Forgiveness is one of the hardest things to practice, but it’s also one of the most freeing. Holding onto resentment might feel like self-protection, but in reality, it only weighs you down. Letting go doesn’t mean excusing the hurt or forgetting what happened.
It means choosing peace over pain and refusing to let the past control your future.
The right words can shift your mindset and help you see forgiveness not as a weakness, but as a strength.
Whether you’re struggling to forgive someone else or yourself, these inspirational quotes about forgiveness will remind you that moving forward is always possible. Read on, reflect, and take the first step toward healing.
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Quotes About the Power of Forgiveness
1. “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” – Mahatma Gandhi
Letting go of resentment takes real strength. Holding a grudge is the easy way out, but moving on takes courage.
2. “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Forgiveness is not just something you do once. It is a mindset that helps you live without carrying unnecessary weight.
3. “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” – Alexander Pope
Everyone makes mistakes. Forgiving is what elevates us and helps us move forward.
4. “Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.” – Mark Twain
True forgiveness is about choosing grace, even when you have been hurt.
5. “Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” – Paul Boese
You cannot change what happened, but you can decide to move forward with peace.
6. “The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward.” – Steve Maraboli
Holding onto the past only keeps you stuck. The moment you let go, you open the door to growth.
7. “Forgiveness is the key to action and freedom.” – Hannah Arendt
Resentment traps you in the past. Forgiveness gives you the freedom to live fully.
8. “Forgiveness is the giving, and so the receiving, of life.” – George MacDonald
By forgiving, you not only offer peace to others but also to yourself.
9. “He who cannot forgive breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass.” – George Herbert
If you cannot forgive, you risk losing the grace you might need one day.
10. “Forgiveness is the final form of love.” – Reinhold Niebuhr
Love is not complete without forgiveness. Letting go is part of truly caring for someone.
11. “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Forgiveness is not a one-time thing. It is a mindset that allows you to move through life without carrying past wounds.
12. “Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies.” – Nelson Mandela
Holding onto anger only hurts you. The person you resent might not even care, but you are the one suffering.
13. “Without forgiveness, there’s no future.” – Desmond Tutu
If you stay stuck in the past, you block your own path forward. Letting go is the only way to build something better.
14. “It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself: to forgive. Forgive everybody.” – Maya Angelou
Forgiveness is not just for the other person, it is for you. Letting go gives you freedom and peace.
15. “Forgiveness is the final form of love.” – Reinhold Niebuhr
Real love includes forgiveness. If you love someone, you choose to see beyond mistakes and offer grace.
16. “When you forgive, you in no way change the past—but you sure do change the future.” – Bernard Meltzer
The past cannot be undone, but forgiveness creates new possibilities. It is the only way to move forward.
17. “Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.” – Buddha
Anger feels powerful in the moment, but in the end, it only harms you. Letting go is an act of self-preservation.
18. “Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate.” – Corrie ten Boom
Forgiveness does not excuse what happened, but it frees you from being trapped in bitterness.
19. “Forgive others, not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace.” – Jonathan Lockwood Huie
Some people may never deserve forgiveness, but holding onto anger only keeps you in pain. You deserve to be free.
20. “You can’t forgive without loving. And I don’t mean sentimentality. I don’t mean mush. I mean having enough courage to stand up and say, ‘I forgive.’” – Maya Angelou
Forgiving is not about being soft. It takes real strength to release anger and choose love instead.
21. “Forgiveness is not just for the person you’re forgiving. It’s for you. Forgiveness is about your freedom.” – Eva Kor
Holding onto anger keeps you stuck in the past. Forgiving releases you and allows you to move forward. (From her 2015 TEDx Talk)
22. “The first to apologize is the bravest. The first to forgive is the strongest. The first to forget is the happiest.” – Unknown
Apologizing takes courage, forgiving takes strength, and truly letting go brings peace. (Often tied to Desmond Tutu’s teachings, but this phrasing is a modern proverb)
23. “Anger, resentment, and jealousy doesn’t change the heart of others. It only changes yours.” – Shannon L. Alder
Holding onto negativity only affects you, not the person you are upset with. (From her 2013 HuffPost interview)
24. “I believe in forgiveness. I believe in peace. I believe in equality.” – Malala Yousafzai
True strength comes from choosing peace over revenge and standing up for justice. (From her 2013 UN Speech)
25. “Forgiveness is a reflection of loving yourself enough to move on.” – Steve Maraboli
Letting go is not about them, it is about valuing your own peace and happiness. (Unverified source, likely paraphrased from his book Unapologetically You )
26. “Not forgiving is like drinking rat poison and waiting for the rat to die.” – Anne Lamott
Resentment only harms you, while the person you resent remains unaffected. (From her 2017 NPR interview)
27. “Forgiveness is the only way to reverse the irreversible flow of history.” – Hannah Arendt
You cannot change the past, but forgiveness changes how it shapes your future. (Misattributed. She wrote about forgiveness in The Human Condition, but this exact phrase is not found in her works)
28. “You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
Love is not about control, but about allowing others to be their true selves. (From his Plum Village teachings)
29. “Courageous people do not fear forgiving for the sake of peace.” – Nelson Mandela
Forgiving is not weakness, but a powerful act that creates peace. (Paraphrased from his Time interview, 2000)
30. “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of forgiveness is not vengeance, it’s pride.” – Elie Wiesel
Letting go of resentment is not about forgetting, but about overcoming pride. (From his 1986 Nobel Lecture)
31. “Forgiveness is the journey from anger to compassion.” – Fred Luskin
True forgiveness replaces bitterness with understanding and empathy. (From his 2009 TEDx Talk)
32. “To forgive is to surrender your right to resent.” – Edwin Louis Cole
Choosing to forgive means letting go of the desire to hold onto past hurt. (From his sermons on leadership)
33. “When you hold resentment toward another, you are bound to that person by an emotional link that is stronger than steel.” – Catherine Ponder
Holding onto grudges keeps you tied to the pain. Forgiving is how you break free. (From her book The Dynamic Laws of Healing, 1966)
34. “Forgiveness is the best form of self-interest. It is also the most religious.” – Kofi Annan
Forgiving is not just for others, it is something that benefits you as well. (From his 2001 UN Address)
35. “Forgiveness is not a one-time event. It’s a process.” – Mpho Tutu
Letting go does not happen instantly. It takes time, effort, and patience. (From her 2014 Daily Show interview)
36. “When we practice empathy and forgiveness, we stop replaying the story of what happened.” – Brené Brown
Forgiving allows you to move forward instead of reliving past pain. (From her 2010 TED Talk)
37. “Forgiveness is the intentional and voluntary process by which a victim undergoes a change in feelings and attitude regarding an offense.” – Robert Enright
Forgiving is an active choice that shifts your perspective and emotional state. (From his academic work at the Forgiveness Institute)
38. “Anger makes you smaller, while forgiveness forces you to grow beyond what you were.” – Cherie Carter-Scott
Holding onto resentment limits you, while forgiving helps you evolve. (From Oprah’s Lifeclass, 2008)
39. “The practice of forgiveness is our most important contribution to the healing of the world.” – Marianne Williamson
Forgiving creates a ripple effect, leading to healing on both personal and global levels. (From her 2012 Agape talk)
40. “Forgiveness is the way we return what has been taken from us and restore the love and kindness that we deserve.” – Jack Kornfield
Letting go of anger allows you to reclaim your peace and happiness. (From his Heart Wisdom podcast, 2019)
Quotes About Choosing Forgiveness
41. “Forgiving someone doesn’t mean they were right. It means you refuse to let their wrongs control your life.”
You don’t have to justify what happened to move on. Holding onto resentment only keeps you stuck.
42. “Every time you forgive, you break a chain that was keeping you tied to the past.”
Bitterness keeps you attached to what hurt you. Forgiving is how you disconnect and move forward.
43. “Forgiveness is not approval. It’s choosing peace over pain.”
You can acknowledge what happened without carrying the weight of it. Forgiveness is for clarity, not agreement.
44. “You don’t forgive because they deserve it. You forgive because you do.”
Waiting for someone to earn your forgiveness just prolongs your own suffering. Free yourself instead.
45. “Holding a grudge is like carrying a heavy bag. You don’t notice the weight until you finally drop it.”
You might not realize how much negativity is draining you until you let go of it. Then everything feels lighter.
46. “Forgiveness is an act of strength, not surrender.”
Letting go requires control over your emotions. Staying angry is the easy way out.
47. “Some people will never say sorry. Forgive them anyway, so you don’t become like them.”
You can’t force someone to be accountable, but you can decide not to let their actions harden your heart.
48. “When you forgive, you don’t erase the past. You rewrite your future.”
You can’t undo what happened, but you can choose whether it shapes you or limits you.
49. “You can’t rewrite history, but you can decide how much space it takes up in your heart.”
Some things are permanent, but your reaction to them doesn’t have to be. Stop giving old wounds new power.
50. “Forgiveness isn’t weakness. It’s the quiet decision to stop carrying someone else’s mistakes.”
You’re not responsible for what they did, but you are responsible for how long you let it affect you.
Forgive to Be Forgiven Quotes
51. “If you expect forgiveness, be willing to give it first.”
You can’t demand what you’re not willing to offer. Forgiveness works both ways.
52. “The way you forgive others is the way life will forgive you.”
Holding onto resentment creates a cycle. Let go, so when it’s your turn, grace comes back to you.
53. “You can’t expect second chances if you never offer them.”
One day, you’ll need someone to let go of your mistakes. Set the example now.
54. “Forgiveness is a door. The more you open it for others, the easier it is to walk through yourself.”
If you refuse to forgive, you’re also locking yourself out of redemption when you need it.
55. “The same grace you deny others may be the grace you’ll need tomorrow.”
You don’t know when you’ll mess up. How you treat others now may determine how you’re treated later.
56. “You can’t ask for a clean slate while keeping others buried under theirs.”
Expecting understanding while refusing to give it makes you a hypocrite.
57. “Forgiveness is a currency. If you never spend it, don’t be surprised when no one lends it to you.”
Relationships run on mutual grace. If you hoard resentment, you’ll find yourself alone when it’s your turn to seek forgiveness.
58. “A heart that won’t forgive becomes a heart that won’t be forgiven.”
Bitterness hardens you. The longer you refuse to let go, the harder it becomes to receive mercy when you need it.
59. “The bridges you burn by refusing to forgive may be the same ones you need to cross someday.”
Don’t let pride cut off relationships that could be mended. You never know when you’ll need to go back.
60. “To be forgiven, you must be willing to admit you’re not perfect either.”
It’s easy to hold others to impossible standards. But when you fail, will you want the same level of judgment?
Quotes About Forgiving Someone Who Hurt You
61. “Forgiving someone doesn’t mean they won. It means you refuse to let them control you anymore.”
Holding onto anger keeps you emotionally tied to the person who hurt you. Letting go breaks that hold.
62. “You don’t need an apology to move on. Some people will never admit they were wrong.”
Waiting for someone to take responsibility only delays your healing. Forgive for yourself, not for them.
63. “Forgiveness is closing the door, not reopening it.”
You can let go of resentment without letting that person back into your life.
64. “They may not deserve your forgiveness, but you deserve peace.”
Forgiving isn’t about excusing them. It’s about freeing yourself from the burden of anger.
65. “Some wounds heal when you stop picking at them. Forgiveness is how you let them close.”
Replaying the pain over and over only keeps it fresh. Let it go, so you can truly heal.
66. “Your future doesn’t deserve to be haunted by someone from your past.”
Carrying resentment drags old pain into new moments. Choose to move forward instead.
67. “Letting go isn’t saying what they did was okay. It’s saying you won’t let it ruin you.”
Forgiveness is not about excusing behavior. It’s about refusing to let it define your happiness.
68. “You can’t rewrite the past, but you can stop it from shaping your future.”
What happened is done, but your reaction to it is still in your hands.
69. “Forgiving them doesn’t mean they deserve it. It means you do.”
Holding onto resentment is like punishing yourself for their mistakes. Choose peace instead.
70. “Sometimes the best revenge is simply being happy without them.”
There is no greater freedom than living well and refusing to let past hurt hold you back.
Keep This in Your Heart
I hope at least one of these quotes stayed with you. Forgiveness is not always simple, but sometimes a few words can shift your perspective just enough to make a difference. Take your time, let things settle, and remember that peace feels lighter than holding on.
