“Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”
My Notes
What Does Luke 23:34 Mean?
Jesus speaks these words while being crucified. Nails through his hands and feet, struggling to breathe, surrounded by soldiers who put him there — and his first words are a prayer for their forgiveness.
"Father, forgive them" is addressed to God on behalf of his executioners. The forgiveness is initiated by the victim, not requested by the offenders. They haven't asked for it. They don't even realize what they've done.
"For they know not what they do" attributes ignorance, not malice. The soldiers were following orders. The crowd was following the leaders. The leaders thought they were protecting their religion. None of them understood that they were killing the Son of God.
The second half of the verse — the soldiers gambling for his clothes — creates a jarring contrast. While Jesus is praying for their forgiveness, they're dividing up his possessions like a yard sale. The indifference of the world to the greatest act of love in history is captured in a single, stomach-turning image.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How do you respond to Jesus forgiving his executioners in real time, while dying?
- 2.What does 'they know not what they do' suggest about how Jesus views those who harm us?
- 3.Is there someone in your life you need to forgive who hasn't asked for it and may never?
- 4.What's the difference between forgiveness as a feeling and forgiveness as a decision Jesus modeled here?
Devotional
Father, forgive them. He said it while dying. While the nails were in. While the blood was running. While the very people who put him there were rolling dice for his robe at the foot of the cross.
That's forgiveness at a level that makes no human sense. The victims of injustice don't usually pray for their executioners. The innocent don't typically spend their last breath on the guilty.
For they know not what they do. Jesus found a way to see their ignorance instead of their malice. He saw broken people doing a terrible thing they didn't fully understand, and he responded with intercession.
If you're holding unforgiveness toward someone — if someone has wounded you and every cell in your body says they don't deserve grace — you're standing in the same place the soldiers were. And Jesus is still praying the same prayer.
Forgiveness this radical isn't natural. It's divine. And Jesus didn't just teach it. He demonstrated it with his last conscious energy, from a cross built by the people he was forgiving.
What would it take for you to pray for the person who hurt you most?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And the soldiers also mocked him,.... The Roman soldiers, to whom the execution was committed, who crucified him, and…
Father, forgive them - This is a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isa 53:12; “He made intercession for the transgressors.”…
They know not what they do - If ignorance do not excuse a crime, it at least diminishes the atrocity of it. However,…
In these verses we have,
I. Divers passages which we had before in Matthew and Mark concerning Christ's sufferings. 1.…
Father, forgive them Isa 53:12, "He bare the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." These words…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture