The exact words
“Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”Luke 23:34, King James Version (1611)
✓ VerifiedFound in a primary source: the original book, speech transcript, letter or recording.
What people get wrong
Common reading
A blanket statement that wrongdoers are not to blame.
A blanket statement that wrongdoers are not to blame.
Closer to the original
The prayer does not say the act was harmless. It asks for forgiveness precisely because something terrible is being done. Its power, in sermons and in the civil rights movement, is that it refuses to answer cruelty with hatred.
The prayer does not say the act was harmless. It asks for forgiveness precisely because something terrible is being done. Its power, in sermons and in the civil rights movement, is that it refuses to answer cruelty with hatred.
Timeline
- c. AD 30–33Jesus is crucified outside Jerusalem. Luke's Gospel places these words at the moment the soldiers nail him to the cross, as they divide his clothes.
- c. AD 80–90The Gospel of Luke is written. This saying appears only in Luke, not in Matthew, Mark or John.
- Early manuscriptsSome of the oldest surviving manuscripts of Luke leave the verse out, while many others include it. Scholars still debate whether it was in the original text, but it has been part of Christian worship since the early centuries.
- 1960sCivil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., return again and again to this prayer as a model for answering hatred with forgiveness.
Use it in a speech
She took one line from the Gospel more seriously than anyone I've known: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” She forgave quickly, and she never kept score.
~11 secondsto say aloud
Pauseafter “what they do”
Best spota story about her character
Luke's Jesus, at the moment of greatest injustice, prays not for rescue but for his executioners: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”
~9 secondsto say aloud
Pausenone needed in writing
Best spotopening hook
Questions people ask
Where in the Bible does Jesus say “Father, forgive them”?
Luke 23:34. It appears only in the Gospel of Luke.
Why do some Bibles put this verse in brackets?
Because some of the earliest manuscripts of Luke do not contain it. Many scholars still think it is early and authentic in spirit, and it appears in most manuscripts.
Cite this quote
These cite the original source directly, so you can use them in an essay or paper. Always check your teacher's required style.
MLAThe Bible. Authorized King James Version, 1611. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10.
APAThe Holy Bible, King James Version. (1611/2026). Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10
IN TEXT (APA)(Luke 23:34, King James Version)