Is forgiveness merely a personal and internal act disconnected from repentance?
Does God forgive unrepentant sinners?
Genuine questions.
Discussion
It’s a very good question.
Only God can truly forgive sins, as only He has perfect justice and knows every heart.
And only God can judge repentance.
Hence every man alive should fear the final judgment ("I never knew you; depart from me" — may we never hear those words)
Human forgiveness is to be humble to God. We are to “forgive” even unrepentant sinners from our heart (exactly as Erika did) as it removes our judgement, cleanses our heart by the grace of God (to not hold it “on our ledger” as she worded it).
Otherwise, us holding back forgiveness waiting for repentance is to judge repentance ourselves, making ourselves into God.
fwiw, by this same humility, the civil authorities are required to enact worldly justice by the authority God has granted them. This means even if the killer repents very publicly and very sincerely, he is still to receive the punishment due (likely capital punishment) — and again for the same reasons that only God can truly judge repentance, and only God can truly forgive us our sins.
The thief on the cross is instructive here. He is granted forgiveness before his death, which by his own admission/confession he rightfully deserved.
Never responded to this thoughtful answer.
You are right that God alone truly judges the genuineness of repentance. However I am not talking about whether repentance is genuine but whether it is present at all. Not even God himself forgives when there is no repentance. It is a prerequisite for forgiveness because forgiveness is not merely a personal act. It is never presented that way in the Scriptures.
There are two thieves being crucified next to Christ and it is only to the penitent thief that he says "today you will be with me in paradise."
I do not mean to say that a lack of repentance is license to harbor bitterness. On the contrary, the personal act is to bring our unjust anger, bitterness, desire for revenge, et al., before Christ and to adopt a spirit of *being ready* to forgive the moment it is asked. Even desiring that the perpetrator would repent so that I can provide forgiveness.
Until then, I am to harbor no ill will, and it is then on the wrongdoer to repent. If he never does, my conscience is clear before Christ and vengeance will be His to administer as he sees fit.