Matthew 6:15 (DBY)

Passage

but if ye do not forgive men their offences, neither will your Father forgive your offences.

Nearby Context

Matthew 6:13 and lead us not into temptation, but save us from evil.

Matthew 6:14 For if ye forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father also will forgive you [yours],

Matthew 6:15 but if ye do not forgive men their offences, neither will your Father forgive your offences.

Matthew 6:16 And when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, downcast in countenance; for they disfigure their faces, so that they may appear fasting to men: verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

Matthew 6:17 But *thou*, [when] fasting, anoint thy head and wash thy face,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "forgive", "offences", "neither", and "father". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "forgive" and "offences", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "For if ye forgive men their offences..." into verse 16's "And when ye fast be not as...", so "forgive" and "offences" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "forgive" and "offences" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.