Blasphemy of the Spirit

Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

Matthew 12:31 (KJV)

Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost – It’s the one unforgivable sin, right? But what does it actually mean? There’s all sorts of ideas out there from just verbally swearing against it, to not accepting it. And the consensus seems to be that if you do this thing once, you’re out of luck and will be judged without forgiveness.

The word blasphēmia has no fixed Hebrew original in the LXX, but always refers to God. It’s also important to note that the instances of blasphemy are not limited to speech, but are often times referenced toward actions (disobedience, rebellion against authority, disbelief, hatred, slanderous speech). In the time of Yeshua’s ministry on earth, the common rabbinic understanding of blasphemy was impudent speech regarding the law, idolatry, and shaming the name of YHVH.

Let’s take a look at “disobedience and rebellion against authority” and “impudent speech regarding the law”. Recall the purpose of the Holy Spirit detailed in Ezekiel 36:27 – the Spirit would be given to cause us to walk in His statutes and judgments. The Holy Spirit will help us become obedient to God’s law. Why is this important? Because in 1 John 3:4 we read that sin is breaking that law. So if we don’t want to sin, we rely upon the Holy Spirit which helps us keep the law. One cannot repent without keeping Torah.

So is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit quite simply the denial of the Spirit’s purpose to turn us to God’s law? It is the refusal of our obedience to the statutes and judgments. When we speak against the law of God, or continue without repentance (repentance = keeping Torah) then we ultimately die in our sin. If you do not repent, is your sin forgiven, or does it become unforgivable because you died in it? You rebelled against God and His way of life. You blasphemed the Spirit.

I just took this concept out of mystical ideals and made it applicable to your life. Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit doesn’t have to be some mystical thing that we can’t quite wrap our heads around. It can be real and understandable. Being that it’s unforgivable, I’d say that’s pretty important. Don’t die with unrepentant sin because you’re convinced the law doesn’t have any place in our lives nowadays. Repent, and let the Spirit guide you in God’s way of life.