Aphiemi William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1

Aphiemi A. The verb aphiemi (a)fivmhi) has the following cognates: 1. Anesis (a&nesi$) (noun), rest, relaxation, remission. 2. Aphesis (a&fesi$) (noun), release, forgiveness, deliverance, suspension of punishment. 3. Paresis (pavresi$) (verb), to hand over, to offer, present. 4. Suniemi (sunivhmi) (verb), to understand, comprehend, perceive. B. Classical 1. The verb aphiemi is attested since Homer and is derived from the preposition apo, from, and the verb hiemi, to put in motion, send. 2. Thus, the word literally means, to send off, to send away, to send forth, but is used with the sense of to hurl, to let go, release. 3. The word meant a voluntary release of a person or thing over which one has legal or actual control. 4. Aphiemi is employed in classical Greek in both a literal and figurative sense. 5. The word in the literal sense had 2 usages: a. With personal object: To send forth, send away (of a woman, to divorce; of a meeting, to dissolve, end), to let go, to leave, dispatch. b. With impersonal object: To loose (e.g. a ship into the sea), to discharge (e.g. arrows), to give up. 6. In the figurative sense, it means, to let alone, permit, let pass, neglect, give up. 7. The word means, to lose one s life as in the writings of Josephus (Ant. 1, 12, 3). 8. In the legal sense, it meant, to release from a legal bond, to acquit, to exempt from guilt. 9. Herodotus used the word of divorcing a woman (5.39). 10. The verb in the papyri corresponds to the word s use in classical literature. 11. The word was commonly used in the papyri to refer to the release of a person from some legal relationship such as a marriage, an office, or a debt. 12. Aphiemi was also employed in classical literature in the sense of remitting a debt or guilt of sin. 13. It was also used in the legal sense of pardoning, forgiving, or canceling a financial debt or criminal proceedings. 14. Liddell and Scott (Greek-English, New Edition, pages 289-290): a. Send forth, discharge, of missiles, to throw oneself upon, give oneself up to it, let loose one s tongue, make utterance, give vent to, shed tears, change color in all ways, of liquids, and plants, putting forth, of a spider, put forth, produce; passively, to be emitted; of troops, to be let go, launched against the enemy; let fall from one s grasp; give up or hand over to b. Send away, of persons, let go, loose, set free, release from a thing, in legal sense, acquit of a charge or engagement; passively, to be released from duty; let go, dissolve, disband, of an army or fleet; put away, divorce; dismiss; disown; release from a debtor; dedicate; of things, slackened its force, put away wrath, give up, leave off, give up the ghost, loose ship for a place; in legal sense, remit him a charge, excuse him a flogging c. Leave alone, pass by; neglect; let the boat be carried away d. Suffer, permit one to do a thing e. Break up, march, sail; to give up doing C. LXX 1. The LXX employs aphiemi in the same manner as classical Greek. 2. But unlike the classical usage, the Old Testament speaks of God as the one who forgives and this is never so in classical literature although it is used in Josephus. 3. In the Old Testament, the relationship between man and God is conceived of in legal terms, which is foreign to Greek thought. 4. The object of forgiveness is sin and God is the one who forgives, which was never the case with Greek thought. 5. It depicts the releasing of debtors in the Year of Jubilee in Deuteronomy 15:2. 6. When the word or one of its cognate forms describes forgiveness of sin it usually translates one of three Hebrew terms: a. Nasa (ac*n*) (verb), to forgive, to exempt from guilt or punishment, pardon (Ps. 32:1 [33:1]). b. Salach (jl^s*) (verb), to pardon, forgive (Lev. 4:20f.; Nm. 14:19). c. Kaphar (rp^k*) (verb), to cover, atone, forgive (Ps. 78:38; Is. 22:14). 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1

7. These last 2 words (salach and kaphar) are exclusively reserved for the forgiveness of God, while nasa also served to describe human forgiveness. 8. The forgiveness of sin is a central concept throughout the Scriptures. 9. The Old Testament often speaks of forgiveness from God whereas no other religion knows of such a complete and free forgiveness. 10. Ex 34:6-7, Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations. 11. Dan 9:9, To the Lord our God belong compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him. 12. The forgiveness of God originates from His very nature. 13. The Old Testament possesses a variety of rich language to describe God s forgiveness. 14. He is proclaimed as a merciful and forgiving God (Ps. 103:12; Is. 38:17; 43:25; Jer. 31:34; Mic. 7:19; cf. Lk. 15:11-24). 15. The Levitical animal sacrifices depicted the voluntary substitutionary spiritual death of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the cross, which is the basis for the forgiveness of sins. 16. The blood of the animal portrayed the voluntary substitutionary spiritual death of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the cross, which is the basis for the forgiveness of sins. 17. Hebrews 9:22, without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. 18. Ephesians 1:7, In Him (the Lord Jesus Christ) we have redemption through His blood (metaphor for our Lord s spiritual death), the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. 19. 1 Peter 1:18-19, Knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. 20. The burnt offering in Leviticus 1:2-17 depicts the doctrine of propitiation with emphasis on the work of Christ. 21. The gift offering Leviticus 2:1-16 depicts propitiation with emphasis on the Person of Christ. 22. The peace offering recorded in Leviticus 3:1-17 portrays the doctrine of reconciliation. 23. The sin offering in Leviticus 4:1-35 depicts the confession of sin after salvation by the believer with emphasis on the unknown sins of the believer. 24. The trespass offering in Leviticus 5-6:7 depicts the confession of sin after salvation by the believer with emphasis on the known sins of the believer. 25. God never intended for the Levitical offerings to be perpetuated. 26. The entire system in the Levitical offerings was set aside once the reality came in. 27. The Levitical offerings found their fulfillment in the Person and Work of Jesus Christ were just a shadow of the reality of our Lord and His saving work (Heb. 10:1-2). 28. The lamb was the center of the Levitical offerings. 29. The Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ was the real deal (Heb. 9:11-15). 30. All the Levitical sacrifices were to cease after our Lord s work on the Cross. 31. He was the literal fulfillment of the Levitical offerings and the literal Lamb of God that took away sins (John 1:29). 32. Animal s blood cannot take away sin (Heb. 10:4), but our Lord s substitutionary spiritual death did. 33. The Levitical Priesthood had to step aside for the Royal Priesthood of Church Age believers following our Lord s death and resurrection, ascension and session. 34. The Levitical Priesthood will be reactivated following the 2nd Advent and for the duration of the Millennium (Ezek. 40-46). 35. The Mosaic Law and the Levitical sacrifices do not apply to us here in the Church Age but simply teach us about the Person and Work of Christ although they were not written specifically to us here in the Church Age. 36. So in summary, the Levitical offerings were designed to teach the Jews in Israel about the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. 37. These offerings looked forward to the future when the Lamb of God would come to die for the sins of the whole world. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2

38. The New Covenant provided Israel with the forgiveness of sins (Jer. 31:31-34), which will be necessary for the future restoration of the nation of Israel during the 2 nd Advent and subsequent millennial reign of Christ. 39. Jer 31:31-34, Behold, days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD, I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, "Know the LORD,' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the LORD, for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more. 40. The New Covenant is unconditional meaning that it is based upon the faithfulness of God rather than the faithfulness of Israel (Jer. 31:31-37). 41. The New covenant is related to the restoration of the nation during the 2nd Advent and subsequent millennial reign of Christ. 42. There were additional blessings added to the unconditional Abrahamic covenant. 43. Before the covenant nation could enjoy the covenanted blessings it must walk in obedience to the laws of God. 44. The obedience required was outlined for the nation in the Mosaic Law, which was given alongside the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 17:19) to define what God expected as a prerequisite for blessing. 45. The nation of Israel as we have noted was unable to fulfill the obedience the Law required. 46. The Mosaic Law cannot justify an individual before God (Rom. 3:20-28; Gal. 2:16). 47. It could not provide eternal salvation for men (Gal. 3:21-26). 48. The Mosaic Law could not provide the Holy Spirit (Gal. 3:3). 49. It could not solve the problems of the old sin nature (Rom. 8:2-3). 50. God characterized the nation of Israel as being stiff-necked (Jer. 17:23). 51. They were hardened and obstinate (Ezek. 3:7). 52. If the nation was to experience the blessings of the covenant they would need forgiveness for their sins, they would need to be regenerated (born-again), a new heart characterized by obedience, and empowerment from the Holy Spirit. 53. A covenant that guarantees Israel these divine provisions is given in Jeremiah 31:31-34. 54. The Passover lamb also taught forgiveness to Old Testament Israel. 55. Passover and the feast of Unleavened Bread as a unit constituted the most important of the 3 great annual feasts or festivals of Israel. 56. It was indifferently called the feast of the Passover and the feast of Unleavened Bread, but where the object was to mark the distinction between the Passover as a sacrifice and as a feast following the sacrifice, the latter was designated the feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:5-6). 57. The Passover is documented in Exodus 12 and Leviticus 23. 58. The Hebrew word pesah (from pasah, to leap over, figuratively to spare, show mercy ) denotes an overstepping. 59. The paschal sacrifice by virtue of which the passing over was effected (Ex. 12:21, 27, 48; 2 Chron. 30:15). 60. The paschal meal was on the evening of the 14th day of Nisan (post-exilic; Abib, exilic), and the 7 days following are called the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:5-6). 61. Hence the expression the morrow of the Passover for the 15th day of Nisan (Num. 33:3; Josh. 5:11). 62. The whole feast, including the paschal eve, is called the festival of Unleavened Bread (Ex. 23:15; Lev. 23:6; Ezra 6:22; Luke 22:1, 7; Acts 12:3; 20:6); but the simple name Passover (Hebrew: pesah) is the one commonly used by the Jews to the present day for the festival of Unleavened Bread (2 Chron. 30:15; 35:1, 11; Mark 14:1; Greek: pascha). 63. The Passover commemorated the final plague in Egypt in which the 1st born of the Egyptians died, but the Israelites were spared by the blood on the doorposts and lintel (Ex. 12:11, 21, 27, 43, 48). 64. Thereafter the event was observed as a feast to the Lord (12:14). 65. The 2nd Passover was observed in the wilderness of Sinai (Num. 9:1-5). 66. The Passover marked the birth of Israel as a Client Nation to God (Ex. 12:2) and was to be observed by them forever as a memorial. 67. It was observed in the 1st month (Abib; Deut. 16:1; the 1st month is called Nisan in post-exilic times: Neh. 2:1; Esth. 3:7) on the 14th day at twilight between 3-6pm (Lev. 23:5). 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 3

68. The head of every Jewish family chose a male lamb without blemish on the 10th Abib (Ex. 12:3l 1 Pet. 1:18-19) and killing it on the 14th Abib (12:6) with none of its bones broken (literally fulfilled at the cross by Christ). 69. The lamb typified the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union who was proclaimed by John the Baptist as the lamb of God (John 1:29). 70. The blood was to be sprinkled on the doorposts and lintel of the house with hyssop (typifying the sinner being cleansed from sin through faith alone in Christ alone since hyssop was a symbol of purification), so that when the Lord passed over that night and saw the blood He would spare the 1st born in the house. 71. The lamb was to be roasted and served up whole (portraying the perfect obedience of Christ to the Father s plan for the Incarnation which was the cross), and eaten with unleavened bread (typifying the impeccability of the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union) and bitter herbs (portraying the bitterness of slavery in Egypt), and none of it left until the morning. 72. Those who ate of it were to do so with their loins girded, their shoes on their feet, and their staff in their hand, ready to leave Egypt (12:8-11). 73. Neither the uncircumcised person nor the hired servant could eat (Ex. 12:48). 74. The shedding of the blood of the lamb typified the substitutionary spiritual death of the humanity of Christ, which was to take place approximately 1400 years later at Calvary. 75. The application of the blood of the animal to the doorposts and lintel demonstrated the Jew s faith in the yet future work of the coming Messiah on the cross thus portraying faith alone in Christ alone. 76. The unblemished lamb typified the impeccability of the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. 77. The historical Personage of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is our literal Passover (1 Cor. 5:7). 78. Egypt typified the cosmic system of Satan and eschatologically, the world during the Tribulation period. 79. This night was followed by 7 days (hag hammassot) in which unleavened bread was eaten (Ex. 34:18-19; Lev. 23:6; cf. Ex. 12:31-34). 80. For this reason the NT speaks of the entire season as the days of unleavened bread (Acts 12:3; Luke 22:1). 81. The unleavened bread typifies the impeccability of the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. 82. The Passover was given to Israel by the Lord under the Ritual Plan of God and is not applicable here in the Church where the only ritual to be observed is the Lord s Supper which is derived from the Passover meal. 83. The Passover was literally fulfilled by the unique Person and Finished Work on the Cross of Calvary of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (1 Co. 5:7). 84. The bread brings into remembrance the unique impeccable Person of our Lord. 85. The Lord Jesus Christ is undiminished deity and impeccable humanity in 1 Person forever. 86. During His 1st Advent, in His impeccable humanity He voluntarily denied Himself of the independent function of His divine attributes in order to serve both the Father and all mankind at the cross. 87. His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the cross by His impeccable humanity was the ransom price for all of humanity. 88. The wine represents the blood of Christ, which brings into remembrance the finished work of Christ on the Cross. 89. The phrase the blood of Christ depicts the saving work of Christ on the Cross and does not mean his literal blood but rather is a representative analogy for the voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the Cross of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union, which was the payment for our sins (1 Pet. 1:18-19; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:20; Heb. 10:19; 13:20; 1 Pet. 1:2). 90. The finished work of Christ refers to the doctrines of: (a) Redemption (b) Reconciliation (c) Propitiation. 91. The work of our Lord is finished because there is nothing that can be added to it (John 19:30). 92. The doctrine of Redemption states that the Lord Jesus Christ purchased the entire human race out of the slave market of sin with His substitutionary spiritual death. 93. The Lord Jesus Christ is the 1 and only Redeemer of mankind and the only sacrifice that God will accept (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45; 1 Tim. 2:6). 94. He is the only one qualified to be mankind s Redeemer due to the fact that He is impeccable (1 Pet. 1:19). 95. Only a free man can set a slave free and that is what our Lord was because He was totally free and independent of sin (John 8:36; Gal. 4:4-7). 96. The Lord Jesus Christ is mankind s Kinsman-Redeemer, which is someone who is related to the one who is being redeemed and must be able to afford the ransom price and thus fulfill its righteous demands. 97. The Lord Jesus was true humanity and was able to afford the ransom price, which was His spiritual death. 98. Redemption is totally the work of God and excludes all human works. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 4

99. It becomes a reality for a person when they exercise personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 100. Results of Redemption: (a) Forgiveness of sins (Isa. 44:22; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14; Heb. 9:12-15) (b) Basis of justification (Rom. 3:24) (c) Basis of sanctification (Eph. 5:25-27) (d) Basis for eternal inheritance for believer (Heb. 9:15) (e) Basis for strategic victory of Christ in the Angelic Conflict (Col. 2:14-15; Heb. 2:14-15). (f) Redemption of the soul in salvation leads to redemption of the body in resurrection (Eph. 1:14). (g) Redemption of the body is the ultimate status of the Royal Family of God forever (Rom. 8:23; Eph. 4:30). 101. God can forgive sin because He has been propitiated meaning His perfect righteous demands that sin be judged have been satisfied by the merits of the voluntary substitutionary spiritual death of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the cross (Lev. 1:4; 1 Jn. 2:2). 102. The Day of Atonement also depicted the atonement for sin, which serves as the basis for the forgiveness of sin. 103. Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement was the day appointed for a yearly, general and perfect expiation for all the sins and uncleanness that might remain, despite the regular sacrifices. 104. It was Israel s annual cleansing from sin. 105. Leviticus 16:1-34 gives the full account of this day along with its services. 106. The Levitical ritual was a constant reminder that the Law...can never by the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect those who draw near (Heb. 10:1). 107. Even with the most scrupulous observance of the prescribed ordinances many sins and defilements would still remain unacknowledged and therefore without expiation. 108. This want was met by the appointment of a yearly, general, and perfect expiation of all the sins and uncleanness that had remained unatoned for and uncleansed in the course of the year (Lev. 16:33). 109. Thus on the day of Atonement Israel was reconciled to Yahweh, which was necessary before the Feast of Tabernacles which prefigured the ingathering of the nations or the Millennium dispensation. 110. In connection with this point it may also be well to remember that the Jubilee year was always proclaimed on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 25:9). 111. The 10th day of the 7th month, or Tishri (October), and the 5th of Atonement (Lev. 16:1-34; Num. 29:7-11). 112. The day was a high Sabbath in which no work was performed. All the people were to afflict their souls and to fast from the evening of the 9th to the evening of the 10th under penalty of being cut off from Israel (Lev. 23:27-32). 113. Leviticus 16:5-28 and Numbers 29:7-11 indicate that the sacrifices for the day were as follows: (a) Ordinary morning sacrifice. (b) Expiatory sacrifices for the priesthood, namely, a young bull. (c) The sin offering for the people, a kid from the goats for Yahweh and another for Azazel. (d) The burnt offering of the priests and people and with them, another sin offering. (d) The ordinary evening sacrifice. 114. If the Day of Atonement fell on a Sabbath, the ordinary Sabbath sacrifices were offered besides all these. 115. The Day of Atonement s typical meaning was fulfilled in Christ. He is our Great High Priest, Who instead of offering a sin offering for Himself, offered Himself as a sin offering for us (Heb. 9:11-14). 116. But the fact that the Day of Atonement is placed between the Feast of Trumpets which we have seen will be literally fulfilled by Christ at the Rapture of the Church, and the Feast of Tabernacles which is a type of Israel s Millennial rest implies that it typifies the 2nd Advent of Christ. 117. The Day of Atonement will therefore be literally fulfilled by the glorified resurrected incarnate Son of God at the 2nd Advent (Zech. 12:7-14; 14:4; Matt. 24:29-31; Rev. 19). 118. There will be a national Day of Atonement or mourning in Israel at the 2nd Advent of Christ (Zech. 12:9-14; 13:1). 119. The rituals involved in the Levitical offerings that took place during the seven great feasts of the Lord portrayed the Person and Work of Christ on the cross, which provided for the forgiveness of sin. 120. Rituals were teaching aids about the future Person and Work of Christ on the cross and were merely shadows with Christ being the substance. D. NT 1. The verb aphiemi appears over 140 times in the Greek New Testament. 2. In the Greek New Testament, the verb has a wide variety of usages as in the case with classical literature. 3. The word can have the following usages in the Greek New Testament: a. To permit, allow, not to hinder b. To leave c. To forgive 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 5

d. To leave behind e. To forsake f. To neglect g. To dismiss h. To leave alone i. To tolerate 4. Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament (volume 1, page 181): a. Release, dismiss, leave b. Leave behind c. Leave alone d. Permit, allow 5. The New Thayer s Greek-English Lexicon (page 88): a. To send away; to bid go away or depart; to send forth, yield up, emit; to let go, let alone, let be; to disregard; to leave, not to discuss now; to omit, neglect; to let go, give up, a debt, by not demanding it; to remit, forgive; to give up, keep no longer b. To permit, allow, not to hinder c. To leave, go away from one; to depart from any one 6. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (pages 125-126): a. Let go, send away, literally with personal object, with impersonal object; in a legal sense, divorce b. Cancel, remit, pardon, remit, forgive debts, forgive c. Leave, literally with personal object; figuratively, give up, abandon d. Let, let go, tolerate 7. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains (volume 2): a. To cause (or permit) a person or persons to leave a particular location to let go away, to dismiss (page 188). b. To move away from, with the implication of resulting separation to leave, to depart from (page 189). c. To let something be put behind in a place to leave, to leave behind (page 728). d. To permit something to continue in a place to let remain, to leave (page 730). e. To dissolve the marriage bond to divorce, to separate (page 457). f. To remove the guilt resulting from wrongdoing to pardon, to forgive, forgiveness (page 503). g. To release a person from the obligation of repaying what is owed to cancel a debt, to forgive a debt (page 582). h. To no longer pay attention to previous beliefs to refuse to listen to, to reject (page 374). i. To stop doing something, with the implication of complete cessation to give up, to stop, to quit (page 660). j. To cease, of a state to stop, to leave (page 153). k. To leave it to someone to do something, with the implication of distancing oneself from the event to let, to allow, to leave it to (page 164). l. A marker of an agent relation with numerable events, with the implication of something, which proceeds from an agent to produce, to make, to give (page 804). 8. The Analytical Greek Lexicon Revised (page 62): a. To send away, dismiss, suffer to depart; to emit, send forth b. The voice, to cry out, utter an exclamation c. The spirit, to expire d. To omit, pass over or by; to let alone, care not for e. To permit, suffer, let, forbid not; to give up, yield, resign f. To remit, forgive, pardon; to relax, suffer to become less intense g. To leave, depart from; to desert; forsake; to leave remaining or alone; to leave behind 9. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, aphiemi, primarily, "to send forth, send away" (apo, "from," hiemi, "to send"), denotes, besides its other meanings, "to remit or forgive" (a) debts, Matt 6:12; 18:27,32, these being completely cancelled; (b) sins, e. g., Matt 9:2,5,6; 12:31,32; Acts 8:22 ("the thought of thine heart"); Rom 4:7; James 5:15; 1 John 1:9; 2:12. In this latter respect the verb, like its corresponding noun (below), firstly signifies the remission of the punishment due to sinful conduct, the deliverance of the sinner from the penalty divinely, and therefore righteously, imposed; secondly, it involves the complete removal of the cause of offense; such remission is based upon the vicarious and propitiatory sacrifice of 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 6

Christ. In the OT atoning sacrifice and "forgiveness" are often associated, e. g., Lev 4:20,26. The verb is used in the NT with reference to trespasses (paraptoma), e. g., Matt 6:14,15; sins (hamartia), e. g., Luke 5:20; debts (see above) (opheilema), Matt 6:12; (opheile), 18:32; (daneion), 18:27; the thought (dianoia) of the heart, Acts 8:22. Cf. kalupto, "to cover," 1 Peter 4:8; James 5:20; and epikalupto, "to cover over," Rom 4:7, representing the Hebrew words for "atonement." Human "forgiveness" is to be strictly analogous to divine "forgiveness," e. g., Matt 6:12. If certain conditions are fulfilled, there is no limitation to Christ's law of "forgiveness," Matt 18:21,22. The conditions are repentance and confession, Matt 18:15-17; Luke 17:3. As to limits to the possibility of divine "forgiveness," see Matt 12:32, 2nd part (see BLASPHEMY) and 1 John 5:16 (see DEATH). See FORSAKE, LAY, Note (2) at end, LEAVE, LET, OMIT, PUT, No. 16, Note, REMIT, SEND, Note, (1), SUFFER, YIELD. 10. The verb aphiemi is used for the forgiveness of sins 57 times in the Greek New Testament. 11. The apostle Paul also employs the verb charizomai for the forgiveness of sins (Eph. 4:32; Col. 3:13). 12. The apostle John uses the verb luo in Revelation 1:4-5 of the believer being released from his sins. 13. The believer is both object and the subject of forgiveness. 14. The Scriptures present two major subdivisions: (a) the forgiveness of God (b) the personal forgiveness between individuals. 15. The forgiveness of sins is offered to the entire human race by God the Father based upon the merits of the voluntary substitutionary spiritual death of His Son, the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the Cross. 16. A person appropriates by means of faith alone in Christ alone the forgiveness of his sins. 17. God bases His forgiveness or receipt of His pardon upon the restitution for sins that Christ voluntarily made for the world. 18. From the earliest mention of forgiveness, the Lord has never discounted nor overlooked our sins. 19. He forgives us because Christ made restitution. 20. Though God made the restitution for us, it was still required to obtain God s forgiveness. 21. To put it the opposite way: without the restitution payment of Jesus Christ, there would be no forgiveness! 22. Unbelievers are not judged according to their sins at the Great White Throne Judgment but rather are judged according to their self-righteous human good works, which do not measure up to the perfect work of the impeccable Christ on the Cross (Rev. 20:11-15). 23. The unbeliever goes to the lake of fire because of his rejection of Christ as his Savior. 24. 1 Timothy 2:4 and John 3:16-17 clearly indicates that God desires all men to be saved, therefore, He has made provision for all men to be saved through the Person and Work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. 25. After salvation the believer is commanded to forgive because God has forgiven him (Eph. 4:32; Co. 3:13). 26. The believer cannot experience the forgiveness of sins and be restored to fellowship, if he does not forgive others according to Matthew 6:14-15 because not forgiving others is a sin. 27. At the moment of salvation the believer received the forgiveness of his sins in the positional sense. 28. Ephesians 1:7, In Him (the Lord Jesus Christ) we have redemption through His blood (metaphor for our Lord s spiritual death), the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. 29. He experiences the forgiveness of his sins when he confesses his personal sins to the Father after salvation. 30. Although the believer experiences the forgiveness of sins at the moment of salvation, the moment he sins, he must confess these post-salvation sins so that he can once again experience the forgiveness of sins, which is already been appropriated by him at the moment of salvation positionally and will be his for all of eternity. 31. Restoration to fellowship is contingent upon the believer confessing his personal sins to the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus who paid for the believer s sins with His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the Cross (cf. 1 Jn 1:9). 32. The believer is adjusted to the holiness of God when he applies the principle stated by 1 John 1:9. 33. It is absolutely essential to apply 1 John 1:9 in order to experience fellowship with the Father since He is holy and does not tolerate sin or evil. 34. The Lord Jesus Christ s substitutionary spiritual death on the cross is the basis for the forgiveness of sins both in the positional and experiential sense for the believer. 35. At the moment of salvation, when a person makes the non-meritorious decision to believe in Christ for salvation, he appropriates the forgiveness of his sins-past, present and future. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 7

36. The unbeliever does not appropriate the forgiveness of sins because he has not placed his trust in Christ for salvation. 37. The unbeliever s sins will never be brought up at the Great White Throne Judgment of unbelievers since Christ paid the penalty for their sins with His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the Cross. 38. They will be judged according to their relative human self-righteous deeds, which do not measure up to the absolute perfect righteousness of Christ (Rev. 20:11-15). 39. After salvation, the believer experiences the forgiveness of sins when he confesses any known sin to the Father and based upon the merits of the unique voluntary substitutionary spiritual death of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the cross, the Father is faithful and just to forgive the believer and restores the believer to fellowship with Himself. 40. In the same way that the unbeliever s sins are not brought up at the Great White Throne so the believer s sins will never be brought up at the Bema Seat Evaluation of the church since the believer s personal sins were also paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ s substitutionary spiritual death on the cross. 41. Positional forgiveness of sins establishes a permanent eternal relationship between God and the believer. 42. The Father saves the person who trusts in His Son Jesus Christ for salvation and this salvation is based upon the merits of the Person of Christ who is impeccable and the merits of His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the cross. 43. The Father honors a person s faith in His Son (Jn. 5:23). 44. He restores the believer to fellowship based again upon the merits of the Person of Christ who is impeccable and the merits of His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the cross. 45. The Lord stated that the blasphemy of the Spirit will not be forgiven in Matthew 12:22-32. 46. What does this mean? 47. Matt 12:22-32, Then a demon-possessed man {who was} blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, "This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?" But when the Pharisees heard {this} they said, "This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons." And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, "Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast {them} out? For this reason they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can anyone enter the strong man's house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong {man?} And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters. Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the {age} to come. There is confusion as to whether or not the blasphemy of the Spirit can take place in our day and age or is it exclusive to the 1st Advent of Christ. 48. Some great theologians such as Lewis Sperry Chafer write that this sin only take place during the 1st Advent of Christ when He was physically present on earth. 49. Chafer in effect states, and many follow his interpretation of this passage, that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit was unique to Christ s 1st Advent and was the attributing the miracles of Christ to the devil rather than the Holy Spirit, thus defaming the perfect integrity of the Spirit s witness concerning Christ. 50. I know many great Bible teachers who when you ask them, What is the unpardonable sin? they usually reply, It is blaspheming the Holy Spirit or It is the sin of attributing to the devil the works of the Holy Spirit and could only take place during the 1st Advent of Christ. 51. First of all I believe this interpretation was in response to the false claim by some that you can commit a sin that cannot be forgiven. 52. There is no sin that cannot be forgiven except for the rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior over a lifetime. 53. People go the eternal Lake of Fire because they choose to and not because of their sins since the penalty for the entire human race-past, present and future was paid for by the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. 54. The unbeliever s sins are never mentioned at the Great White Throne Judgment of Unbelievers, but rather their own inferior human works performed in self-righteous arrogance. 55. This is according to Revelation 20:11-15. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 8

56. Rev 20:11-12, Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is {the book} of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. 57. So the Scriptures emphatically teach that the only sin that can t be forgiven and that sends a person to the eternal Lake of Fire is the rejection of Jesus Christ as one s own personal Savior. 58. The sin of rejecting Christ as Savior is the reason why people will end up in the eternal Lake of Fire forever and ever. 59. This is not the will of God though because the will of God is that all men be saved. 60. God s attitude toward the entire human race is that He desires all to believe in His Son Jesus Christ. 61. John 3:16-17, For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 62. 1 Tim 2:4, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 63. 2 Pet 3:9, The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. 64. Secondly, as I noted earlier many expositors state that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit was unique to Christ s 1st Advent and was the attributing the miracles of Christ to the devil rather than the Holy Spirit, thus defaming the perfect integrity of the Spirit s witness of Christ. 65. When I say unique I mean that at no time in history have these conditions ever existed where Christ was on the earth performing miracles by means of the Spirit. 66. These expositors are missing the point and the principle, which our Lord is relating in this passage. 67. It is the rejection of the Spirit s witness concerning the Person of Christ at the point of hearing the Gospel for salvation that is blasphemous and unpardonable and not simply attributing the miracles of Christ to the devil. 68. To say that the blasphemy of the Spirit only took place during the 1st Advent of Christ is diminishing the rejection of the Spirit s witness concerning Christ in subsequent dispensations such as the church age. 69. In other words it is just as much blasphemous today to reject the Spirit s witness concerning Christ during this dispensation as it was during the 1st Advent! 70. To say that the blasphemy of the Spirit was attributing Christ s miracles to the devil is putting undo emphasis on the rejection of the miracles rather than their rejection of the Spirit s witness concerning Christ as their Messiah. 71. Remember the miracles of Christ were to demonstrate that He was the Jewish Messiah since the Jews require a sign according to 1 Corinthians 1:22. 72. The Jews rejection of Christ s miracles then revealed an even deeper problem among them and that was their negative attitude toward the Spirit s witness concerning Him. 73. The Spirit witnessed that Christ was the Messiah by performing the miracles for the humanity of Christ. 74. The Spirit employed miracles to convict the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. 75. He doesn t operate that way today because Christ now sits at the right hand of the Father. 76. He no longer employs miracles to witness to the unbeliever that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah since the Lord no longer resides on planet earth but at the right hand of the Father. 77. So blaspheming the Spirit is not a particular act of sin but rather a negative attitude towards the Spirit s witness concerning Christ that extends over a lifetime. 78. It cannot be forgiven because it is the rejection of the Spirit s witness concerning Christ in common grace over a lifetime. 79. If you reject the Spirit s repeated attempts over a lifetime to witness that Jesus is the Christ then you will go to the Lake of Fire. 80. I say it is the rejection of the Spirit s witness of Christ over a lifetime because there were many times before we became born-again and saved that we rejected the Spirit s witness concerning Christ in common grace. 81. God is patient, He will offer the Gospel to the unbeliever throughout their lifetime as we noted in 2 Peter 3:9. 82. We have all been hostile towards God before salvation, were we not? 83. Col 1:19-21, For it was the {Father's} good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 9

Him, {I say} whether things on earth or things in heaven. And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, {engaged} in evil deeds. 84. We have all rejected Christ before salvation and then changed our attitude at some point and trusted in Him as Savior. 85. Therefore, the blasphemy of the Spirit is an attitude that extends over a lifetime that rejects what the Holy Spirit has to say about Jesus Christ and can occur in any dispensation. 86. The blasphemy of the Spirit is a lifelong, antagonistic and hostile mental attitude towards the Holy Spirit s witness regarding the Person and Work of Christ at the point of hearing the Gospel for salvation and is not merely attributing the miracles of Christ to the devil. 87. If you reject Christ as Savior, you are rejecting in effect the witness of the Spirit and thus calling the Spirit a liar. 88. The blasphemy of the Spirit is a lifelong negative attitude towards the Spirit s work in common grace. 89. The problem was not that the Pharisees rejected the miracles and attributed His miracles to the kingdom of darkness but rather the problem was their negative attitude toward Christ. 90. It is not attributing the miracles to the kingdom of darkness that cannot be forgiven but rather the lifelong rejection of the Spirit s trustworthy witness concerning Christ at the point of hearing the Gospel for salvation. 91. This is why the Lord said that the blasphemy of the Spirit couldn t be forgiven. 92. Thirdly, is it any more blasphemous to reject Christ then as it is today? 93. Is it any more blasphemous to reject the Spirit s witness concerning Christ then as it is today? 94. Of course not! 95. Therefore, we can conclude that the blasphemy against the Spirit is not unique to the dispensation of the hypostatic union or 1st Advent of Christ since individuals are rejecting the Holy Spirit s witness of Christ at the point of hearing the Gospel for salvation even today in our day and age, thus it can and does occur in every dispensation of history! 96. The reason why the Lord said that rejection of the Spirit s witness concerning Himself is blasphemous, and not the rejection of Himself, is because the Holy Spirit is the member of the Trinity who convicts the unbeliever in common grace. 97. The Holy Spirit in common grace bears witness to the unbeliever that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 98. Common grace refers to that aspect of God s grace policy, which is directed towards the entire human race, without exception. 99. God the Holy Spirit convicts the unbeliever that he is a sinner and needs a Savior. 100. The Lord in His Upper Room Discourse mentions this principle. 101. John 16:7-11, But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. 102. The Holy Spirit in common grace takes the Gospel message and makes it understandable to the unbeliever so that they can either make the non-meritorious decision to believe in Jesus Christ as Savior or reject Him. 103. What is the gospel? 104. 1 Cor 15:1-4, Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. 105. It is the Holy Spirit, who takes the Gospel information that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried and was raised on the 3rd day according to the Scriptures. 106. When this is presented, then it is simple case of believing this information regarding the Lord Jesus. 107. Eph 1:13, In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. 108. We have to possess some information regarding Christ in order to believe in Him. 109. You can t believe in someone you have no knowledge of. 110. Therefore, it is essential that we present the Gospel accurately and concisely to the unbeliever because the Gospel is the power of God for salvation. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 10

111. Rom 1:16, For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 112. The Holy Spirit takes whatever truth is communicated to the unbeliever and makes it understandable so that they can make a decision for or against Christ as their Savior. 113. The unbeliever cannot understand the gospel message of Jesus Christ unless the Holy Spirit enables him. 114. A spiritually dead person cannot understand the things of God without the aid of the Holy Spirit in common grace. 115. This principle appears in 1 Corinthians 2:1-10. 116. A spiritually dead person needs help at salvation. 117. The Holy Spirit in common grace has to make spiritual information understandable to the spiritually dead person so that they can make a decision to either accept Christ as Savior or reject Him. 118. 2 Cor 6:1-2, And working together {with Him} we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain--for He says, "AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU." Behold, now is "THE ACCEPTABLE TIME," behold, now is "THE DAY OF SALVATION" 119. This process takes place over a lifetime until the unbeliever accepts Christ or they die. 120. There are no more opportunities after death. 121. Heb 9:27, And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this {comes} judgment. 122. Matthew 12:31-32, Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the {age} to come. 123. The word for blasphemy in Matthew 12:31 is the noun blasphemia. 124. It is a compound word composed of the following: (1) Verb blapto, to hurt, injure. (2) Noun pheme, speech, report. 125. Thus, the word literally means injurious speech or evil speech or report. 126. The classical meaning is evil speech, profane speech, defamation, or slander. 127. It is a word used to denote the strongest form of mockery or slander. 128. In reference to the Greek pantheon of gods, blasphemia is the misrepresentation of their true nature or power. 129. It is used consistently in the LXX for the defamation of the character and nature of God. 130. The word appears 20 times in the NT and refers to slander, defamation of character. 131. Thus, by rejecting the witness of the Holy Spirit concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, the unbeliever is in fact blaspheming or defaming the character of the Spirit. 132. The term Holy describes the Spirit s perfect character and integrity. 133. The unbeliever is in effect calling the Spirit a liar by rejecting His witness that they are a sinner and need a Savior and Jesus Christ is that Savior. 134. The Pharisees rejection of the Holy Spirit s witness regarding Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah and Savior of the world was a defamation of the character and integrity of God the Holy Spirit. 135. This is why our Lord calls the Pharisees rejection of Him as the Messiah as blaspheming the Spirit. 136. Also, I want you to notice the tense of the verb for the phrase it shall not be forgiven in verses 31 and 31. 137. The future tense of the verb aphiemi indicates the Pharisees sin would be judged at a future day meaning the Great White Throne Judgment mentioned in Revelation 20:11-15. 138. In both cases the future tense of the verb aphiemi is indicating clearly that the sin that the Pharisees were committing at that particular moment of attributing Christ s miracles to the devil rather than the Spirit was not the sin that was unpardonable. 139. If the so-called unpardonable sin was taking place at that moment, the Lord would have used the present tense meaning that the sin of the Pharisees of blaspheming the Spirit was not forgiven at that moment. 140. The future tense of the verb leaves room for repentance or a change of attitude by the Pharisees, which took place among many of them according to John 12:42 and Acts 15:5. 141. The only solution for this negative attitude towards the Spirit s witness concerning Christ was for the Pharisees to repent or change one s mind by believing in Him. 142. Their hostile and antagonistic attitude needed to be changed. 143. It is not a particular act that was the problem of the Pharisees but rather their blasphemous attitude, which was the root of their blasphemous actions. Attitude precedes action. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 11

144. This is why the Jewish leaders were told to repent or what it really says is that they were to change their minds about Christ. 145. Matt 3:2, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 146. Matt 4:17, From that time Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 147. Mark 1:14-15, Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. 148. The word for repent in each of these passages is the compound verb metanoeo, which is composed of 2 words: (a) Preposition meta, change. (b) Verb noeo, to exercise the mind. 149. The cognate noun of the verb noeo is nous, mind, attitude. 150. So literally this compound verb metanoeo in all of these passages means to change your attitude, or to change your mind. 151. The Pharisees had to change their attitude towards the Spirit s witness concerning the Lord Jesus. 152. When it says the kingdom of God is at hand it refers to the fact that their Jewish Messiah, the King Himself was in their midst and that they needed to change their attitude regarding Him. 153. The King and His kingdom cannot be separated they could have had the kingdom if the nation accepted as Messiah, but of course, they did not. 154. They needed to stop thinking of Jesus of Nazareth as the carpenter s son, a mere man and a threat to their ministry and to turn to Him as their Lord and Savior. 155. Yet, many of the Jews rejected the Spirit s witness regarding the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was indeed the promised Messiah that He was the Son of God. 156. His miracles were signs to the Jewish nation that He fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah, yet they attributed His miracles to the Enemy, Satan. 157. The Lord rebuked the Pharisees regarding their stubbornness in rejecting Him as Messiah even though He gave them many signs that He was the Messiah. 158. John 12:37-42, But though He had performed so many signs before them, {yet} they were not believing in Him. {This was} to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: "LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED? For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, HE HAS BLINDED THEIR EYES AND HE HARDENED THEIR HEART, SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYES AND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND BE CONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM. These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him. Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing {Him} for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue. 159. Now, I want to address one more important principle regarding this passage in Matthew 12:32. 160. Note the phrase in Matthew 12:32: either in this age or in the age to come. 161. It is very important for it indicates the time element involved in this eternal condemnation for blaspheming the Spirit. 162. This phrase clearly indicates that the rejection of Spirit s witness regarding the Person and Work of Christ will not be forgiven during the dispensation of the hypostatic union and in the future. 163. Thus implying that it not only took place during the 1st Advent of Christ but it will take place in future dispensations such as the church age, tribulation and millennial reign of Christ! 164. The translation in the age to come is a misleading translation. 165. A more accurate translation would be in the future. Why? 166. The usual word for age is aion, but it is not used here. 167. The phrase in the age to come is a prepositional phrase composed of the following: (a) Preposition en, in. (b) Dative masculine singular definite article to, the. Dative masculine singular present active participle form of the verb mello, which is mellonti, future. 168. The articular participle to mellonti is used substantively meaning the future. 169. This is what we call a locative of time or as some grammarians call a dative of time. 170. It indicates when the action of the main verb will take place. 171. So in the context of Matthew 12:32 the dative or locative of time indicates that the blasphemy of the Spirit will not be forgiven in the future as well as during the 1st Advent of Christ. 172. Thus implying that it is not unique to the 1st Advent of Christ but rather can take place in every dispensation after it. 2007 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 12