Matthew 6:12
And forgive us our debts
Sermon on Mount, law and fulfillment, visible and hidden, debts and repayment, virtue and virtue signaling, the Lord's Prayer
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Also, let go for us those debts of ours. as even we ourselves let go of those debtors of ours.
Greek
Greek Word Order
We all owe the Divine everything so no one can really own us anything.
Lost in Translation
The Greek word for "debt" and a related word meaning "debtors" are used specifically here. The concept of debt was much broader and more common in Jesus's era. Those described as "servants" in the NT were more commonly "slaves", who were bound to their masters because of debts. A person under a bond was a slave until his debt was paid. A large percentage of the population was under bond to those to whom they owed debts, so this concept comes up a lot in the Gospels. If debts were not repaid, people could also be put into jail instead of being trusted as servants.
Here, that concept is applied to the "debt" that we owe God for our lives. Children were understood to owe their parents a debt for the same reason. Parents must be honored as a way of honoring this debt.
Vocabulary (Greek word by word)
καὶ (conj) "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and" or "also". After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also". Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also" and "just".
ἄφες (2nd sg aor imperat act) "Forgive" is from aphiemi, which means "to let fall", "to send away", "to discharge", "to give up", "hand over", "to let loose", "to get rid of", "to leave alone", "to pass by", "to permit" and "to send forth from oneself".
ἡμῖν (pron 1st pl masc/fem dat) "Us" is from hemin, which is the first person plural dative pronoun, "to us".
τὰ (article pl neut acc) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones".
ὀφειλήματα [1 verse](noun pl neut acc) "Debts" is from opheilema, which means "that which is owed" and "debt".
ἡμῶν, (pron 1st pl gen) "Our" is from hemon, which is the plural possessive (genitive) form of the first personal pronoun.
ὡς (adv/conj)"As" is from hos, an adverb which means to "thus", "as", "how", "when", "where", "like", "just as", "so far as", "as much as can be", "that", "in order that", "nearly" (with numbers), and "know that".
καὶ (conj) Untranslated is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and" or "also". After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also". Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also" and "just".
ἡμεῖς (pron 1st pl masc nom) "We" is from hemeis, the first person plural pronoun, "we", "us".
ἀφήκαμεν (1st pl aor ind act) "Forgive" is from aphiemi, which means "to let fall", "to send away", "to discharge", "to give up", "hand over", "to let loose", "to get rid of", "to leave alone", "to pass by", "to permit" and "to send forth from oneself".
τοῖς (article pl masc dat) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones".
ὀφειλέταις (noun pl masc dat) "Debtors" is from opheiletes, which means "a debtor", "a person who owes a debt" or "one who is under a bond".
ἡμῶν (pron 1st pl gen) "Our" is from hemon, which is the plural possessive (genitive) form of the first personal pronoun.
KJV — word by word
And -- The conjunction translated as "and" begins the sentence. It can also mean "also".
forgive -- The word translated as "forgive" primarily means "to let go", "to let drop", "to leave alone" or "to send away". This same word is usually translated as "leave", "forgive", "suffer" and "let" in the New Testament. It is in the second person imperative, which can be a command or a request in Greek. More about this word in this article.
us -- The word translated as "us" is the first person plural pronoun. Its form is used as an indirect object, but in Greek this can indicate the one receiving a benefit from an action. In English, it could me "to us" or "for us".
our -- The "our" is the plural possessive first-person pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of ours".
missing "the" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one". The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). See this article for more.
debts, -- The Greek word for "debts" is sometimes translated in this verse as "sins" or "trespasses", but in the Greek, it has only one meaning, "that which is owed". In this respect, the KJV is more accurate than more recent translations such as the NLT that render it differently because the word translated as "forgive" is usually associated with "sin" (see this article) even though that concept has little to do with its Greek meaning. This noun is plural so "debts".
as -- The Greek word translated as "as" means "just as", can also mean "when", "in order that", "as far as" or, simply, "that". It is commonly used to introduce an explanatory clause. Translating this word as "when" or "as far as" changes the meaning.
missing "and" -- (MW) The untranslated word "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also". After words implying sameness "as".
we - (WF) This is from the first-person, plural pronoun. Since this information is part of the verb, the pronoun is only used to emphasize it as we might say "we ourselves" in English.
forgive -- The word translated as "forgive" primarily means "to let go", "to let drop", "to leave alone" or "to send away". This same word is usually translated as "leave", "forgive", "suffer" and "let" in the New Testament. It is in the second person imperative, which can be a command or a request in Greek. More about this word in this article.
our -- The "our" is the plural possessive first-person pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of ours".
missing "the" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one". The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). See this article for more.
debtors. -- The word for "debtor" is a form of the word for "debt" used above. It means someone who owes something, that is, someone who was under a bond.
NIV — word by word
And -- The conjunction translated as "and" begins the sentence. It can also mean "also".
forgive -- The word translated as "forgive" primarily means "to let go", "to let drop", "to leave alone" or "to send away". This same word is usually translated as "leave", "forgive", "suffer" and "let" in the New Testament. It is in the second person imperative, which can be a command or a request in Greek. More about this word in this article.
us -- The word translated as "us" is the first person plural pronoun. Its form is used as an indirect object, but in Greek this can indicate the one receiving a benefit from an action. In English, it could me "to us" or "for us".
our -- The "our" is the plural possessive first-person pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of ours".
missing "the" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one". The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). See this article for more.
debts, -- The Greek word for "debts" is sometimes translated in this verse as "sins" or "trespasses", but in the Greek, it has only one meaning, "that which is owed". In this respect, the KJV is more accurate than more recent translations such as the NLT that render it differently because the word translated as "forgive" is usually associated with "sin" (see this article) even though that concept has little to do with its Greek meaning. This noun is plural so "debts". In Jesus's era, a person under a bond was almost a slave until the debt was paid. A large percentage of the population was under bond to those to whom they owed debts, so this concept comes up a lot in the Gospels. If debts were not repaid, people could also be put into jail. Here, that concept is applied to the "debt" that we owe God for our lives. Children were understood to owe their parents a debt for the same reason. Parents must be honored as a way of honoring this debt.
as -- The Greek word translated as "as" means "just as", can also mean "when", "in order that", "as far as" or, simply, "that". It is commonly used to introduce an explanatory clause. Translating this word as "when" or "as far as" changes the meaning
we - (WF) This is from the first-person, plural pronoun. Since this information is part of the verb, the pronoun is only used to emphasize it as we might say "we ourselves" in English.
also -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also". After words implying sameness "as".
have -- (WT) This helping verb "have" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past. This is not the tense of the verbs here.
forgiven -- The word translated as "forgiven" primarily means "to let go", "to let drop", "to leave alone" or "to send away". This same word is usually translated as "leave", "forgive", "suffer" and "let" in the New Testament. It is in the second person imperative, which can be a command or a request in Greek. More about this word in this article.
our -- The "our" is the plural possessive first-person pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of ours".
missing "the" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one". The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). See this article for more.
debtors. -- The word for "debtor" is a form of the word for "debt" used above. It means someone who owes something, that is, someone who was under a bond.