Why Can’t God Just Forgive?

God does forgive, and he does not do it by calling guilt innocence. Qur’an 4:48Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly fabricated a tremendous sin.Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source says Allah does not forgive association with him, and that he forgives what is less than that for whom he wills. Romans 3:26Romans 3:26 · King James VersionTo declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.Romans 3:26 · King James VersionOpen the Source says God set forth Jesus so that he might be just, and the justifier of the one who believes in Jesus. The cross is how mercy and justice stand in the same act.

Is the Atonement Unjust? answers the charge that a substitute is unfair, from Ezekiel 18 and Qur’an 6:164. Original Sin and Forgiveness is fitrah beside Romans 5. This page is the other question: why forgiveness is not a bare decision to ignore the debt.

Key Points

• Qur’an 4:48Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly fabricated a tremendous sin.Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source says Allah does not forgive shirk, and that he forgives lesser sins for whom he wills. Qur’an 39:53Qur’an 39:53 · Saheeh InternationalSay, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."Qur’an 39:53 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source tells the servants who have transgressed not to despair of Allah’s mercy, because he forgives all sins.
• Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 39:53Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comThis Ayah is a call to all sinners, be they disbelievers or others, to repent and turn to Allah. This cannot be interpreted as meaning that sins will be forgiven without repentance, because Shirk can only be forgiven for the one who repents from it.Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comOpen the Source says the verse calls sinners to repent, and that it cannot mean sins are forgiven without repentance, because shirk is forgiven for the one who repents of it.
• Exodus 34:6–7Exodus 34:6 · King James VersionAnd the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,Exodus 34:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source proclaims the LORD merciful and gracious, forgiving iniquity, and says he will by no means clear the guilty.
• Proverbs 17:15Proverbs 17:15 · King James VersionHe that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD.Proverbs 17:15 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the one who justifies the wicked is an abomination to the LORD. Romans 3:26Romans 3:26 · King James VersionTo declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.Romans 3:26 · King James VersionOpen the Source says God is just and the justifier.
• Hebrews 9:22Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionAnd almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionOpen the Source says that under the law almost all things are purged with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission. Isaiah 53:6Isaiah 53:6 · King James VersionAll we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.Isaiah 53:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the LORD laid on the servant the iniquity of us all.
• Salvation by Scales or by Grace? is the Islamic picture of the balance. What Does the Bible Say About Salvation? is grace.

Mercy in the Qur’an, and What Ibn Kathir Said It Requires

Qur’an 39:53Qur’an 39:53 · Saheeh InternationalSay, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."Qur’an 39:53 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source, Saheeh International:

Say, “O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.”

Qur’an 39:53 · Saheeh International

Qur’an · accepted by Muslims

The brackets around “by sinning” are the translators’ supply. The invitation is to servants who have transgressed. Qur’an 4:48Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly fabricated a tremendous sin.Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source draws a line inside that mercy: “Indeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills.” Qur’an 4:116Qur’an 4:116 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly gone far astray.Qur’an 4:116 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source repeats the sentence. Mercy in these verses is real, and it is not a promise that every guilt, including shirk, is simply cancelled.

Ibn Kathir on 39:53Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comThis Ayah is a call to all sinners, be they disbelievers or others, to repent and turn to Allah. This cannot be interpreted as meaning that sins will be forgiven without repentance, because Shirk can only be forgiven for the one who repents from it.Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comOpen the Source says, “This Ayah is a call to all sinners, be they disbelievers or others, to repent and turn to Allah.” The same comment says Allah “will forgive all the sins of those who repent to Him and turn back to Him, no matter what or how many his sins are, even if they are like the foam of the sea.” Then it refuses the reading that skips repentance: “This cannot be interpreted as meaning that sins will be forgiven without repentance, because Shirk can only be forgiven for the one who repents from it.” Ali bin Abi Talhah’s report of Ibn Abbas, as Ibn Kathir prints it, says Allah invites to his forgiveness those who claim that the Messiah is God and those who claim that the Messiah is the son of God, and it quotes the call to turn in repentance. The tafsir does not set 39:53 against 4:48. It reads “all sins” as the sins of the one who turns.

That is a fair Muslim account of mercy. Forgiveness is God’s, it is wide, and the commentary ties it to turning from shirk. The page that asks whether a person can bear another’s burden is Is the Atonement Unjust?. The question here is the one those verses still leave open: when God forgives, does he clear the guilty, or does he deal with the guilt?

Just, and the Justifier

Exodus 34:6–7Exodus 34:6 · King James VersionAnd the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,Exodus 34:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source is the LORD’s own proclamation of his name. He is merciful and gracious, longsuffering, abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. The same proclamation says he “will by no means clear the guilty.” Mercy and the refusal to clear guilt are one speech. A forgiveness that only cancelled the record, and left the guilt uncleared, would cut the verse in half.

Proverbs 17:15Proverbs 17:15 · King James VersionHe that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD.Proverbs 17:15 · King James VersionOpen the Source says, “He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD.” Justifying the wicked is named beside condemning the just. Both are abominations. If God declared sinners righteous and did nothing about the sin, the proverb would call that an abomination in the LORD himself. Romans 3:23–26Romans 3:23–26 · King James Version^3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; ^3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: ^3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; ^3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.Romans 3:23–26 · King James VersionOpen the Source says all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, and that sinners are justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation through faith in his blood, “that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” The point of the propitiation is that God remains just in the act of justifying.

Hebrews 9:22Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionAnd almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionOpen the Source says that under the law almost all things are purged with blood, “and without shedding of blood is no remission.” The verse is about the copies in the tabernacle, and the chapter goes on to the blood of Christ. Isaiah 53:5–6Isaiah 53:5–6 · King James Version^53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. ^53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.Isaiah 53:5–6 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the servant was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities, and that “the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Who Is the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53? is that chapter. The servant bears iniquity the LORD laid on him. That is not God pretending the sin was never there. Does Allah Love Sinners? quotes the Qur’an on whom Allah loves. The Christian claim is that the love and the justice meet in the Son, who is God, laying down his life. Jesus is God.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Did Jesus Have to Die?

Romans 3:25–26Romans 3:25–26 · King James Version^3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; ^3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.Romans 3:25–26 · King James VersionOpen the Source says God set him forth as a propitiation in his blood so that God might be just and the justifier. Isaiah 53:6Isaiah 53:6 · King James VersionAll we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.Isaiah 53:6 · King James VersionOpen the Source says the LORD laid our iniquity on the servant. The death is how guilt is borne, not a spectacle added after a pardon that needed nothing.

Why Does God Require Blood for Forgiveness?

Hebrews 9:22Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionAnd almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.Hebrews 9:22 · King James VersionOpen the Source says that without shedding of blood there is no remission, in the sentence about the law’s purgings. The chapter’s claim is that Christ’s blood does what the copies could not finish.

Can Allah Forgive Without a Sacrifice?

Qur’an 4:48Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly fabricated a tremendous sin.Qur’an 4:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen the Source says he forgives what is less than shirk for whom he wills, and that he does not forgive association with him. Ibn Kathir on 39:53Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comThis Ayah is a call to all sinners, be they disbelievers or others, to repent and turn to Allah. This cannot be interpreted as meaning that sins will be forgiven without repentance, because Shirk can only be forgiven for the one who repents from it.Ibn Kathir on Qur’an 39:53 · Abridged English on Quran.comOpen the Source says the wide promise is for those who repent, and that shirk is forgiven for the one who repents of it. The Qur’an states mercy. It does not say God clears the guilty by leaving the guilt unpaid. Exodus 34:7Exodus 34:7 · King James VersionKeeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.Exodus 34:7 · King James VersionOpen the Source says he will by no means clear the guilty, in the same breath as forgiving iniquity.