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by Mark Horne
(What follows is adapted from my forthcoming commentary on the Gospel of Mark)
In Mark’s Gospel we read: “And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, ‘He is possessed by Beelzebul,’ and ‘He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons’” (3.22).
Jesus replied in part, “Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” (3.28, 29).
What did Jesus mean? If we say ascribe the work of the Spirit to the work of the Devil are we automatically beyond hope of forgiveness.
Looking at the background to this story in Mark’s gospel we see that John prophesied that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and at John’s baptism the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus. Jesus received his Pentecost at the Jordan so that he would be able to accomplish his mission and arrange a Pentecost in Jerusalem for his followers. Thus, we have two stages set forth for us in Mark’s Gospel: The ministry of the Son and then the ministry of the Spirit. Though the Spirit is unquestionably present in Jesus, it has not yet flowed out of Jesus to others, as it will on the day of Pentecost.
The Scribes from Jerusalem are rejecting the witness of Jesus, but that does not bring immediate judgment. Indeed, they go on rejecting Jesus during his years of ministry. What the scribes from Jerusalem reject in Galilee will be offered again in Jerusalem by disciples from Galilee (see Acts 2). The Holy Spirit will come upon the disciples and they will witness to the scribes. At that point, everything will still be forgivable. The great day of vengeance will still not fall on Israel if they repent. But if this second witness—the witness of the Spirit—is spoken against, then time will run out and the wrath of God will fall. Because Israel rejected the witness of the Spirit during the forty years of the early Church, they were eventually judged by God (c.f. Luke 19.41-45).
Luke clearly spells this out by recording Jesus’ exhortation to his disciples to bear witness for him when his time comes:
And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man shall confess him also before the angels of God; but he who denies Me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who will speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him. And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not become anxious about how or what you should speak in your defense, or what you should say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say (Luke 12:9-12).
The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit here is the rejection of the Spirit-taught witnesses who confess the Son of Man before men. Bear in mind that in the Bible, a prosecution requires no less than two witness (Deut 19.15; Matt 18.16; John 8.17; 2 Cor 13.1; 1 Tim 5.19; Heb 10.28).
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, then, is not to be explained in terms of some difference in being or eternal status between the Son and the Holy Spirit so that curse words involving Jesus’ name are forgivable, but not expletives involving the Spirit. Rather, it refers to the historical framework of Jesus’ work in his own generation. The rejection of Jesus, as serious as that is, does not bring immediate condemnation. Forgiveness is still available. But after rejecting the second witness of the Spirit after Pentecost, time runs out for that generation of Israel. There is no forgiveness for blasphemy against the Spirit—the rejection of the second witness.
If I met someone who thought they had said something about the Spirit that damned him without hope, I would tell him to repent and believe. The general application of Jesus’ warning against blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is to not reject repeated warning: “A man who hardens his neck after much reproof will suddenly be broken and there is no remedy” (Proverbs 29:1).
God sends us different witnesses and warnings via the ministry of the Church both official and unofficial, as well as through providence. He is patient and slow to anger. But if we continue in sin we will be judged.
Jesus’ warning against blasphemy against the Holy Spirit means we should to repent the first time.
December 1st, 2009 at 3:29 pm
Rev. Hunter, I want to thank you for your Spiritual guidence. the direction of the Holy Scriptures really helped in knowing how to recognize the Truth. May God bless you and your family for your dedication to Him.
Tammy
March 3rd, 2010 at 6:22 pm
Hi there,
So I stumbled upon this after having some questions about “the condemnation of those who blaspheme the spirit”. Suffice to say, in my bible study in Mark, when I heard that Jesus WILL NOT forgive something, I grew a little anxious, haha, this is not what 19 years of hearing the gospel had told me. But you gave me a very straightforward answer to my question, and I thank you for that
July 8th, 2010 at 10:47 am
I spent a lot of time freaking out about this passage and this article helped me get beyond my fright and take a reasonable, logical look at God and His character and love. I just want to say to everyone who’s afraid about this passage, I KNOW how horrible it is to think you’ve dismantled your relationship with Christ. And I want you to know that you’re not alone in the struggle to make sense of things. I wanna be with you in spirit to help you explore the feelings this passage brings to light. God loves us and He tells us to seek Him with all our hearts, souls and minds. DO that. KEEP looking for him. Don’t be afraid to love and seek. In Christ. <3 Liz
September 5th, 2010 at 7:14 pm
What kind of blasphemy? Like, with a REAL hate in one’s heart against both the Son and the Spirit?
Is it unforgivable if Satan throw some thoughts abut cursing in your head that is accidentally pointed at the Spirit and the Son?
Like, if you are thinking about the blasphemy and you suddenly cursed but you didnt meant it. Because you did not say it with hate. Is it unforgivable? I just never want to think like that. It just. . .that I dont want to be left and will never be forgiven. HOW or WHERE the temptations come from? HOW did they get in people’ minds?
September 5th, 2010 at 7:19 pm
Also, Im really curious. I haven’t done it yet. Never done it yet. If I try to master something like control the fire with my mind.
IS THAT A BLASPHEMY?
I remember that one man asked Peter to sell the power of the Holy Spirit to the old man. Peter told him that it is not for sale. So, the old man is angry with that news.
That’s all I could remember why Christian people shouldn’t play with witchcraft of any kind or any kind of spell.
October 7th, 2010 at 8:55 am
Jesus was confronting the Scribes who directly witnessed Jesus and His works done through the Holy Spirit which were the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecy , and they had that information. It is important to get this…Jesus was on earth with them, the Holy Spirit was in and on Jesus bringing the revelation of the Kingdom to these scribes in their spirit at that very time !! What greater unbelief can be shown by a human? With their own eye’s they saw Jesus ,the work’s of the Holy Spirit , and had scriptural accuracy for proof. The Jew’s rejected the Kingdom ways after experiencing first hand the ways and work’s of the Kingdom which Jesus brought to them. THIS SITUATION , with Jesus phisically with them, they had received ALL THE REVELATION AVAILABLE and then called Jesus and the works Satanic…they were hopeless and this was the unpardonable sin. “It shall not be forgiven in this age or the age to come to the Jew.” This was “pre-cross” not the Church age was it? And the age to come for the Jew is the Kingdom. All have the actual presence of Jesus available.In this Church age unbelief has it own reward and salvation and the belief on the finished work of cross has it’s reward. Read the Bible and pray for the mysteries to be made known to you…Rightousness,peace and joy are here for the believer in Jesus Christ ! Let the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus preached enter you and desire to know the ways of the Kingdom!! This was the preaching of Jesus and His instruction to His disciples..”And as ye go preach , saying , The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.Heal the sick,cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out the devils: freely ye have received, freely give.”(MAT 10:7-8) Follow Jesus’s instruction as His disciples and the Power of the Kingdom will give you gifts like , the word of knowledge , which with unveil the mysteries to you. Amen
November 8th, 2010 at 3:29 am
you know, I’ve been going through the roughest patch since i became a born-again Christian. expletives of all sorts have been bursting from my mind cussing my God, my Savior and even the Holy Ghost. I couldn’t explain it. a few people i spoke to said these were the devices of the Devil and i almost quit and almost turned back to marijuana and alcohol believing i was condemned. And believe i didn’t mean to do what i did and its great to know that blaspheme against the Holy Spirit isn’t simply cussing it (unintentionally)but rather not believing at all in Christ’s ministry. It’s the greatest thing to know that I’m already forgiven for I love my Savior, the Holy Spirit. Hey, they love me! thanks.
November 21st, 2010 at 5:56 pm
Hi I have a question. If you unintentionally speak contrary to God is this blashephemy against Him?
January 28th, 2011 at 3:21 am
THANK YOU VERY MUCH INDEED.. praise the Lord, now i understand, may the Lord bless you
February 3rd, 2011 at 1:38 pm
Yes the unparnable sin is hardcore doubt!I believe that a person can attribute the holy spirits miracles to satan amd be forgiven if they recieveve conviction for repentance def.repentance is to feal regret,sorow a change of ones mind the remedy is the opposite belief!Ive seen brothers that mocked tounges in the past but now have the holy ghost once they believed!!!Jesus is offering even repentance to the scribes and pharasses to repent ,chabge their minds accept corection how can satan cast out satan??HMMMMMask yourself that question you see it becomes unforgiven because the person chooses to remain blind and spiritually dicerned we have the mind of christ the lord speaks to us warns us but if we choose to be blind its our fault their no longer remains room for sacrifice we have many cahances to repent but the grace of god can run out so keep praying to god he changes our hear our minds to those who really thirst and hunger for him and truly repent god bless you all in jesus name remember paul mocked the holy spirit many times he was forgiven once he believed the blindness was taken off !Once we seek god whole hearted and we have conviction their is still hope he gives this to us not to send us to hell but to repent change our minds.The pharasses where condemmed because they didnt real bad about their sins they didmt choose correction from christ they chooose to believe all the way to the grave that the miracles theve seen where of satan!Unless god sent conviction in their hearts maybe some might have changed and would be able to be forgiven it really depends if god whants to convict them or allow them to be under a delusion to where salvation would be immpossible i hope this helps i know what im saying is the holy spirit revealing this to all god bless.
September 20th, 2011 at 3:35 pm
I want to thank you so much for what you have done with this amazing word. Now with the knowledge that I have, I put all my faith in God that he works his wonders, before my loved one condemn themselves. Once again thank you and may God bless you and the Holy spirit guide you.
Sincerely, Dionicio Vega
October 21st, 2011 at 6:02 am
I had a dream which i had trouble with its meaning and i felt like the dream possibly came from God, but in the dream of darkness around there was a man and a face i couldnt see i felt fear so when i was telling my mother about this i said i thought the man in my dream could have been the devil, now what i want to know is in this dream if that man i fear in my dream was God or the holy spirit, and not knowing this did i blaspemened him because i did not know who it was in the dream and so on? I am really afraid that i may have but if so out of ignorance will i be forgiven even though iam already saved?
December 25th, 2011 at 4:58 am
This article really helped me understand. It quotes from the Bible to show that if you are drawn to Christ and are convicted because of your sins, the Holy Spirit is working in you.
http://www.answers.org/bible/blasphemy.html#FN02
December 25th, 2011 at 5:07 am
Also if you are thinking, “I must have committed an unforgivable sin because God would not put me through this,” remember Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” You could be going through this because someone you know is and you will eventually help them overcome it, or so that you may see the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. It certainly helped me accomplish the latter.
January 6th, 2012 at 7:01 pm
I have a thought disorder and suffer from anxiety. I am being treated for the malady. I sometimes do not have control of what I think. I Know that Jesus is the Son of God and I Know that the Holy Spirit is my guide and comforter. I Know there is only one True God. I have what is called intrusive thoughts. My Heart Believe in the Trinity, I do not want to go to Hell for something I cannot control. Will you help me please? My Heart Know That I am Loved by The Father His son Jesus and The Holy Spirit. I am afraid. Please help me. Thank you.
February 11th, 2012 at 3:36 am
After years of in and out of Love with Christ and the Trinity since child hood one day at 25 years old I yelled cus words about the Holy Spirit out loud out of anger! Then I was terrified for years and I was a mad man in the word and these websites! I was full of horror I felt sooo sorry for myself! Then one night while in bed I just broke down and with my faith in Jesus I admitted that I blasphemed to God about the Holy Spirit! About 10 mins later in my back yard while having a smoke the Spirit of God came upon me from the Kingdom! I know it was GOD cuz I was terrified like a human being seeing his Creator! Then when I went inside my body went into a siezure untill my spine felt like it was going to snap! Then I dry heaved almost to my knees! This whole quake lasted about 2 hrs I couldent stop shaking out of control! Since then no matter how decieved I am the Spirtual Realm is open to me no matter what! So at least I know I still have Faith in Jesus! And I know for sure there is an ultimate Creator! Hold on to the Word! Keep the commands, Be terrified to die in sin, Remember who you have Faith in Jesus, And if you are ultimately hopeless which I feel like sometimes like I have no Jesus in me REMEMBER GOD SAYS HE NOT UNJUST TO REMEMBER WHAT WE DO THAT IS GOOD IN HIS NAME, So we should be like Soldiers for the Truth and never give in, So if GOD is JUST then we still have HOPE, We might be LOST but lets ask ourselvs why are we sooooooo horrified to lose the TRINITY? The Gate that seems like the one we should head for is the one! And you will know that if you truly through faith in Jesus REPENT OR ADMIT everything youve done even the unpardonable sin to GOD! Then you will know what im talkin about! GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS!
March 2nd, 2012 at 11:20 am
I did blaspheme the Holy Spirit out loud one time out of anger! And I feel truly empty and I feel like a looser! But I remember my love for Christ and His Spirit! I have known them! Now I find myself constantly in the Word and The Spirit of God comes to me all the time! Even though I said curse words to the Spirit out loud before! So I am still not sure what all this means for myself? But I do find myself horrified from time to time! All I know is the Bible has thus taught me to turn and Repent from all sin and to be even more terrified to return to it! And I have tested the Word against the Spirits that come to me and they rang True! So I guess God still has a plan for me as well Amen!
April 5th, 2012 at 8:35 pm
Now im 31 but when I was about 23 I cursed the Holy Spirit really bad. I just got out of prison not too long ago. I was locked up for 5 years and 7 months and everyday that I was locked up I felt like crap. I even had dreams that I was going to hell and they was so real and terrifying. I felt like crying my eyes out. Most days I would drag around feeling scared and depressed. I would read the same scripture over and over again and would feel depressed over and over again. I felt like I wanted to die. I am still scared today. Here’s how it happened. I read the scripture before about the blasphemy when I used to study the bible with the Jehovah’s Witnessess. I was convicted about the blasphemy and was scared to do it. But 3 or 4 years later I eventually forgot mostly what I learned about that blasphemy. Then I was on drugs really hard. So one day I was hung over really bad and a question popped up in my mind. It said why shouldn’t I blaspheme the holy spirit and I started to agree with the question in my mind. So I said to myself, Why shouldn’t I blaspheme the the holy spirit? At first I didn’t want to do it and it seemed distant from me. But the more I kept on thinking about it and it just came out purposely. I really didn’t know exactly what blasphemy was until I reflected on what people around me use to say. They would say the GD word all the time. So I figured that if they said the D word to blaspheme, I figured the other words was just as bad. So I started to blaspheme the spirit and then the Holy Spirit. While I was doing it I felt out of place and I ceased to do it any more. Like I said earier I forgot the consequence for the sin. Then maybe 2-3 minutes later I remembered that it will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come. Then I started to get really worried and scared. I was worried the whole night through. A couple of years passed by. I got into trouble with the law. I was arrested with serious charges. Maybe a month or two into my prison sentence, my mom sent me a King James Bible to the jail. So I read the Bible all day or as much as I could because I never read the whole Bible before.Until one day I read the book of Matthew 12th chapter. I read the part where blaspheming the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. I broke down and cried in my jail cell for hours because I always wanted to be on good terms with the Lord always but the only place I ended up was bad terms plus with my poverty and bad luck. I felt really bad from that moment on. Everyday I felt like killing myself and I just can’t get over it at all. I looked up the word blasphemy a couple of years before my conviction and it said to profane things sacred or pertaining to God. So I felt really bad. He will forgive any sin and blasphemy but not the blasphemy against the spirit. Now I have really bad thoughts about suicide that I can’t ignore. Suicide might send me to hell but not the gut feeling that I have about that blaspheme though that I did. I cry most of the time and I wish I can disapear. I just have no hope left and I am fading away slowly. Pray for me anybody because I wish i can take all of this back but I’m too late. Like lately I feel like I want to take a gun and just end it all so pray for me please.
April 14th, 2012 at 1:10 am
Please helm me.I am tortured into thinking I’ve blaspheme the Holy Spirit by saying F word in my mind against it.I was afraid to even right this much because of fear of being told my soul is doomed for this.Please explain to me is this a thing that has doomed my soul.I don’t wanna say that in my head but It is had to control thoughts.