John 20:23
What did Jesus mean when he said...........whoses sins you forgive are forgiven and whose sins you retain are retained.
Sure, Russ, I'd be happy to.
By the way, on the Cyrus/Darius question, I'll have to do some research before coming up with an answer. That really IS a "stump-the-professor" question!
Russ--I received your book yesterday. I'm in the final 2-week rush of getting ready for our Mediterranean cruise, June 1-18, so I can't get to your book right now. I'll take it with me on the cruise, though, and I'll have some comments for you when I return toward the end of the June. Thanks for sending it along.
Welcome to the site. It's good to see you here. Just for my information, how did you hear about LBS?
We're developing a great community of interesting folks, both in our live classes throughout southern California, our Bible teaching tours, and here online. I understand that as a CCNP you do Cisco Systems IT. What kind of projects do you work on? We want to make LBS the most in-depth, comprehensive Bible study program--and community--on the Internet. Any advice for us?
This is one of those "stump the Professor" questions! Yikes!!
Here is the passage in context: "Again Jesus said, 'Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.' And with that he breathed on them and said, "'Recieve the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven'" (John 20: 21-23).
There are denominational differences in how one reads these verses. In general, a Roman Catholic will read the verses from a sacramental perspective, as giving the Apostles the authority to forgive sins. A Protestant will read the same verses with the understanding that only God can forgive sins, not the Apostles; the Apostles simply announce (by preaching the Gospel) something that God has already done through Jesus Christ, for those who accept the Gospel message. The issue cannot be easily resolved.
Here is a rather technical analysis of the problem--
In verse 23 we read: "If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." The verb "forgive" is aphienai, "to let go, or release." The initial Greek participle an is translated as an "if" clause ("If you forgive anyone his sins") in the aorist subjunctive, while the parallel clause ("if you do not forgive them") is in the present subjunctive. The aorist implies the act of a moment that brings immediate forgiveness, while the present implies a state of forgiving or not forgiving that continues into the future.
Resolving the issue hinges on grammar, not theology. The then portion of the two if clauses ("[then] they are forgiven"/"[then] they are not forgiven) occurs in various manuscripts in the perfect passive tense and the future and present passive tenses. J. R. Mantey, writing in the Journal of Biblical Literature 58 (1939), pp. 243-249, argues that the perfect tense implies past action and that the future and present tenses do not. That is, if we go with the manuscripts that have the future and present tenses, the correct translation supports a sacramental reading ("If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven"), giving authority to forgive sins to the Apostles; but if you go with the manuscripts that have the perfect tense a correct translation reads, "If you forgive anyone his sins, they have been forgiven," denoting that God has already forgiven one's sins and the Apostles are simply announcing that forgiveness.
While the better manuscripts tend to support the perfect passive tense, one cannot say definitively which reading is correct. This is one reason why we have different faith traditions within the Church.