“I Will Forgive Their Iniquity”

As part of the New Covenant, God makes an astounding promise. He declares, “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more” (Jeremiah 31:34).

To forgive is to pardon; it is not holding the wrong someone has done against them. This is what God does for us with our sin—He forgives it. 

The Old Covenant dealt with sin temporarily; the New Covenant deals with sin once and for all. The Old Covenant atoned for sin through sacrifices that had to be repeated; in the New Covenant, Jesus has “put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:26). The Old Covenant was broken because God’s people disobeyed His law; the New Covenant cannot be broken because in it, sin is forgiven. The Old Covenant looked forward to the day when sin could be fully forgiven; in the New Covenant, God acknowledges that He will forgive and forget the sin of His people. 

The forgiveness of sin is the foundation of this entire promise from God (to see the entire New Covenant, you can read Jeremiah 31:31-34). Sin kept us from being close to God, but now, God removes that barrier, allowing us to know Him. Additionally, this forgiveness we receive is complete, not partial. He forgives all our sin. 

“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses” (Colossians 2:13). 

This is good news for you and me because we are all sinners. It is good news for the gossiper, because God will forgive your iniquity. It is good news for the person who lacks self-control, because God will forgive your sin. It is good news for the hateful, because God will forgive your wrongdoing. It is good news for all of us because, no matter how we may sin specifically, we all have a sinful nature. However, God redeems what is broken and forgives the endless list of ways we have sinned against Him. Jeremiah, the prophets, and the people who read these words before Jesus looked forward to this day, but we see it fully realized in Christ. Our sins are forgiven by God through Jesus, and this is because of His Son’s sacrifice on the cross. 

“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). 

As if that weren’t enough, God not only forgives our sin but also promises to remember it no more. 

“As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). 

Even when we forgive someone completely, we still remember what they have done. We may not hold their actions against them, but in many cases, we simply can’t forget what they have done.

However, God is different. When He justifies us, in His eyes, it is just as if we had never sinned. “He treats us as righteous because our sins are covered by Jesus” (Bible Hub). 

The forgiveness we receive from God is so full that God forgets our sin. It is not held against us and cannot be brought up again. Praise Him for the great forgiveness we have been given!