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Matt 12:31-32 31 Therefore I say to you: Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but the blasphemy of the Spirit shall not be forgiven.

32 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but he that shall speak against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come.

Is the Holy Spirit higher than GOD Matthew 28:19 - father-son-HS

Dottard
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another theory
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3 Answers3

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The NT makes an interesting claim about the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit in Matt 12:31, 32, Mark 3:28, 29, and Luke 12:8-10. This sin, it appears, cannot be forgiven.

And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. Matt 12:31, 32.

The question naturally arises: How is it possible that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven but blasphemy against Jesus can be forgiven? Does the Holy Spirit have some especially exalted status?

The problem here is not a matter of status but function of the Holy Spirit. Before dealing with this let us establish what blasphemy actually is. Generally it means (BDAG), “to speak in a disrespectful way that demeans, denigrates and maligns”. However, the NT provides a more precise meaning when God is involved.

In Matt 9:3, 26:65, Mark 2:7, 14:64, Luke 5:21, John 10:33-36, blasphemy means to claim to be God, or presume the prerogatives and function of God, that is to usurp the place of God (including the Holy Spirit), for example by presuming to forgive sins, Mark 2:7. Thus, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit would be usurping His place by presuming to have the function of the Holy Spirit (see above), namely, producing the fruit of the Spirit, trying to reform the life, acting as conscience for others, forgiving sins, trying to confer supernatural abilities on others, etc; all of which are the exclusive job of the Holy Spirit.

Now, if one is usurping the place of the Holy Spirit, then that effectively shuts out the essential work and influence of the Holy Spirit in the person’s life, thus excluding that person from spiritual perception or even the felt need to confess sin. Without the Holy Spirit, it is impossible to be a Christian (Rom 8:9).

Such a person is beyond the reach of the Holy Spirit’s miraculous work. The person then shuts himself away from heaven’s work and feels no need of salvation and becomes spiritually self-delusional. No wonder that forgiveness is excluded, not by God but by the actions and decisions of the person.

Dottard
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  • @Dottart This answer is a profound and spiritual reflection on its own, thanks for it, yet, it does not address the question, to wit: does the passage imply any hierarchy between the divine Persons of the Son and the Spirit, and if yes, why yes, and if not, why not (the author of the question put it rather awkwardly, but that is the gist of it, I guess). – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 12 '20 at 06:10
  • @LevanGigineishvili - I thought I had answered that question so I bolded the part to make it more obvious. The paragraphs following add more detail. – Dottard Aug 12 '20 at 07:08
  • A, ok, thanks for the clarification. Still this answer dodges the question of why can the insult to the Son be forgiven (apparently) whereas that to the H. Ghost - not (apparently), for it entails a notion of a hierarchy (apparently I mean, for in reality, of course there is not hierarchy in Trinity); this dilemma, which I thought was the gist of the question (perhaps wrongly) was not addressed by your penetrative answer. – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 12 '20 at 09:39
  • @LevanGigineishvili - quite right because, I agree there is no hierarchy in Trinity. Therefore, the solution must be sought in FUNCTION, not status. By crippling the work of the Spirit (by ignoring or banishing His work), no pleading with the conscience is possible. No forgiveness will be sought by the sinner and no need of salvation remains. – Dottard Aug 12 '20 at 10:26
  • But the very same holds with the crippling of the work of Logos in our hearts, so the dilemma remains put and unexplained. – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 12 '20 at 10:28
  • @LevanGigineishvili - quite right but the Bible never says that Jesus (the Logos) acts upon people's heats directly - it is done via the work of the Holy Spirit. Without the HS it is impossible to even be a Christian (Rom 8:9) – Dottard Aug 12 '20 at 10:31
  • @Dottart That's what I mean: only now have you started to address the question. Does not matter whether I agree or not, it is a separate question, but, again, also working of the HS is introduced into people's hearts by Jesus, for it is He who puts this working in them through providing them the logic; thus neither HS can enter our hearts without Logos, nor Logos' Incarnation perceived without Holy Spirit in total and equal and reciprocal mutuality, therefore still one has to explain why blasphemy on Incarnate Logos is forgivable, whereas on Holy Spirit - not. I try to explain exactly that. – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 12 '20 at 11:10
  • Good answer. John 10:37-38 and John 14:4-11. – Mike Borden Aug 12 '20 at 20:57
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Consider John 4:24 in relationship to Psalm 51:13 where we learn the Holy Spirit (Ruach Qadesh, ר֥וּחַ קָ֜דְשְׁ ) is the bond that joins us to YHVH.

[Psalm 51:13] "Do not cast me away from before You, and do not take Your holy spirit from me." (אַל־תַּשְׁלִיכֵ֥נִי מִלְּפָנֶ֑יךָ וְר֥וּחַ קָ֜דְשְׁךָ֗ אַל־תִּקַּ֥ח מִמֶּֽנִּי )

By rejecting the Holy Spirit, you would reject your relationship with the Father. This is why Simon (Peter) repents three times in John 21 to parallel the rejection of his bond to Yeshua, three times in Matthew 26.

חִידָה
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Probably, if considering the passage with precision, the question should be "Does Matthew 12:31-32 put Holy Spirit higher than Jesus, the Son of God, the God-Incarnate, for the passage claims that blasphemy against Jesus will be forgiven but the blasphemy against the Spirit - not?" - I guess this would be a precise formulation of the question.

Context is important and decisive here in attempt to crack this riddle: Jesus is slandered by Pharisees that He expels demons by the power of the head of the demons - Beelzebub. Jesus explains to them, appealing to their conscience, by establishing first the axiomatic premise that it is to be excluded as absurd that satan may fight against his own evil kingdom; and since expelling demons from a man is a definite sign of a fight against the evil kingdom of satan, then this cannot be done by satan or by any of his servants, given the first axiomatic premise. Since this is established, then only one possibility remains - Jesus is expelling demons by Holy Spirit. Thus, it is a blasphemy and slander against Holy Spirit to say that His (the Spirit's) deeds are deeds of satan. But it is a slander also against the Son, Jesus, so the question remains, why the slander against Holy Spirit is unforgivable whereas the same slander against Jesus can be forgivable?

The only solution of this dilemma is that before Jesus enlightens their consciences by this infallible logic (Matthew 12:25-28) they can be excused for holding wrong opinions agains Him, but after their consciences are instructed by the logic given by Jesus (which logic is in fact the working of Spirit upon their consciences) and even then they do not adhere to this working but remain unreceptive of it, then they have lost their only chance to change their mind (which is the very meaning of μετα-νοία - repentance) and remain unforgiven not by God, but by their own stupidity and stubbornness, for by sinning against the working of Spirit in the logic provided by Jesus, they sin agains their own consciousnesses, fulfilling the warning of Psalm 11:5 - "he that loves unrighteousness hates his own soul".

Thus, slander against Jesus can be forgiven only before Jesus still spares them from giving them a clear logic proving their wrongness, but after having provided this logic their slander neither against Jesus nor against the Holy Spirit will be forgiven, for by slandering Jesus they immediately necessarily also slander the Holy Spirit whose working Jesus introduces in their hearts by providing the truthful logic in their hearts, the logic that can save them from their wrong opinions. Since the Principle of this possibility for them to repent are Both Holy Spirit and Jesus (the Latter inciting the working of Spirit in their blinded consciences through giving them the salvific logic), then blasphemy and calumny of Both is unforgivable. For if one does not blaspheme the Holy Spirit and has conscience enlightened by Him, then he will necessarily also proclaim the Divinity, the Lordship of Jesus (1 Corinthians 12:3), by failing to do so, by slandering Jesus and anathematising Him calling Him the collaborator of satan, they slander also against Holy Spirit. Thus, Jesus tells them that slandering Him, is in fact slandering also the Holy Spirit immediately, and this cannot be forgiven.

But again, the principle of this unforgiving are not either Holy Spirit or Jesus, or Father, but human abuse of free choice in stubbornness and stupidity.

Levan Gigineishvili
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  • I have amended the question & quote as this appears to be the most used. none of the above really answer the question and arguably opens another question, what is the Holy spirit. Can anyone direct me to any questions as to what is HS? – another theory Aug 13 '20 at 11:45
  • @anothertheory Thanks, the emendation is pertinent. Better to ask not "what is the HS" but "who is the HS?", for according to the Gospels the HS has definite personal features of "searching" or "knowing" (1 Cor. 2:10), He advocates (John 14:10); has will (John 3:3) and is well-pleased (Acts 15:28). He is God, along with the Father and the Son, sharing the fullness of Godhead with the other Two and proceeds eternally from the Father (John 15:26). – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 13 '20 at 11:56
  • if only it was so simple - i just posted another question which may have some connection to HS in some opinions. https://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/49883/who-is-john-speaking-about-in-various-verses-such-as-john-120-21-25-27-nor – another theory Aug 13 '20 at 14:13
  • @another theory That HS is person is quite easy to discern from the Scripture (unless you wish to complicate things artificially at will), but to be born anew in Spirit, as Jesus tells Nicodemus (John 3), is indeed difficult and requires life-commitment. – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 13 '20 at 16:10
  • the HS being something that is given such as guidance, knowledge strength etc... would be the simple and logical explanation, not the trinity or HS is person, this makes it complicated hence such written about the HS only to justify a stance no matter how incompatible it is. see the above question, albeit it is closed the comments touch on this subject. – another theory Aug 15 '20 at 14:24
  • @anothertheory The theory of personhood of the Holy Ghost is impossible to deny according to the evidence of the H. Scriptures, which state that Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and is another Comforter (John 14:16), that is to say, "another" here means that Jesus (i.e. Logos Incarnate) is a Comforter and the H.Ghost is another such, bearing the same dignity (otherwise He would not be able to comfort the disciples); thus, if H. Ghost is anything less than person (for Logos is person) He would totally fail to comfort the disciples deprived of Christ, and many such arguments can be provided. – Levan Gigineishvili Aug 15 '20 at 21:11