40 Powerful Quotes on Forgiveness

Forgiveness is a gift we give ourselves. In the hustle of daily life, it’s easy to hold on to grudges, bitterness, and old hurts. 

Yet unlocking the power of forgiveness can transform not only our relationships but also our mental and emotional well-being.
 
Despite if you're seeking motivation to forgive someone else—or yourself—words of wisdom have a special way of cutting through emotional fog and illuminating a path to healing.

In this post, we’ve gathered 35+ forgiveness quotes that span timeless classics to modern reflections. 

These quotes are perfect for anyone searching for guidance on forgiveness. Use them to uplift others through social media, enrich your personal journal, or simply remind yourself that letting go is a courageous act.

• "Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it." — Mark Twain
  
  
• "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you."  — Lewis B. Smedes
  
  
• "When you forgive, you don’t change the past—but you do change the future."  — Bernard Meltzer
  
  
• "Forgiveness isn’t approving what happened. It’s choosing to rise above it."  — Robin Sharma
  
  
• "There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love."  — Bryant H. McGill
  
  
• "We think that forgiveness is a weakness, but it's absolutely not; it takes a very strong person to forgive." — T.D. Jakes
  
  
• "Forgiveness is the key to action and freedom." — Hannah Arendt
  
  
• "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. Forgive often." — Attributed to various authors
  
  
• "Sometimes the first step to forgiveness is understanding the other person is human too." — Unknown
  
  
•  "Forgive others, not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace." — Jonathan Lockwood Huie

• "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." - Ephesians 4:32 (NIV)
  
  
• "Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." - Colossians 3:13 (NIV) 
  
  
• "For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." - Matthew 6:14–15 (NIV) 
  
  
• "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9 (ESV) 
  
  
• "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven." - Luke 6:37 (NIV) 
  
  
• "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." - Psalm 103:12 (NIV)
  
  
• "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." - Isaiah 1:18 (NIV)
  
  
• "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins." - Mark 11:25 (NIV)
  
  
• "Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends." - Proverbs 17:9 (NLT) 
  
  
• "You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea." - Micah 7:18–19 (NIV) 

• "Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit." — Peter Ustinov
  
  
•  "Forgiveness is the final form of love." — Reinhold Niebuhr
  
  
•  "True love doesn’t keep score of wrongs—it heals them with forgiveness." — Unknown
  
  
•  "When we choose to forgive, we choose to love more deeply." — Unknown
  
  
• "Forgiveness is the oil of all relationships; love is the fire that keeps them alive." — Unknown
  
  
• "It’s not love if there’s no forgiveness, and it’s not forgiveness if it’s not done with love." — Unknown
  
  
•  "We are most like God when we love unconditionally and forgive freely." — Unknown
  
  
• "Love forgives—it doesn't erase the past, but it gives the future a chance." — Unknown
  
  
• "The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong—and those who love deeply."
  
  
• "Forgiveness says you are given another chance to make a new beginning. Love gives you the courage to take it."

• "Forgive yourself for not knowing what you didn’t know before you learned it." — Maya Angelou (attributed)
  
  
• "You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending." — C.S. Lewis
  
  
• "Forgiving yourself is not forgetting—it’s accepting what happened and showing yourself love anyway."
  
  
• "Beating yourself up will never fix what’s broken. Only love and patience can do that." — Yung Pueblo
  
  
• "You are more than your worst mistake. You deserve to heal."
  
  
•  "The moment you choose to forgive yourself is the moment you begin to be free." — Mel Robbins
  
  
• "Talk to yourself like someone you love." — Brené Brown
  
  
• "Self-forgiveness is letting go of the weight you were never meant to carry."
  
  
• "Even the hardest lessons don’t define you. They refine you."
  
  
• "You cannot truly love yourself until you forgive yourself."