, it never harbors evil thoughts;

So, my brothers, you must understand that through Him the forgiveness of your sins is now proclaimed to you,

Therefore, practice receiving one another into full Christian fellowship, just as Christ has so received you to Himself.

But if anyone has made anyone sad, it is not I, but you that he has made sad, at least, some of you, not to be severe on all of you. To a man like that, this censure by the majority has been sufficient punishment, so you must do the opposite, freely forgive and comfort him, to keep him from being overwhelmed by his excessive sadness.read more.
So I beg you in your love to reinstate him entirely. For this is why I wrote you, to see if you would stand the test, to see if you would be obedient in everything. The man that you forgive I too forgive. For if I have forgiven him anything, it is what I have forgiven him in the very presence of Christ for your sake, to keep us from being worsted by Satan, for we know what his intentions are.

You must practice being kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has graciously forgiven you.

forbearing one another and freely forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; just as the Lord has freely forgiven you, so must you also do.