Matthew 12:31-32 Introduction Some Christians with tender consciences have been wrongly terrified by these verses. There are some Christians who struggle with the fear that one day they might commit this sin and be cut off from all hope of forgiveness and everlasting life. There are other Christians who worry that they might have already committed such a sin. And then there are some people who might be afraid that they can t even receive Christ in the first place because they are already guilty of the unforgivable sin. This ought not to be! We need to guard against a wrong application of these verses that terrifies Christians and that would even keep unbelievers from the faith. On the other hand, in our zeal to guard against the destructiveness of a wrong application, we can also end up weakening the true force of what Jesus has said. So some people suggest that the unforgivable sin is no longer possible. They would say that it was only possible when Jesus was here on earth and performing miracles for all to see. Other people suggest that blasphemy against the Spirit is simply the sin of refusing to repent and believe so that it only becomes unforgivable after we have died. But I don t believe that these suggestions do justice to what Jesus actually said. So what is it that Jesus said, and what does it mean and how is it relevant to us here today? I. Verse 31a Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but What word do we mainly focus on in this first part of verse thirty-one? We focus on the word but. And what words do we for the most part completely overlook whenever we read these verses? We completely overlook these words: Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people [this presupposes true repentance]. God told Adam that from all the trees of the garden that were pleasant to the sight and good for food, he could surely eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he must not eat, or he would surely die (Gen. 2:9, 16-17). When the serpent came to tempt Adam and Eve, he focused on this one restriction in the midst of lavish and unimaginable bounty and generosity. Genesis 3:1 He said to the woman, Did God actually say, You shall not eat of any tree in the garden? Of course, this is not what God said, but it got Eve focusing on the one restriction, so that for all the liberality of God, He still seemed in her eyes to be stingy. And so it is with us when we read these verses in Matthew. We focus exclusively on the one exception, and remain completely oblivious to the unfathomable riches of grace and mercy that sit right there in front of us! How can we possibly explain this blindness? It can only be because of our sin. It is because of our sin that we are so quick to fear and resent the one exception, and yet so very slow to appreciate and rejoice in what is otherwise the amazing universality of God s forgiveness! Jesus could have simply said: Therefore I tell you, blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. But this is not all that Jesus said. Jesus began by saying this: Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but (excepting only one). Every conceivable sin that man 1
could conceivably commit can be forgiven except one!!! Let us not be guilty of failing to see and rejoice in God s goodness when it is so obviously and overwhelmingly right in front of our faces. So what are some examples of the sins and blasphemies that can be forgiven? Well, we know there is forgiveness for David s sin of adultery, dishonesty, and murder (2 Sam. 12:13; Ps. 51); there is forgiveness for the many sins of the prostitute in Luke chapter seven; there is forgiveness for the prodigal son s riotous living (Luke 15:13, 21-24); there is forgiveness for Simon Peter s triple denial of Jesus accompanied by oaths and profanity (Matt. 26:74-75; Luke 22:31-32; Jn. 18:15-18, 25-27; 21:15-17); there is forgiveness for Paul s pre-conversion blasphemy and merciless persecution of Christians (Acts 9:1; 22:4; 26:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:9; Eph. 3:8; Phil. 3:6); and there can even be forgiveness for those who had a hand in the crucifixion of the one and only Son of God (Luke 23:34)! (Hendriksen; paraphrased and expanded) Haldor Lillenas writes: Wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sin. How shall my tongue describe it? Where shall its praise begin? Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching the most defiled. By its transforming power making him God s dear child Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus; deeper than the mighty rolling sea. Higher than the mountain; sparkling like a fountain; all-sufficient grace for even me. Broader than the scope of my transgressions; greater far than all my sin and shame. magnify the precious name of Jesus; Praise His name! We can let this truth of God s forgiveness wash over our souls and fill us with all joy, and peace, and hope as we believe in Him! Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but II. Verse 31b The blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. So in light of all the horrendous and innumerable sins that can be forgiven, what can this sin possibly be? What is the unforgivable sin? To blaspheme in the Bible is to speak evil of someone, and specifically to speak evil of God (we can see this in verse 32). So the first thing we need to see is that the unforgivable sin is not simply rejecting God or refusing to believe, but an active speaking against God. Anyone who actively speaks evil of the Spirit will not be forgiven. But what does it mean to speak evil of the Spirit? Depending on our definitions, couldn t we all be guilty of the unforgivable sin? Is this about a specific formulas of words that we must be careful to avoid? But if it is really the heart that God always looks at, then couldn t we blaspheme the Spirit just by our thoughts and attitudes? What does it mean to speak evil of the Spirit? Well, Jesus is still responding here to the Pharisees who have just accused Him of casting out demons by the ruler of the demons (v. 24). And yet Jesus has said that it is by the Spirit of God that He casts out demons (v. 28). So the Pharisees are attributing the work of God s Spirit to the power of Satan, and in doing this, they have blasphemed the Spirit! They have, indeed, committed the unforgivable sin. In order to understand the unforgivable sin, we have to understand it in light of the circumstances and actions of these Pharisees. So exactly what is it that would make us, too, to be guilty of the unforgivable sin? III. Verse 32 And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. 2
What is the difference between blaspheming the Son of Man (Jesus) and blaspheming the Holy Spirit? The main difference is that during the days of His humiliation, Jesus true identity was not immediately obvious to everyone. It was possible that a person might say something against Jesus, and yet do so out of ignorance of who He really was. This was still a very serious sin that required repentance and forgiveness, but at least forgiveness was possible! 1 Timothy 1:12-15 I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. Luke 23:34 And Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Acts 3:17-19 And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers [not all of their rulers, but rulers such as might be compared to Paul] Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out. In each of these cases, it seems pretty clear that if these people had not committed their sins in ignorance, then it would have been impossible for these sins to be forgiven. But when these people blasphemed Jesus, they did so ignorantly, and without a true and full understanding of what they were doing. On the other hand, to blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to speak against that which one knows to be clearly, obviously, and unmistakably of God. So we can add to our definition of the unforgivable sin: To blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to willfully and stubbornly speak against that which one knows to be true. But here again, we need to qualify. Paul says in Romans chapter one that what can be known about God is plain to [all men], because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him (vv. 18-21). So if blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is simply to willfully and stubbornly speak against that which one knows to be true, then the whole world is already and automatically guilty of the unforgivable sin! But we know this can t be true! So what is this ignorance that the Bible speaks of, and that makes it possible for our sins to be forgiven? In Romans chapter one, Paul is speaking of general revelation (the revelation that God has given to us through His creation the things that have been made ). And even though this general revelation is absolutely crystal clear so that it leaves all men without excuse, it does not provide enough knowledge to save and neither does it provide enough knowledge to make possible the unforgivable sin. Special revelation, however, is the revelation of God not through creation, but by His word and Spirit. In the case of the Pharisees, they had witnessed firsthand many of the miracles of Jesus. They had listened personally to a great deal of His teaching. Those who knew best the Old Testament Scriptures had personally experienced the ministry of the Messiah to whom those Scriptures pointed. And yet at least some of these Pharisees had maliciously and deliberately rejected the Messiah and actually spoken evil of Him in some of the strongest possible terms. When these Pharisees blasphemed Jesus, they were also blaspheming the Holy Spirit. Their sin was not committed in 3
ignorance. We see, then, that to blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to willfully and stubbornly oppose that which one has experienced and knows to be true by the special revelation of God s Word and Spirit. The writer to the Hebrews explains it like this: Hebrews 6:4-8 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned. These verses are talking about a person who has grasped a whole lot of Christian truth and even personally tasted a great deal of the life of the age to come, and yet in the end, he blasphemes what he has known and experienced to be true by rejecting it and falling away. In his case, he cannot be restored again to repentance. Forgiveness is impossible. Of course, we can also know that he was never truly saved in the first place, because the same writer of Hebrews also says that we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end (Heb. 3:14). But even with this definition, couldn t we still say that we re all in some way guilty of the unforgivable sin? We have all benefited from the special revelation of God s Word and Spirit. So can we really say that the sins we commit are sins of ignorance? Every time we sin, aren t we willfully and stubbornly opposing that which we have experienced and known to be true? I believe that the key to understanding this riddle is to be found in the Old Testament distinction between intentional and unintentional sins. Numbers 15:27-31 If one person sins unintentionally, he shall offer a female goat a year old for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement before the LORD for the person who makes a mistake, when he sins unintentionally, to make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven. You shall have one law for him who does anything unintentionally, for him who is native among the people of Israel and for the stranger who sojourns among them. But the person who does anything with a high hand, whether he is native or a sojourner, reviles [blasphemes] the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from among his people. Because he has despised the word of the LORD and has broken his commandment, that person shall be utterly cut off; his iniquity shall be on him [he cannot be forgiven]. For all unintentional sins or accidental sins there was forgiveness, but for all sins committed with a high hand, there could be no forgiveness. These sins with a high hand were not simply intentional! They were flagrantly and purposefully committed in God s face in such a way as to revile the Lord and despise His word. The point here is not that every Israelite who ever knowingly sinned could never be forgiven! The point is the condition and attitude of the heart. If you have known and experienced God s revelation through His law, the temple and priesthood, the words of the prophets, and His miraculous signs, and yet willfully and deliberately sin against God in such a way as to revile Him and despise His word, there is no possibility of forgiveness for such a sin. And this is precisely the sin of which the Pharisees in Matthew chapter twelve were guilty. But God knows the heart. He knows when has sinned with 4
a high hand. And when a person truly and genuinely confesses and repents of his sin, he shows that his sin was not with a high hand. In this sense, even sins that are knowingly committed could be categorized as unintentional and therefore receive God s forgiveness. Leviticus 6:1-7 If anyone sins and commits a breach of faith against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in a matter of deposit or security, or through robbery, or if he has oppressed his neighbor or has found something lost and lied about it, swearing falsely in any of all the things that people do and sin thereby if he has sinned and [feels guilty; Wenham; Ashley] and will restore what he took by robbery or what he got by oppression or the deposit that was committed to him or the lost thing that he found or anything about which he has sworn falsely, he shall restore it in full and shall add a fifth to it, and give it to him to whom it belongs [as soon as he feels guilty; Wenham; Ashley]. And he shall bring to the priest as his compensation to the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flock, or its equivalent for a guilt offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him before the LORD, and he shall be forgiven for any of the things that one may do and thereby become guilty. David is a perfect example of someone who knowingly sinned against the Lord by committing adultery, and then lying and murdering to cover it up. If this had been sin with a high hand, then David could never have been forgiven, and yet we know that it was not sin with a high hand because of how David responded: Psalm 51:14-17 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Because David s sin was not with a high hand, he was able to be cleansed and forgiven. So now we can see that to blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to willfully, stubbornly, and unrepentantly oppose that which one has experienced and knows to be true by the special revelation of God s Word and Spirit. But here is where we have to be careful. Jesus is not simply saying that as long as we refuse to repent, we will not be forgiven! This is obvious! Jesus is saying that once a person reaches a certain point in the hardening of his heart and the willful rejection of God s truth, repentance itself is no longer possible. Hebrews 6:4-8 (cf. Heb. 12:15-17) For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance. To borrow from Jesus words, it will be impossible for them to repent, whether in this age or in the age to come whether in this life or in the life to come. Once the unforgivable sin is committed, it becomes impossible for a person ever to repent, and therefore forgiveness is also eternally impossible. This is the just judgment of God upon all those who sin against Him with a high hand. The NT reveals how close one may come to the kingdom tasting, touching, perceiving, understanding. And it also shows that to come this far and reject the truth is 5
unforgivable [even in this life]. So it is here. Jesus charges that those who perceive that his ministry is empowered by the Spirit and then, for whatever reason whether spite, jealousy, or arrogance ascribe it to Satan, have put themselves beyond the pale. For them there is no forgiveness, and that is the verdict of the one who has authority to forgive sins (9:5-8). (Carson) Conclusion So what does this mean for us? Here we need to make three very important points. First of all, if you are genuinely worried that you may have committed the unforgivable sin, then you cannot possibly have the attitude of one who has truly sinned with a high hand, reviling God and despising His Word (cf. Hagner). Second of all, except in very exceptional and rare cases, it is not possible for us to know if a person has committed the unforgivable sin and gone past the point of no return. Even in those places where we do think we know, we should still be exceedingly careful and cautious. 1 John 5:16 If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we have to ask why Jesus has warned us about the unforgivable sin. The point was not to drive us into terror and paranoia! This is not Jesus way! The point was to provoke in all of us a healthy fear that leads always to repentance and faith, and diligent obedience to God s Word. Stop worrying about whether you ve committed the unforgivable sin (because that s already a good sign that you haven t), and start taking steps to avoid ever being in a place where the unforgivable sin would become a possibility! Jesus began this warning by saying, Therefore I tell you Jesus has just informed those who are seeking to live on undecided, neutral ground that neutrality is impossible you are either with Jesus or against Him. Now Jesus warns these same people that the longer they try to stay neutral even in the face of God s special revelation through Jesus Christ, the more dangerous their position becomes (cf. Carson). It is the sin of neutrality that can ultimately lead to sinning with a high hand. It is neutrality that puts a person in grave danger of being on the path to the unforgivable sin. Therefore, let us at all costs flee from neutrality and strive for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Heb. 12:14)! Let us violently eschew and shun all complacency and apathy and undecided middle ground. Because the fact is, no one ever fell away from the Christian faith and became an apostate without any hope of forgiveness overnight. Rather, it was a gradual process in which that person deceived himself into thinking that he would be safe in his neutrality for always just a little bit longer. If the point of our last study was: There is no neutral ground, then the point of this study is: The longer you attempt to stay neutral, the more likely it becomes that you may cut yourself off from any chance for repentance and forgiveness and this by the just judgment of God. Therefore, if you have been putting off the decision to receive Christ, please don t put it off any longer. As the Apostle Paul says: Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2). And for those of us who have received Christ, let us not play with sin for even one day longer! Let us not think that we can be safe in our neutrality for just a little bit longer. The words of Paul 6
apply also to us: Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2). Whatever you ve been putting off for just one more day stop! The favorable time is now. Hebrews 6:9-12 Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things things that belong to salvation. For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do. And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Philippians 3:12-14 (cf. Heb. 6:9-12; 2 Pet. 1:5-8, 13; 3:13-14) Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Romans 12:11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Teaching our Children Parents: You will, of course, need to tailor your explanation and application of these verses to the ages and needs of your children. Some children are not old enough to understand and process the tensions and sometimes the subtleties of God s Word. On the other hand, I believe that at some level, there is an appropriate way to convey the truth of these verses to every age group. The following points are meant to help in guiding the discussion. Read Matthew 12:31-32 Talk with your children about how every sin can be forgiven excepting only one. Help them to be amazed at the overflowing abundance and liberality of God s mercy and grace! (See first full paragraph on page 2) Talk with your children about the one unforgivable sin (See bottom of page 5 beginning with the last complete paragraph) Remind your children of how every other sin can be forgiven even many very big and bad and terrible sins (think of David and Peter)! Exhort and encourage your children to place their trust in Jesus (preach the Gospel to them!) and by God s grace to obey Jesus every day. If appropriate, help your (older?) children to see that the longer we put things off (like repentance and obedience), the more hardened our hearts can become (See 1 Cor. 6:2 at top of this page). Sin is never something to play with. Repentance is never something to put off until tomorrow. If by any chance, your child becomes scared and paranoid, point out that this must mean that we have completely misunderstood what Jesus was saying and why He said it (See bolded words on page 6). 7